*** OFFICIAL INGUINAL HERNIA RECOVERY Thread ***

[Ubiyca]

Doctor said I have a hernia that I can leave like this or get surgery. I tried working out get pains the next year. I guess nothing else I can do right?

Get surgery then.. nothing else you can do.

[ShoulderBrah]

It'll get better in time. Just focus on getting surgery and recovered for now. I've gotten way stronger since my hernia surgery. Trust me, you'll be fine. This is only a little bump in the road.

I was diagnosed and confirmed that I have Inguinal Hernia. I feel so frustrated, humiliating and depressed to know that I must stop my workout because of my upcoming surgery.

I hope you know what I feel. You know the feeling that your in the momentum, closer to your goals but then you have to stop because of this?

I need your words of encouragement guys. I want to continue and gain more.

[dreamshock]

Week 5 and 1 day. Feeling alot better, almsot pain free, pain is recuded by 60% after sex activity and yeah just bein fine with the surgery and recovery looks like, but other thing bothers me.Im gettin ache in the back and numbness in the hands.Looked for it into the internet and the first i got in it was herniated disc, which bothers me alot.The pain feels the same way as it did the last hernia. I hope its not another **** that will prevent me from lifting, finally feelin good and finally feelin that i can go back at lifting without this pain and now something like this might get in my way.Can it be because of the spinal anesthetic? I got both spinal and global anesthetic.If it keeps bothering me i will go to the doctor.

[supertom]

Great Thread bro, and some valuable information here, its inspiring to see that you made such a great recovery. Im in week 2 post surgery so Im pretty much through the thick of it, Just caught a cold and I think its developing into pnemonia so its back to the Doc for me tomorrow, fuk my life. Queston, when do the shooting cramps in your side go away? if ever

[Ubiyca]

I'm 8 weeks post op.

No probs but still have the bulge just below the incision.

Also after I workout bulge is noticeably bigger. Anyone else had the same thing? Can anyone relate?


Thanks

[ShoulderBrah]

I'm 8 weeks post op.

No probs but still have the bulge just below the incision.

Also after I workout bulge is noticeably bigger. Anyone else had the same thing? Can anyone relate?


Thanks

I never had any bulge. However, the left side pubic area near the base of the penis was swolen at times... still is 3 years later. only does that when I have exerted it a lot.

[netsfan549]

getting surgery in two weeks nervours after reading this thread lol

[Ubiyca]

I never had any bulge. However, the left side pubic area near the base of the penis was swolen at times... still is 3 years later. only does that when I have exerted it a lot.

Did you have a bulge pre-surgery?

[renzzy08]

It'll get better in time. Just focus on getting surgery and recovered for now. I've gotten way stronger since my hernia surgery. Trust me, you'll be fine. This is only a little bump in the road.

Thank you Shoulderbrah!

BTW I'm on my 17th day post-op and I feel great.

So here's my story. I had. Laparoscopic Inguinal Henia Repair last Oct 24. The first and second day post-op is the worst for me. I can't lift myself and I'm constipated by that time, my surgeon told me to just take stool softener and not laxatives and I don't know why though it works for me, I was able to poop on 3rd day but still it's hard for me to walk, I have to stoop, can't stand straight. 4th day, I feel much better than 1st-3rd day post-op. On my 5th day, I already tried to walk slowly outside for 15mins, the pain is still there and my abs is still little bit swollen. 6th day, walked again for 15mins and on 7th day I already feel great, I walked for 30mins I tried to Jog but there's still pain so I stopped haha. On my 10th day I already returned to work, I can walk normally but the pain is still there but it's tolerable. Now it's my 17th day, I feel so great. I did some light stretching and light lifting(10lbs). Did some curls and shoulder press, no pain at all. I'll take it slow. I'll give it a month or two before I go to my regular workout. I just hope I'm fully recovered already. can't wait to get back on track.

[netsfan549]

damm I was hoping to return to work on 5 day =(

[renzzy08]

damm I was hoping to return to work on 5 day =(

Actually, you could. Though, still depends whether you will undergo Laparoscopic or Open. Usually, laparoscopic heals faster than Open.
Everybody is different. Let pain be your guide. I work as a programmer so i sit all day but by that time, on my 5th day post-op, I couldn't sit too long yet so I decided to rest for more days luckily that week is a holiday week on our country so i decided to take more days to rest. Goodluck on your surgery. Prepare for first 3days post-op.

[netsfan549]

Actually, you could. Though, still depends whether you will undergo Laparoscopic or Open. Usually, laparoscopic heals faster than Open.
Everybody is different. Let pain be your guide. I work as a programmer so i sit all day but by that time, on my 5th day post-op, I couldn't sit too long yet so I decided to rest for more days luckily that week is a holiday week on our country so i decided to take more days to rest. Goodluck on your surgery. Prepare for first 3days post-op.

nice, i am studying that right now in college

[Phoenix989]

Three weeks until I get surgery. I'm going for the desarda surgery
I'm really looking forward to getting back to my normal routine after 6 months of this awful hernia. My family thinks I'm an idiot for taking the risk of surgery and say I should just stop lifting heavy. They can get bent, I'd rather take the risk of surgery than stop lifting.

I started training a bit before I get the surgery done, mostly upper body stuff. Weights are well down (pulldown at 30kg instead of 60kg) and I preferred the full body routine I did before to the split I'm doing now.
Did squats for the first time today. Didn't hurt at the time but really hurts now. Pre hernia I was doing 105kg , now I warmed up with the bar and did work sets at 25kg.

[renzzy08]

Three weeks until I get surgery. I'm going for the desarda surgery
I'm really looking forward to getting back to my normal routine after 6 months of this awful hernia. My family thinks I'm an idiot for taking the risk of surgery and say I should just stop lifting heavy. They can get bent, I'd rather take the risk of surgery than stop lifting.

I started training a bit before I get the surgery done, mostly upper body stuff. Weights are well down (pulldown at 30kg instead of 60kg) and I preferred the full body routine I did before to the split I'm doing now.
Did squats for the first time today. Didn't hurt at the time but really hurts now. Pre hernia I was doing 105kg , now I warmed up with the bar and did work sets at 25kg.

6 months? I think that's too long? My Doctor told me I could get back to working out after 3 weeks but it should be gradual, start from low weights. Well it depends on what type of procedure you'll take. I had Laparoscopic which is better I could say cause it heals faster and it has almost 0% recurrence rate of having hernia again.

I don't know but my Doctor said to avoid workout before I had my surgery that would aggravate the hernia like Deadlifts or Squats or any exercise that would hit the core hard cause it might worsen the hernia where it could get strangulated which will need immediate surgery.

Anyway, good luck on your surgery. BTW, what kind of surgery you'll undergo?

[netsfan549]

6 months? I think that's too long? My Doctor told me I could get back to working out after 3 weeks but it should be gradual, start from low weights. Well it depends on what type of procedure you'll take. I had Laparoscopic which is better I could say cause it heals faster and it has almost 0% recurrence rate of having hernia again.

I don't know but my Doctor said to avoid workout before I had my surgery that would aggravate the hernia like Deadlifts or Squats or any exercise that would hit the core hard cause it might worsen the hernia where it could get strangulated which will need immediate surgery.

Anyway, good luck on your surgery. BTW, what kind of surgery you'll undergo?

I should of asked my doc what surgery I am getting lol

[dreamshock]

Three weeks until I get surgery. I'm going for the desarda surgery
I'm really looking forward to getting back to my normal routine after 6 months of this awful hernia. My family thinks I'm an idiot for taking the risk of surgery and say I should just stop lifting heavy. They can get bent, I'd rather take the risk of surgery than stop lifting.

I started training a bit before I get the surgery done, mostly upper body stuff. Weights are well down (pulldown at 30kg instead of 60kg) and I preferred the full body routine I did before to the split I'm doing now.
Did squats for the first time today. Didn't hurt at the time but really hurts now. Pre hernia I was doing 105kg , now I warmed up with the bar and did work sets at 25kg.

Im with you bro, my parents said i should stop takin risk of liftin again, and they think im retarded to think that ill be able to lift again.Though, i am now 1 month and 21 days post my double sided open surgery and im feelin fine.I still get little ache by lifting my school bag for 5 minutes but its fine, sexual activity still does hurt but the pain is reduced.My doc said i can go back to gym at january which makes it 3 months, i think ill be fine to workout then starting from zero

[AlexSmirnoffN]

Just joined up and thought I'd give my two cents.

Got an inguinal hernia, literally right by the groin. Didn't hurt, but every now and again you could really feel it bulge. I would strongly recommend those who are 50/50 to just go ahead and get the surgery. One thing that did help was core exercises, especially targeting lower abs which is where the hernia was. Consultant said I helped the condition get better by training. Please also note that at no time was I told to stop weight training, he said carry on and use your body as signs whether to stop (for me it was hanging leg raises that really pushed the bulge out and was uncomfortable).

I manage to get keyhole surgery, and would recommend this over the open surgery!! Medicine has improved etc and it is much better and quicker route to recovery (so long as you take it easy chance of recurrence will be low I am sure). My timescales below:

Surgery: 21 October - signed off work for 2 weeks, with extra if I required it. Went home with friend, mates came over, cooked for me/FIFA 14 etc. Drugs were very nice, and pain was bearable.

Morning of 22 Oct - good luck in getting out of bed. No just raising yourself. I only managed to get out by literally rolling sideways and pushing myself upwards on my non-surgical side. Pretty much passed out and slept through the night. Took pain meds as you will require them at this stage. Good luck in walking upright...imagine those elderly people road signs...that was me for the next 5 days. In terms of pain, imagine stretching and then someone grating your injury at full stretch...that's what it felt like for me (well metaphorically...). Sleep was horrific the next couple of nights as weight was distributed evenly (damn gravity) and felt as if someone was pushing on the injury. To help yourself raise your legs and place pillows under your knees towards your quads. This helped a lot.

First week back to the gym - No legs, no core, low weights on upper body only, lots of walking on treadmill.

Following Monday 28 was my first day out, went shopping, given that I have about 9 flights of stairs to conquer I felt mission accomplished when i completed this task. Consultant also advised that I begin training, but to listen to my body as to how I feel.

Tuesday 29 - first day back at the gym, PT. Went for a walk on the runner, and did chest and shoulder presses. Very low weight (15kgs chest, 10 kgs on shoulders). then some more walking. All fine, just a constant dull ache. Ensure you keep breathing through your sets and don't strain and you will be fine.

Overall, pretty much exactly the same for the rest of the week, very low weights and only targeting upper body. Note I did not do any form of pull-ups or dips as this would stretch the area that had the injury, even with weight assists.

Week commencing 4 Nov - Spin classes, increased weights for upper body, back onto volume training, back to work

I got horrifically bored of walking and dabbled into the spin classes at the gym. Hills were OK to get up off the seat, but the sprints I stayed down and basically went as fast as possible. Increased weights onto chest and back onto the volume 10x10 training (20kgs DBs), all fine. Started to do dips and pull-ups assisted also on the 10x10s routine, slight niggles here and there but overall no pain.

This week, commencing 11 Nov - back to max at sprints, hit PB on chest, leg day Friday. Still no core as consultant has advised.

So had chest day with pullups, hit PBs on both on he 10x10 volume training. No issues with pain. Feeling happy I do have leg day on Friday, so will let you know how that goes as that will be the obvious culprit to know whether I am pretty much recovered or not. gather i will be just squatting the bar for the moment and taking it very slow as with everything else.

Additional comments:

Ensure you diet properly, get plenty of protein in you. I will admit I was bad in the first week, mates bringing chinese takeaways/meaty pizzas. A good nutrition is key to a good recovery. The following week I went back to my clean diet of chicken/turkey breasts, rice and lots of greens. Also went back onto the shakes.

If you were to have a meal after op, have a chilli con carne!! I can assure you you do NOT want to be blocked up. First trip took a good 20 mins following that lovely meal. Don't squeeze, let it come naturally. Following that it was OK (even with the junk food...I will consider myself lucky)!!

Depends where your hernia is, but expect bruising of your meat and veg. They will hurt and swell...but not to the extent of Randy from South Park (Medicinal Fried Chicken episode if you are wondering)

Let your body do the talking, but enjoy the weeks off. Game/watch bad TV/sleep lots, get your rest. Most of all take it easy and I wish you a speedy recovery!! Hope this gave some insight into what you can expect.

[renzzy08]

Just joined up and thought I'd give my two cents.

Got an inguinal hernia, literally right by the groin. Didn't hurt, but every now and again you could really feel it bulge. I would strongly recommend those who are 50/50 to just go ahead and get the surgery. One thing that did help was core exercises, especially targeting lower abs which is where the hernia was. Consultant said I helped the condition get better by training. Please also note that at no time was I told to stop weight training, he said carry on and use your body as signs whether to stop (for me it was hanging leg raises that really pushed the bulge out and was uncomfortable).

I manage to get keyhole surgery, and would recommend this over the open surgery!! Medicine has improved etc and it is much better and quicker route to recovery (so long as you take it easy chance of recurrence will be low I am sure). My timescales below:

Surgery: 21 October - signed off work for 2 weeks, with extra if I required it. Went home with friend, mates came over, cooked for me/FIFA 14 etc. Drugs were very nice, and pain was bearable.

Morning of 22 Oct - good luck in getting out of bed. No just raising yourself. I only managed to get out by literally rolling sideways and pushing myself upwards on my non-surgical side. Pretty much passed out and slept through the night. Took pain meds as you will require them at this stage. Good luck in walking upright...imagine those elderly people road signs...that was me for the next 5 days. In terms of pain, imagine stretching and then someone grating your injury at full stretch...that's what it felt like for me (well metaphorically...). Sleep was horrific the next couple of nights as weight was distributed evenly (damn gravity) and felt as if someone was pushing on the injury. To help yourself raise your legs and place pillows under your knees towards your quads. This helped a lot.

First week back to the gym - No legs, no core, low weights on upper body only, lots of walking on treadmill.

Following Monday 28 was my first day out, went shopping, given that I have about 9 flights of stairs to conquer I felt mission accomplished when i completed this task. Consultant also advised that I begin training, but to listen to my body as to how I feel.

Tuesday 29 - first day back at the gym, PT. Went for a walk on the runner, and did chest and shoulder presses. Very low weight (15kgs chest, 10 kgs on shoulders). then some more walking. All fine, just a constant dull ache. Ensure you keep breathing through your sets and don't strain and you will be fine.

Overall, pretty much exactly the same for the rest of the week, very low weights and only targeting upper body. Note I did not do any form of pull-ups or dips as this would stretch the area that had the injury, even with weight assists.

Week commencing 4 Nov - Spin classes, increased weights for upper body, back onto volume training, back to work

I got horrifically bored of walking and dabbled into the spin classes at the gym. Hills were OK to get up off the seat, but the sprints I stayed down and basically went as fast as possible. Increased weights onto chest and back onto the volume 10x10 training (20kgs DBs), all fine. Started to do dips and pull-ups assisted also on the 10x10s routine, slight niggles here and there but overall no pain.

This week, commencing 11 Nov - back to max at sprints, hit PB on chest, leg day Friday. Still no core as consultant has advised.

So had chest day with pullups, hit PBs on both on he 10x10 volume training. No issues with pain. Feeling happy I do have leg day on Friday, so will let you know how that goes as that will be the obvious culprit to know whether I am pretty much recovered or not. gather i will be just squatting the bar for the moment and taking it very slow as with everything else.

Additional comments:

Ensure you diet properly, get plenty of protein in you. I will admit I was bad in the first week, mates bringing chinese takeaways/meaty pizzas. A good nutrition is key to a good recovery. The following week I went back to my clean diet of chicken/turkey breasts, rice and lots of greens. Also went back onto the shakes.

If you were to have a meal after op, have a chilli con carne!! I can assure you you do NOT want to be blocked up. First trip took a good 20 mins following that lovely meal. Don't squeeze, let it come naturally. Following that it was OK (even with the junk food...I will consider myself lucky)!!

Depends where your hernia is, but expect bruising of your meat and veg. They will hurt and swell...but not to the extent of Randy from South Park (Medicinal Fried Chicken episode if you are wondering)

Let your body do the talking, but enjoy the weeks off. Game/watch bad TV/sleep lots, get your rest. Most of all take it easy and I wish you a speedy recovery!! Hope this gave some insight into what you can expect.

Wow. I'm envious of you bro. I'm already on my 3rd week post-op yet my surgeon doesn't allow me to weight lift until the 4th week but I'm feel like I'm already fully recovered. I want to start my usual workout though I'm scared that I might re-injure the surgery site. I think I just have to follow my doctor's advice. Actually before, my hernia doesn't bother me. It's painless and it's just small. Then two weeks later after my hernia appeared I already went to my doctor for check-up then voila it's an inguinal hernia(right). You're right, for those people whole undergo a surgery for inguinal hernia should go for Laparoscopic procedure. It's a bit pricy(though I'm covered by my Health Card, thank God) but it's worth it. Less time for recovery and cosmetic reasons also :P goodluck for those people whole undergo the surgery.

[netsfan549]

Any of you guys from jersey that got surgery done? I need a good doctor to get this surgery

[max219]

Hi, just got back from the dcotor and he confirmed that I have a minor inguinal hernia. I don't see the bulge but he felt it when he dug his finger in and I coughed. As of now my right testicles has a dull pain that comes and goes, and the general area and the testicle hurt when I move a certain way (lunge, leg lift, bend backwards while standing etc).

I don't have health insurance for a few months, so surgery is not an option yet. Can I do body weight exercises? How about machines. I don't want this to get worse, but I can't stand being sedentary.

I'll read through this thread when I have time.

[AlexSmirnoffN]

Wow. I'm envious of you bro. I'm already on my 3rd week post-op yet my surgeon doesn't allow me to weight lift until the 4th week but I'm feel like I'm already fully recovered. I want to start my usual workout though I'm scared that I might re-injure the surgery site. I think I just have to follow my doctor's advice. Actually before, my hernia doesn't bother me. It's painless and it's just small. Then two weeks later after my hernia appeared I already went to my doctor for check-up then voila it's an inguinal hernia(right). You're right, for those people whole undergo a surgery for inguinal hernia should go for Laparoscopic procedure. It's a bit pricy(though I'm covered by my Health Card, thank God) but it's worth it. Less time for recovery and cosmetic reasons also :P goodluck for those people whole undergo the surgery.

Sorry to hear man. I jsut did squats, clean and press (40kg, 30kg) and all was well, so going to up the weight next week. Again i could be very lucky tbh, so taking it very slow...given the weights haha! I live in the Uk, so it was covered by the NHS, I gather you are US based?the benefits of free-health care eh? still don't understand why the US doesn't have it! have to agree good luck to all having it, hope the above helped, but i would definitely recommend it! I dont know what your gym is like but get a PT tbh, mine is all PT based, so I have PT who has created a recovery workout, consultant told him about my injury site, what he expects etc, and I feel good tbh. Don't go mad, let your body do the talking !!

[Phoenix989]

6 months? I think that's too long? My Doctor told me I could get back to working out after 3 weeks but it should be gradual, start from low weights. Well it depends on what type of procedure you'll take. I had Laparoscopic which is better I could say cause it heals faster and it has almost 0% recurrence rate of having hernia again.

I don't know but my Doctor said to avoid workout before I had my surgery that would aggravate the hernia like Deadlifts or Squats or any exercise that would hit the core hard cause it might worsen the hernia where it could get strangulated which will need immediate surgery.

Anyway, good luck on your surgery. BTW, what kind of surgery you'll undergo?

Thank you,

Sorry, I didn't word it right. I've had it for 6 months. I was scheduled to have a mesh laparoscopic surgery a month ago but decided I don't want mesh. The surgery I'm getting is desarda technique which uses part of the oblique to cover the hole instead of mesh. I was told I can get back to lifting after 2 months adding weight gradually. I was also told not to overdo do it the first 8 months and if I lift too heavy I'll get recurrence. So I'll stick to 100lbs max and after 8 months I can really get down to business

[BabelFish]

Had a bilateral inguinal hernia repair done laparoscopically on Jan 24, 2012.

Week 1: pain meds helped a lot. Most discomfort came from bloating, and GI problems. slept in recliner first 3 days, then in bed.
Week 2: switched to tylenol extra strength, started walking, driving, shopping, etc...
Week 3: no more pain meds; still had soreness in the lower abs area from sleeping on my belly.
Week 4: resumed sexual activity; was a little painful but no big deal. Still having pain on the right side when sneezing, coughing, blowing nose (maybe from the internal staples being stretched).
Week 5: pain on lower right side of abs continues, waking me up in the middle of the night.
Week 6: acute pain on lower right side of abs, reproduced when stretching, sneezing, coughing, straining. Contacted surgeon and he said I might have a nerve entrapment (from staples or scar tissue). Recommended prescription strength NSAID with hot compresses over the pain area. Will follow this regimen for two weeks and report back.
Week 7: After two weeks of Rx strength NSAID, pain in right obliques/groin muscles decreased significantly. Still feeling slight pain 2-3 on a scale of 1-10, mostly comparable to oblique/lower abs DOMS. PS: NSAID screwed up my GI system, causing heartburn, reflux, and indigestion, and caused me some nervous system issues like anxiety, restlessness, panic, and irritability...
Week 8: DOMS-like symptoms in right oblique/lower abs/groin muscle continues...probably just from muscle trauma...I recall the surgeon telling me that they had a hard time ripping through my hard muscle tissue during the laparoscopy.
Week 9: DOMS-like discomfort continues
Week 10: DOMS-like discomfort continues. Vigorous sexual activity still causing some pain.
Week 11: Pain in right oblique/groin area continues. Intensifies during and after sex. Area bulges when bladder full or bowel full (similar symptoms to pre-surgery).
Week 12: Went back to surgeon. His statements: "You athletes have no f*cking fat so I had to staple the patches on muscle! This is probably pain from the staples being stretched. The repair is fine, the patches are in place, there is no re-occurence of any hernia, and you have rock solid abs. The bulge is probably just your full bladder because you're thin and ripped. Take more NSAID, do hot moist compresses, do stretching exercises, no abdominal workouts, get her on top during sex. It's been less than 3 months, it'll take time to heal completely. If no improvement, we'll try injections to numb the nerves".
Week 13-26: Went back to gym 3 months after surgery. Started from scratch, with focus on cardio, stretching, and low weights. Gradually increased weights for the next 3 months.
Week 27-52: 6 months after surgery and I'm back to 80% of my strength. I still occasionally feel discomfort and DOMS-like symptoms but a lot less than the first 3 months. Sexual activity still hurts (especially at climax); I'm seeing a urologist to see if it's bladder related.

Hey guys, sorry I haven't posted in a year but I do have good news. Basically, as I you can see from my notes above, I pretty much healed and went back to decent weights (80%) within 6 months of the surgery. The next 6 months of year 1, I still felt pain and aches such as DOMS, sex pain, groin pain, etc...So, in year two, I underwent all possible forms of medical testing and imaging and my PCP (an excellent female doctor) uncovered the problems and you'll be happy to know they're NOT hernia-related. The hernia repair was a 100% success. I had two problems that were causing my pains and aches:
1) Polyps in the urethra (wtf??) blocking urine flow and causing pain in the pelvic/lower ab area. Surgically removed. Problem sovled.
2) Groin and Left-Quadrant Pain are caused by left back nerve pain radiating to the front. Culprit: incorrect (and too much weight) military press, weak abs (ignore the 6-pack in my pic, it's just aestethic, my abs are ****in' weak), and bad habit of no warm-up sets along with undisciplined stretching. So, I'm now doing warm-up sets before, and stretching after any workout. No cutting corners, especially after 35 y/o.

Happy Thanksgiving.

[BloodyTearz]

Just had my inguinial sergury. Done on the 13th.
I guess i can say its been 2 weeks of stress.
Honestly the first 4 days was feeling like I was getting stabbed, the pain killers onky helped a little. On my 6. Day was when I was able to walk normally ( but with caution).

So for now 1 month off from work , and 6 weeks until I see weights and a treadmill again.

My eating has stayed the same, and protien intake.
Just trying to lower my calories and carbs since im just home.


Only uncomfortable feeling ive been having is pain on my groin. But the doctor said thats normall. It will go away after a while fml.


Im justv glad got this over with after years of fear.
Being that it was my first sergury.

[BloodyTearz]

Just joined up and thought I'd give my two cents.

Got an inguinal hernia, literally right by the groin. Didn't hurt, but every now and again you could really feel it bulge. I would strongly recommend those who are 50/50 to just go ahead and get the surgery. One thing that did help was core exercises, especially targeting lower abs which is where the hernia was. Consultant said I helped the condition get better by training. Please also note that at no time was I told to stop weights training, he said carry on and use your body as signs whether to stop (for me it was hanging leg raises that really pushed the bulge out and was uncomfortable).

I manage to get keyhole surgery, and would recommend this over the open surgery!! Medicine has improved etc and it is much better and quicker route to recovery (so long as you take it easy chance of recurrence will be low I am sure). My timescales below:

Surgery: 21 October - signed off work for 2 weeks, with extra if I required it. Went home with friend, mates came over, cooked for me/FIFA 14 etc. Drugs were very nice, and pain was bearable.

Morning of 22 Oct - good luck in getting out of bed. No just raising yourself. I only managed to get out by literally rolling sideways and pushing myself upwards on my non-surgical side. Pretty much passed out and slept through the night. Took pain meds as you will require them at this stage. Good luck in walking upright...imagine those elderly people road signs...that was me for the next 5 days. In terms of pain, imagine stretching and then someone grating your injury at full stretch...that's what it felt like for me (well metaphorically...). Sleep was horrific the next couple of nights as weight was distributed evenly (damn gravity) and felt as if someone was pushing on the injury. To help yourself raise your legs and place pillows under your knees towards your quads. This helped a lot.

First week back to the gym - No legs, no core, low weights on upper body only, lots of walking on treadmill.

Following Monday 28 was my first day out, went shopping, given that I have about 9 flights of stairs to conquer I felt mission accomplished when i completed this task. Consultant also advised that I begin training, but to listen to my body as to how I feel.

Tuesday 29 - first day back at the gym, PT. Went for a walk on the runner, and did chest and shoulder presses. Very low weight (15kgs chest, 10 kgs on shoulders). then some more walking. All fine, just a constant dull ache. Ensure you keep breathing through your sets and don't strain and you will be fine.

Overall, pretty much exactly the same for the rest of the week, very low weights and only targeting upper body. Note I did not do any form of pull-ups or dips as this would stretch the area that had the injury, even with weight assists.

Week commencing 4 Nov - Spin classes, increased weights for upper body, back onto volume training, back to work

I got horrifically bored of walking and dabbled into the spin classes at the gym. Hills were OK to get up off the seat, but the sprints I stayed down and basically went as fast as possible. Increased weights onto chest and back onto the volume 10x10 training (20kgs DBs), all fine. Started to do dips and pull-ups assisted also on the 10x10s routine, slight niggles here and there but overall no pain.

This week, commencing 11 Nov - back to max at sprints, hit PB on chest, leg day Friday. Still no core as consultant has advised.

So had chest day with pullups, hit PBs on both on he 10x10 volume training. No issues with pain. Feeling happy I do have leg day on Friday, so will let you know how that goes as that will be the obvious culprit to know whether I am pretty much recovered or not. gather i will be just squatting the bar for the moment and taking it very slow as with everything else.

Additional comments:

Ensure you diet properly, get plenty of protein in you. I will admit I was bad in the first week, mates bringing chinese takeaways/meaty pizzas. A good nutrition is key to a good recovery. The following week I went back to my clean diet of chicken/turkey breasts, rice and lots of greens. Also went back onto the shakes.

If you were to have a meal after op, have a chilli con carne!! I can assure you you do NOT want to be blocked up. First trip took a good 20 mins following that lovely meal. Don't squeeze, let it come naturally. Following that it was OK (even with the junk food...I will consider myself lucky)!!

Depends where your hernia is, but expect bruising of your meat and veg. They will hurt and swell...but not to the extent of Randy from South Park (Medicinal Fried Chicken episode if you are wondering)

Let your body do the talking, but enjoy the weeks off. Game/watch bad TV/sleep lots, get your rest. Most of all take it easy and I wish you a speedy recovery!! Hope this gave some insight into what you can expect.

That was a quick return to the gym ( great motivation).
Unfortunatly I cant go back 3 weeks after sergury.
It was an open one and with a mesh over it.
So stressing.

[ShoulderBrah]

Hey guys, sorry I haven't posted in a year but I do have good news. Basically, as I you can see from my notes above, I pretty much healed and went back to decent weights (80%) within 6 months of the surgery. The next 6 months of year 1, I still felt pain and aches such as DOMS, sex pain, groin pain, etc...So, in year two, I underwent all possible forms of medical testing and imaging and my PCP (an excellent female doctor) uncovered the problems and you'll be happy to know they're NOT hernia-related. The hernia repair was a 100% success. I had two problems that were causing my pains and aches:
1) Polyps in the urethra (wtf??) blocking urine flow and causing pain in the pelvic/lower ab area. Surgically removed. Problem sovled.
2) Groin and Left-Quadrant Pain are caused by left back nerve pain radiating to the front. Culprit: incorrect (and too much weight) military press, weak abs (ignore the 6-pack in my pic, it's just aestethic, my abs are ****in' weak), and bad habit of no warm-up sets along with undisciplined stretching. So, I'm now doing warm-up sets before, and stretching after any workout. No cutting corners, especially after 35 y/o.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving man. Glad everything is doing better with the hernia. Sucks about the other complications. I hope everything gets back 100%.

[WestLondonLad]

Hey ShoulderBrah. I just want to say what an asset you are to everyone and wanted to tell you that threads like yours can be an absolute godsend to somebody who has just discovered the condition and starting to research about it. When people come across a thread like this they know they have found 'the one' and are comforted by the fact that they can read about someones own experience who knows what they are going through and not only that, you also offer a personal touch which is just what is needed sometimes.

I'm going through my own personal problem but its due to a varicocele and I now require a microsurgical inguinal varicoelectomy. Though there are a lot of threads here about this and some very informative and kind posters giving there experiences, I wish there was a thread like this. I have used some of the information here like recovery times and stuff as the incision site and size is about the same. I didn't read through every page here so I hope you are fully recovered now brah. Thank you for caring.

[2010JW]

fml. Today I was just doing schoolwork as normal when I moved and I felt some discomfort in my groin area. I went to the restroom to check myself and I felt a little bump in the groin area, hernia came into my mind but I ignored it a bit until I went to lift today, while doing bench i felt little discomfort in my lower abdomen, and I went to check to see if it had happened to anyone, I researched and found this thread, and all the signs pointed to inguinal hernia.

cant believe this man, was barely going strong into my lifts and bulk and now this happens, feels like ****. gonna make an appointment with my doctor to see what the fukc i have >.<

[PAP123]

Has anyone out there ever experienced regrettable consequences from continuing to lift until surgery, after being diagnosed with an inguinal hernia? If so, what have been your personal experiences? Just came up with a double and want to push the surgery off until the spring.

PAP

[ShoulderBrah]

Hey ShoulderBrah. I just want to say what an asset you are to everyone and wanted to tell you that threads like yours can be an absolute godsend to somebody who has just discovered the condition and starting to research about it. When people come across a thread like this they know they have found 'the one' and are comforted by the fact that they can read about someones own experience who knows what they are going through and not only that, you also offer a personal touch which is just what is needed sometimes.

I'm going through my own personal problem but its due to a varicocele and I now require a microsurgical inguinal varicoelectomy. Though there are a lot of threads here about this and some very informative and kind posters giving there experiences, I wish there was a thread like this. I have used some of the information here like recovery times and stuff as the incision site and size is about the same. I didn't read through every page here so I hope you are fully recovered now brah. Thank you for caring.

Thanks man. Yes.. I am fully recovered. Everything is going great. I hope you find good answers for your situation along with a speedy recovery. Take it easy. Good luck.