I disagree. Arnold was in the gym the day after taking his staples, he lifts heavy weight and his scar did not stretch. I also was in the gym one week after my staples were out (I don't do heavy weights) and my didn't stretch either. I know everyone is different.
Matthew I know that you had one session and a scar revision, and are going in for one more session. Why couldn't you wait until your second session then recieved a scar revision if neccessary? I believe a scar revision is best for a patient when they have no more procedures (maybe I am wrong).

Lorenzo

As a weightlifter and someone considering an HT, this is important info to know. I would have thought the time-off period to be 2 or 3 weeks. But 3 months...

There seems to be debate as to whether it's the increase in blood pressure or movement of the scalp as the cause of scar stretching. Do any doctors know?

It would be difficult for me to stay away from weights for so long.

I really don't think you need to wait 3 months. I would wait at least a month, and then when you do return to lifting, start by using light weights and high reps so that you can at least maintain your current level of fitness. I found situps to cause the most pull on the donor scar so you might want to wait a little longer for these. Arfy also brought up an interesting point about how multi-joint exercises such as the leg press can cause a spike in blood pressure, and I tend to agree with him. Reducing the intesity i.e. weight being moved can help lessen it.

I think it depends on the tension on the scar. If after the number of weeks recommended by your Dr you have no pain after a full day of regular activity you should increase your activity gradually until you notice some discomfort.
I personally did not do anything for 4 months and then tried painting the kitchen (13' walls). Next day my scar hurt!
At 5 months I started a tiling project and even had some discomfort on the sides of my head on days that I was working extra hard.

I have to believe that 3 months is too soon to be lifting weights and working out 100%. Not worth the risk.

So scar stretching is something you can feel while you're doing? Or when you get home after a physical job or working out and check out your scar in the mirror and notice that it's now wider?

You are not going to see stretch in one day or one week, however if you really put stress on the scar line you will feel tension/pain which could mean you may be contributing to stretching.
Some scars are going to stretch no matter how cautious you are but there are cases where too much too soon could turn a good job bad.

Well i can bench pretty good for my little size. I highly suggest you donot bench or anything for at least a month. I did cardio after the stpales were removed after the scar fix, casue i know the pain i went through. never again. Now i do have naother Ht coming up in may so i'm at the gym harder then normal. casue i know after wards it's at least a month of no hevay lifting. i donot tolerate pain well so going through another HT basically to fix something that shoudl have not happened if i listen to what he said, proved the point.

While technique in the final closing of the donor area is very important, so is what's done prior. The tissue beneath has to dealt with properly for the best result. Dr.Wong explained to me that he does an initial pass with sutures before the final closing with staples.

I have to believe that this is the reason my donor scar is pretty much invisible and that I have no discomfort in the area.

UNC

"TEMPLES 'n CROWNS Forever!"

Uncjim's Journey

Ok, if we put aside weight traing, how about other forms of excecise? Say Yoga, or Pilates? I think a good streach is vital these days!

Also, any ball player out there? I play 5 a side soccer, which I guess is pretty simalr in the sorts of twist / turn impact injurys to basket ball? How long would you lay of that?

I have to admit after my first ht it was sugested to me that I could return to light exercise after 4 days, which I did! I think a gym where your movemets are very controlled and your head raised would probaly be ok?

As far as I undersatnd it the gafts should be secure after a week, and the donor site should be resonaly healed after two. I would probaly start all my routnines after this time unless advised otherwise by my next ht doc?

Although I'm not a hair transplant surgeon, I am a doctor, and I have to say that weight lifting, increasing blood pressure, etc. after the stitches are removed should not cause stretching of the scar, as long as the scar area does not physically stretch, and as long as you are relatively healthy. So bench presses should not be a problem, as long as you don't yank your head to one side or another.

In terms of blood pressure, as long as your BP is not ridiculously out of control when you do activity (which may occur in people who have preexisting high blood pressure who have not been taking their BP meds), you should be fine. Which means most of you shouldn't worry, because I think people who are that disciplined to be worried about not lifting weights for a few weeks usually are pretty healthy and disciplined enough to take their medications, if they have any, on a regular basis.

Scars reach over 85% of their maximum tensile strength 6 weeks after the wound is created. So I would avoid having that area physically stretched for around 2 months. But weight lifting before then should not be a problem.

That being said, I personally am going to hold off on weight lifting for 1 month post-procedure--not because I think weight lifting itself would cause stretching, but because I think I personally in the midst of lifting forget that I had a procedure and possibly would yank my head to one side and cause physical stretching. BTW, I had my procedure done with Dr. Rose 2 weeks ago and had a fantastic experience.

Thank you Dr Argh! What do you think about the following. When I sleep I often lay on my chest and my head is turned 90 degrees so that either the left side or the right side rests on my pillow. Could this 90 degree twist of my head cause my scar to stretch?

ARGH said:
"weight lifting, increasing blood pressure, etc. after the stitches are removed should not cause stretching of the scar."


This is complete misinformation. Any cosmetic surgeon emphasizes how important it is not to engage in strenuous exercise post surgery; hair surgeons don't espouse this same admonishment for their OWN health; it's for the patient's! The sad reality is that one need not exercise to have one's scar stretched -- some people simply are "stretchers" (even with good laxity) while others aren't. It is totally reckless to begin lifting weights after h.t. surgery and is BEGGING for trouble.


"Which means most of you shouldn't worry"

This is bullshit. It is extremely assinine and misguided to risk the results of surgery.


"Scars reach over 85% of their maximum tensile strength 6 weeks after the wound is created. So I would avoid having that area physically stretched for around 2 months. But weight lifting before then should not be a problem."


MORE MISINFORMATION! Scars can stretch over the period of one's entire life so ARGH, why in the hell would you encourage patients to lift weights less than two months after surgery? I question your judgement and seeing that you have 2 weeks of personal experience, could you please resist dumping your "expert" opinion on people that actually give a shit about their results?


"That being said, I personally am going to hold off on weight lifting for 1 month post-procedure"

Do you find surgery to be fun? Cheap? Harmless? Convenient? I would suggest reconsidering your position on weight lifting unless you enjoy being operated on, throwing your money away and enduring all of the other inconveniences that are associated with h.t.'s and scar revisions.

Its grossly irresponsible for you to offer a regimen to people when you have no experience yourself. If you insist on lifting weights 1 month after surgery, HOW ABOUT DOING IT FIRST, and then reporting your findings? Hey, I have an idea. I feel like going for a swim...let me piss my pants -- NOTE: this actually works well 85% of the time as long as it is done 6 weeks after! Commenting on post surgical care should probably be reserved for people who are veterans of surgery and have some experience to draw from lest we pollute the stream we drink from.

woud keeping the staples in a bit longer help? especially if its really tight or your a "stretcher"

quote:

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Originally posted by HairWeGo:
woud keeping the staples in a bit longer help? especially if its really tight or your a "stretcher"

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I am not an expert but I know the basics. Keeping stitches in for a couple of extra weeks may make a difference (especially if you are predisposed to stretching) but it won't prevent the scar from stretching over the course of your life; however, some people's scars never seem to stretch and instead constrict over time. Predicting whether a scar will stretch is not hard and fast science, its merely nature.

quote:

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WHAT?

ARGH said:
"weight lifting, increasing blood pressure, etc. after the stitches are removed should not cause stretching of the scar."


This is complete misinformation. Any cosmetic surgeon emphasizes how important it is not to engage in strenuous exercise post surgery; hair surgeons don't espouse this same admonishment for their OWN health; it's for the patient's! The sad reality is that one need not exercise to have one's scar stretched -- some people simply are "stretchers" (even with good laxity) while others aren't. It is totally reckless to begin lifting weights after h.t. surgery and is BEGGING for trouble.


"Which means most of you shouldn't worry"

This is bullshit. It is extremely assinine and misguided to risk the results of surgery.


"Scars reach over 85% of their maximum tensile strength 6 weeks after the wound is created. So I would avoid having that area physically stretched for around 2 months. But weight lifting before then should not be a problem."


MORE MISINFORMATION! Scars can stretch over the period of one's entire life so ARGH, why in the hell would you encourage patients to lift weights less than two months after surgery? I question your judgement and seeing that you have 2 weeks of personal experience, could you please resist dumping your "expert" opinion on people that actually give a shit about their results?


"That being said, I personally am going to hold off on weight lifting for 1 month post-procedure"

Do you find surgery to be fun? Cheap? Harmless? Convenient? I would suggest reconsidering your position on weight lifting unless you enjoy being operated on, throwing your money away and enduring all of the other inconveniences that are associated with h.t.'s and scar revisions.

Its grossly irresponsible for you to offer a regimen to people when you have no experience yourself. If you insist on lifting weights 1 month after surgery, HOW ABOUT DOING IT FIRST, and then reporting your findings? Hey, I have an idea. I feel like going for a swim...let me piss my pants -- NOTE: this actually works well 85% of the time as long as it is done 6 weeks after! Commenting on post surgical care should probably be reserved for people who are veterans of surgery and have some experience to draw from lest we pollute the stream we drink from.

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Big1,

I debated whether to reply to your immature post, but I've decided to do so to prevent any misinformation from spreading.

While you are right to say that a scar can stretch throughout your lifetime, so will everything else on your body. While a scar never will be as strong as your regular skin, by 6 weeks time it should reach > 85% tensile strength (backed by research).

While increased blood pressure does impair wound healing, this is in uncontrolled hypertension (sustained elevations in BP which does not occur in normal individuals). Now for a healthy individual, while exercise does raise BP, it most likely would not be raised to such levels at sustained periods of time. Would I risk heavy, heavy lifting (ie: squats) for prolonged periods of time? Probably not, but that is personal preference rather than based in medical science.

Please don't make assumptions. I've had 2 HT procedures, followed by one donor scar revision, followed by this recent HT procedure, all on the same donor area. After my 2nd HT, my donor scar stretched (I was not weight lifting at the time, and did not start until a year post-procedure). Then I had my donor scar revision and started lifting weights 1 month afterwards--NO stretching of the donor scar occurred. Now I've had this recent HT procedure and plan to do the same regimen.

Am I telling you that you should start weight-lifting as soon as the stitches come off? No, not at all. I personally would wait 1-2 months and even then try to avoid stretching the area. There is no medical study specifically targeting the effects of weight lifting on donor scar stretching (I looked), so there can be no firm recommendations that can be made. Doctors' opinions vary, based upon their take on the medical literature and based upon their own experiences and biases. That's why you oftentimes hear a wide range of opinions.

I would of course err on the safe side, but that doesn't mean you should go ahead and lock yourself away, not doing any activity for 2 years post procedure. For me personally, I think that 1-2 months is plenty of time to wait before lifting weights again.

"I've decided to do so to prevent any misinformation from spreading."

Me too.


"While increased blood pressure does impair wound healing, this is in uncontrolled hypertension (sustained elevations in BP which does not occur in normal individuals)."

Increased blood pressure is a consequence of exercise (if you're doing it right).



"Now for a healthy individual, while exercise does raise BP, it most likely would not be raised to such levels at sustained periods of time.
There is no medical study specifically targeting the effects of weight lifting on donor scar stretching (I looked), so there can be no firm recommendations that can be made."



You said that there isn't any documentation --"you looked"; how do you know that a scar doesn't stretch unless one engages in sustained periods of exercise?


"Please don't make assumptions."

Got me there. Sorry.


"Then I had my donor scar revision and started lifting weights 1 month afterwards"


This may or may not have been poor judgement. I hope your scar has improved.


"Now I've had this recent HT procedure and plan to do the same regimen."

Good luck.