Cardio exercise provides well-documented health benefits to those who invest the time and energy. Your benefits include greater stamina, weight loss, improved mood, enhanced immune system function and reduced risk of many serious health conditions, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes, obesity and certain types of cancer. Cardio exercise can also contribute to your body's power to heal. Cardio enhances respiratory and cardiopulmonary fitness, which increases your capacity to deliver oxygen and nutrients to tissues. Cardio exercise can play an important role in your overall health and in your recovery from spinal fusion surgery.
Spinal Cord Injury
Your spinal cord consists of 33 separate bones, called vertebrae, stacked one atop the other. Vertebrae protect your spinal cord, a bundle of 31 pairs of nerves that carry messages between your brain and the rest of your body. Spongy discs between each vertebra act like shock absorbers and allow you to bend and twist your spine. Traumatic injury or deteriorative disease can damage discs or vertebrae and cause bone or cartilage to press against your spinal cord. This can cause severe pain and can potentially damage the spinal cord.
Spinal Fusion Surgery
Spinal fusion surgery aims to reduce pain and minimize risk of further spinal cord damage. During spinal fusion surgery, a surgeon connects two or more vertebrae to limit movement of the damaged vertebrae. The surgeon places bone grafts around the damaged vertebrae in your spine. Just as a fractured bone fuses together over time, the grafted bones fuse with nearby vertebrae, welding together the damaged and intact vertebrae. The fused vertebrae have limited rotation and movement, but provide greater stability and protection of the spinal cord.
Post-Surgery Recovery
Following surgery, it takes a couple of weeks for your skin to heal, a couple months for the muscles and surrounding tissues to heal and up to a year for the vertebrae to completely fuse. During the recovery, your surgeon will encourage you to avoid heavy lifting, twisting, bending and placing excessive strain on your back. Always consult with your surgeon and treatment team before beginning any kind of new exercise. Generally, gentle exercise assists healing and enhances recovery.
Recovery Cardio
You will likely participate in physical therapy during recovery. Repetitive, excessive movement in the area of the fusion can cause the fusion to fail. You need to be cautious to limit strain on your back and motion in the area of the fusion. Cardio exercise works large muscle groups in your lower body and provides excellent recovery exercise, the Spinal Fusion Alternative website reports. Limit cardio to low-impact exercise, such as fast walking and swimming. Water supports your weight and relieves pressure on the spinal cord, providing potential pain relief during recovery. Other low-impact cardio options include using an elliptical or a ski machine. Stationary cycling also provides safe, low-impact cardio. A recumbent stationary bicycle provides support for your back as you work out.
Post-Recovery Cardio
Once your vertebrae have fused, you can potentially do more intensive exercise, but you still need to minimize stress to your spinal cord. The fusion limits movement and places stress on adjacent vertebrae. Consult your surgeon and physical therapist to identify the exercise program that provides a safe total-body workout. Your medical professional might also suggest some resistance exercises that strengthen the muscles that support your back and spinal cord.
