How Soon Can I Go Running After LASIK Surgery?

    CHICAGO, IL, December 06, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- If you are interested in LASIK, chances are you want to improve your quality of life. Glasses are cumbersome and can interfere with common activities like exercise, making LASIK an ideal choice for professional and casual athletes alike. But if you are having this surgery to enhance comfort and performance both on and off the field, you want to know how long you'll need to wait after LASIK surgery to return to the activities you love.

Exercise after LASIK
People interested in understanding the benefits of LASIK for athletes are most often curious about how long exercise needs to be postponed following surgery. Most eye doctors agree that non-contact sports such as running, yoga, light to moderate weight lifting, and aerobics can be resumed as soon as you feel ready. For some patients, this may be as little as 24 hours. Others may wish to wait for one to two days. The bottom line is, LASIK should not interfere with your basic athletic pursuits.

Sports where the eye can become impacted - such as football, racquet sports, swimming, or watersports - should be avoided for about a month. This gives your eyes adequate time to heal, and minimizes the threat of impact or irritation. Many professional athletes choose to have LASIK surgery during the off season to give their eyes enough time to heal before returning to their game.

Keeping Fit While You Recover
Taking a small break from contact and watersports does not mean you have to become inactive. During your time off you can still engage in activities that increase cardio and build strength and flexibility. Your doctor will have suggestions on how you can remain active during your recovery period.

While you recover, you will have scheduled visits with your eye doctor to ensure everything is progressing as it should. If you plan on returning to sports that can impact your eyes, it is best to discuss this with your doctor during one of your visits. Your doctor will best be able to determine when it is appropriate for you to resume all of your normal activities.

Your doctor may suggest that you wear sports goggles or protective eyewear when you do return to your game. This is a good idea even for people who have not had LASIK as it helps protect your eyes from injury, and can extend good vision well into the future.

If you live in or around Chicago, or Arlington Heights, Illinois and are interested in learning more about LASIK eye surgery, please visit the website of Doctors for Visual Freedom for more information at http://www.doctorsforvisualfreedom.com/.

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