Eight weeks and beyond

These come after the recovery period is over, and they are staged: the second is for when you have gained strength and are in control of the movement in the first. Before starting any programme, discuss it with your doctor or stoma care nurse.

Abdominal work

1. Lie on your back on a firm surface, knees bent, feet flat. Hands behind your neck, breathe in and pull your abdomen in. Breathe out while lifting your head off the surface. Hold for two seconds before slowly returning. Repeat 5–10 times. You can place your hands on your thighs or folded over your chest instead.
2. Once in control of that: same position, lift your head and “bicycle” your legs, pulling your abdomen in and pressing your back against the floor. Repeat 4–8 times.
3. With a ball: lie with your back on it, hands folded over your chest or behind your neck. Pull your abdomen in and lift your upper body as high as possible, breathing out while lifting. Lift and lower 8 times, rest, repeat.

Whole-corset work

Kneel on something soft with a chair in front of you and place your hands on it. Tighten your pelvis and abdomen, hold your back straight, and let your neck be a natural extension of your back. Keep the tension, straighten your knees and lift your body, resting on your elbows, hips stretched. Lower slowly. Repeat 5 times, gradually increasing.

The plank is done on the floor: lie supported by your elbows, knees and toes, tighten your pelvic floor and abdominal muscles, and lift so you are resting on toes and elbows with your body straight. Hold for a count of 5. Repeat 5 times. Over time, the aim is to hold the position for longer.

And the one on hands and knees: lift your right arm and left leg, body as long as possible, long neck, face pointing down. Hold, count slowly to 5, lower, and lift the other arm and leg. Pull your abdomen towards your spine and keep your back straight. Repeat 5 times in the beginning.

How fast to add repetitions

The answer comes in two forms, and both are conservative. One is per exercise, printed above — 5 to 10, 4 to 8, 8 and repeat, hold for a count of 5. The other is a rate of change: add more movements to each exercise every few days, starting with about 4, but do not go beyond 10 — and build the holding part of an exercise up to a maximum of 7 seconds.

Start with two sessions a day and then increase the number of sessions, rather than making any single session longer. The minimum for the same period is exercise at least twice a week, with longer walks now the recovery period is over.

The rest of the week

• Walking is the best exercise for maintenance of general fitness.
• When you can, swim or do exercises in water.
• Sit with your lumbar spine supported — a small cushion or rolled towel will do.
• For lower back ache, arch your back above your hands 7 times, after sitting a long time, gardening, heavy housework or long car journeys.

And the limit that outlasts everything else on this page: lifting heavy objects should not be attempted for three months after surgery — a good deal longer than the six to eight weeks the exercises themselves are staged over.