exercise

Hi all,

right, my back is getting weaker! after 50yds unassisted walking i am stooping to almost 90*

or standing to chop say an onion i’m virtually kissing the worktop half way through chopping!!

Anyway i saw a physio and i suggested the gym, he agreed and he showed me a ‘cross trainer & rowing machine’… sounds good but 1 great idea i thought was to get in a swimming pool upto just above your waste and just walk widths of the pool hence pushing through the water, good for my legs, back & balance which are some of my main symptoms!!!

apparently i can get refered to the local leisure center by my gp, i’m getting my own brand new mobility scooter tomo so be off to the gp asap and i can’t wait!!!

i’ll keep you posted how i get on, any suggestions for exercise welcome,

all for now

cheers

ben

Ben,

the walking in water is a good one actually, I was told before that is was something very helpful for hyper-mobility.

Good luck with it and I really hope you feel some improvements soon

Sonia x

I definitely found positive results from strengthening my core muscles (back and abdomen) and hope you do too, just take it slowly, I stupidly kept overdoing it causing more pain in the rest of my body.

Cath xx

I agree; walking in water is something I try and do once a fortnight; very good for core strength, and you don’t have to worry about your balance.

I also agree that rowing, x-training and cycling on a static spining bike are good; I do these 3 times a week on average. Best way is 10 minutes flat out on each three (as in serious puffing/panting, feel your heart going six to the dozen etc.). 5 minute stretching between each one, and maybe some light weights at the end. Without doing this regularly I would be in a mess.

When I went on holiday over the Summer and was not able to exercise for 10 days, I was in a really bad state; couldn’t sleep, non-stop muscles twitches, all round irritability. So my advice; stay active, whatever. And I mean the sort of active that makes you seriously sweat.

Hi, I think it is of course great if you can do it, but for those of us with Utthoff’s syndrome it’s just not possible As soon as my temperature goes up I get really ill and vision goes blurry and feels like huge needles are sticking in my back and I have to go to bed. Also of course fatigue makes even a small effort impossible. So although I agree with you I think it’s important to remember that many of us simply cannot do it. There’s enough guilt with this bloody disease without additional guilt of not being able to exercise. Nothing about MS IS ‘one size fits all’. Pat x

I’m with you on that Pat. I don’t know what Utthoff’s syndrome is but I’m not able to exercise for 10 minutes at full pelt either. I get hot and feel like I’m going to faint with exertion and my poor broken body doesn’t cope with strain. I do a few strengthening exercises with an elastic band a few times a week, I have one of those big inflatable balls with core exercises to do as well but I haven’t used it for a while as I fell off it onto my head, yes it’s possible, but I’d also not like to feel any more guilty for my lack of effort.

I think that to do any form of exercise that you’re able, being it full cardiovascular or gentle stretching of limbs is fine, we have enough to manage some days when just getting out of bed and into clothes is a workout too much. I think you’re marvellous Clucker to manage what you do, but for some of us that is history.

Take care everyone xx

Cath xx

Any sort of water exercise is no good for me because of my bladder. Going in the pool always makes you pee, doesn’t it? I need catheters but not out and about! Teresa xx

I too am unable to exercise, sadly. Ten years ago I could swim for 45 minutes. A couple of years ago I was still able to swim quite regularly for ten minutes or so …slowly but surely it began to have a terrible effect on me so I tried five minutes soon that took its toll too. I do believe if it’s possible exercise can be extremely helpful but as Pat , Cath and Teresa have said for some of us it is no longer possible. I loved to swim …it’s not laziness that has stopped me…it quite simply makes me more ill. Nina x

Yep, agree with Pat; after all, we are all different.

I just think it important to get into some sort of a habit/system when it comes to exercise. And, preferably, it will some sort of exercise that you find even mildly challenging.

The key is not to just sit back and passively accept. Imo.