Started Intermittent Fasting and have had totally unexpected mobility improvements

Everyday living
1

Hi,
I don’t post threads very often, but I wonder if this has happened to anyone else?
Sorry, it may be long as there’s a few things to explain.

  1. I had an enormous cyst removed (scraped out) of my groin at the beginning of June. So far, thanks to daily care - it is closing up and healing. My husband does the clean up at the weekend and my GP’s nurse does the weekday care (las curas).

  2. Pre-ops, weight (omg, how much?) waist measurement (even worse) and full blood tests. My right lung wasn’t inflating properly and the internal medicine specialist wanted to make sure it wasn’t TB. It turns out that the whole right side of my body wasn’t draining properly due to the cyst.

I thought it was the menopause - hot flushes, tiredness, but no, it was all due to this cyst.

So, on the 10th, I bought The Fast Diet by Michael Mosely and got stuck into doing this intermittent fasting properly. It has a calorie counter at the back (made easier to read by reducing the font size!).

We have Gazpacho soup in a big litre carton in most supermarkets here and it’s the basis of my diet. Gazpacho and cold poached chicken breast, etc, etc,. Raspberries and low-fat greek yoghourt (no cream :frowning: )

The weight is falling off, 6 kilos so far, but the really weird thing is that the lateral ligaments in both legs, which are very tight, are relaxing.
Coming down stairs was a hold-on to the handrail, one step, feet together, next step, same again. Suddenly, I could bend both legs and walk downstairs normally. This is the first time since 1999!

I’ve gone from a fairly high-fat/low carb Paleolithic/ ketogenic diet, to a very low calorie diet, with low carbs and low fats. Maybe Roy Swank had a point?
I don’t eat gluten as it makes my nerve pain worse and I don’t eat much carbs as I’m a high risk for type 2 diabetes.

I don’t understand how this works, but if it helps just one other person, then I’ll be even happier than I am already. I start Fampyra tomorrow and hope that it works.

It’s been weird, but great - however, my thoughts turn to chocolate at this time of day…sob…

2

My husband starts this diet every day … ! It is easy for him to fall off the wagon as he is not overweight. I am and maybe he is going on about it to try to push me into doing it but I truly feel extremely ill if I miss or even get late eating.

I have what was described as glucose intolerence but I describe it as low blood sugar.

Frequent fainting if I get late eating and add that to headaches from hell I am not keen on fasting.

Everytime I have had medical attention for fainting ( in the street etc ) my blood glucose has been < 3 often < 2

I would dearly love to lose weight, even more dearly love to walk well again.

Good luck I truly hope the improvement continues for you.

Ell

3

Oh dear, that would make this diet difficult, well nigh impossible. I have the opposite problem - too much of everything!

I really didn’t expect my legs to become bendier (if that’s a real word…?)

I was about to have an operation to partially cut through the later ligament on my right knee in 2000. It’s called a lateral release and just a week before the operation, I was diagnosed with MS and phew, I think I had a lucky escape.

I was scared of fasting. I’m not sure why, but I think it has had a lot to do with unsuccessful weight loss and a mortal fear of the scales.

There are a lot of diets out there. There’s a low-fat high carbohydrate diet (Ornish), Atkins (did quite well on that for a while), Paleo, (did quite well on that too) and I even tried a raw food diet for 7 months, which really reversed a lot of MS symptoms, fatigue, cognitive fatigue but I didn’t enjoy it.

I hope you find a good diet that helps you keep your blood sugars stable and helps you walk.

My right leg was shorter than the left (thanks, MS) and I would wear an ankle weight, which helped pull my heel down to the floor. I was rolling like a Weeble when I walked.

Since the fasting diet, I haven’t needed a leg weight.

It’s really odd. My right foot doesn’t know what to do with itself now!

Thanks for replying

xx

4

Hello Lapreguiceira,

I would love to be able to walk up or down the stairs by bending my legs and climbing from step to step. I am an active person, eat a low carbohydrate diet and low fat diet, eat lots of fruit and get out and about as much as possible. I keep myself physically and mentally active as possible

Sadly I do not believe that diet will suddenly reduce my stiffness or improve my balance so that I can throw away my ankle-foot orthosis, discard my MuSmate and completely ignore my rollator. I have tried LDN, but realised that it was not slowing down the steady but inevitable progress of the MS.

I could be a bit of a luddite and have little or no belief in the cures that are not medically proven.

If this works for you then I’m delighted and I really do hope the improvement continues. I also hope the Fampyra is successful. I am on the waiting list for FES treatment, this might make walking easier for me.

Regards,

Patrick

5

Hi Patrick,

I don’t believe in miracle cures either.

These improvements were quite unexpected and I haven’t a clue how to explain them.

I’m quite positive that they could disappear as fast as they arrive. Meanwhile, I’m enjoying the weightloss, well until about 4 in the afternoon, when I have to distract myself.

I hope the FES does help.

Best wishes,

K

ps I still can’t stand up for long. 10 minutes has me in agony and more brings on massive spasms. My right leg has very little nerve conductivity. I really hope the Fampyra helps that.

6

I used to have terrible joint pain for which i seeked medical help for a few years (physio etc) then tried osteo etc, nothing helped.

Then I started paleo and lost weight and the pain disappeared. I don’t know if it was the diet change or the weight loss but it was amazing to live without that pain. Weight loss has got to help joint pain though as less pressure on them.

Paleo doesn’t need to be a high fat low carb diet so you can do it in very different ways. I eat lots of fruit and sweet potatoes etc and always grill my meats.

7

You made me think, as I always feel rubbish after a meal, iv decided to try the 7day chemical diet, fruit meat eggs etched sounds ok, started today so to early to say, fruit for lunch (any amount) was great, feel like I’m eating more than normal, lol

8

This got me thinking, about a year ago I had a really bad dose of food poisoning which lasted a number of days and at the end of it all there was literally nothing left in my body! About a week after I recovered my legs suddenly felt “normal” again, this normal feeling only lasted a few days before the stiffness and limping came back but it has always made me wonder if the fact that everything in my body had been dispersed helped in some way, I know it’s not ideal to have food poisoning but it makes you wonder which foods in your body are not helping!

9

I discovered that if I fast for more than 3 days, then I run out of energy.

I had to stop for a week just to get the brainpower back to think straight!

I think for me, with having to lose weight and change my lipids, etc I can manage 2 days of fasting and then 2 of eating lots of things that I shouldn’t. Like my nemesis, Spanish artisan bread. Sounds, posh, but it’s normal for here.

It’s all become a bit confused as I started Fampyra 2 weeks ago. Today is my assessment day and I may even amaze my neuro by running few steps.

******** to NICE. When Fampyra works, it’s amazing.

abrazos,

K

10

hi, how long before fampyra kicked in, im on day 12, ive got more strength especially in arms but not walking better, legs

are heavy, but could be heat or ive just come off amitriptiline{gradually} yesterday. joy

11

Hope you don’t mind me asking but do you have to pay for your fampyra or are you on the months free trial at the mo? I asked for the free trial 6 months ago and have had a lot of hassle with neuro trying to get it!

12

I’m so sorry - I live in northwest Spain. There’s a few big hospitals, but our local hospital has one neuro, who is a lovely man. He asked for funding for Fampyra and Tysabri and got the go-ahead. It’s all very devolved to suit the local hospitals, yet there’s one, fully electronic appointments/prescriptions system for Galicia (that’s where I moved to).

I also have to wait for the mobile MRI scanner to arrive. Galicia has two and they are very good. There’s a long waiting list, unfortunately. If there is activity, then I can move onto Gilenya, which has been made a second-line treatment, unlike the UK.

re: joyj’s question - it took about a week to stop feeling dizzy and wobbly. My legs do still have good and bad days, but more good ones now. The timed test (2 weeks after start date) was today and I walked at twice the speed without a stick.

We’re off to the coast tomorrow and there’s a very steep hill down to the beach level at our favourite village. I’m hoping that I can manage to get up and down without having to stop for rests this time.

I couldn’t manage without amitriptyline. The pain is too fierce for that (neuropathic pain, that is).

best wishes,

K

13

amitriptyline is for trigeminal neuralgia which the fampyra has helped 50% ive also noticed am tablet helps where as pm

doesnt help

14

It’s odd that - I have the same reaction. I’m very glad that your trigeminal neuralgia is improving. I had it once as part of a relapse and it was hell.

I take Tegretol if the neuropathic pain gets too bad, but just a small dose.

I’m on the second day fast today and craving FOOD! I’ll be on a normal diet tomorrow, but with a lot of walking, so the pleasure centres of my brain will be happy. Toasted croissant and butter and marmalade and amazing coffee.

K

xx

15

enjoy, sounds tasty joy

16

I get a monthy magazine called natural health and this month it has an article of fasting. It recommends plenty of water and while you are on it you should bed rest. It is supposed to help reset the immune system - maybe this is the reason it has helped with your MS.

I am glad that fampaya is helping. I tried it last year and it didnt work. Neuro says it doesnt seem to help people like me whose main walking problem is due to spasticity. My strength is still there so I am going to try baclofen pump as it has been tried successfully in the states to help people with walking issues due to spasticity who still have plenty of strength.

Moyna xxx