Exercise

Exercise

Okay, you’re taking your meds and you feel sh**ty. Well, the Ribavirin is robbing you of your oxygen, but not all. You still have enough left to do what you need to. Weight lifting, jogging, swimming, all help to keep your immune system strong during and off treatment.

In my example, I have a free standing gym with 220 lbs. of weights. I work out with 55 lbs. I do 75 reps of pushing the bar straight out in front of me while sitting. On treatment, I pulled back to 50 reps. I do 30 butterflies with the same weights. During treatment, 20 reps, and so on.

The Gastro said it IS important to exercise during treatment. I know it’s the last thing you want to do, but the rewards are worth every rep you do. So, in the face of this enemy we’re trying to kill, let not the enemy win by being complacent and forgetting your entire exercise program (whatever it may be), but instead, bite the bullet and stay strong. An enemy hates a strong adversary...

Magnum

[susan400]

Whenever I finally treat again, I plan to continue to do some exercise, but not to the same intensity that I do now.  I will definitely need to slow down on the cardio due to the lack of oxygenation from the anemia.  But, I can still do the treadmill, just at a slower speed and stationary bike, slower speed.  On the nautilus equipment that I would do at the gym, I'd cut back from 3 sets of 12 reps to like 2 sets of 8 reps and drop some of the amount of weight, too.  That's my tenative plan for whenever that next tx happens.  If I'm doing great and can handle more, than I will, but if I'm very anemic it may be all I can handle.  It's a wait & see...  Susan400

[GSDgirl]

You go, both of you!!!  Ya'll are better than I am and I am 3 years out of TX.  Good Luck!

Denise

[uncledudeness]

i'm 6 weeks into tx and my hgb is dropping like a rock. my NP said that i should continue to do light exercise if possible. i understand that low RBC's and anemia can increase your chances of heart attack or stroke....i'm a bit confused and worried to do any exercising at this point. i walk up a flight of stairs and i almost black out. my right thumb is in great shape from channel surfing. does that count?

[Bali05]

Could not agree more . I am on wk40 and I do 40 min. on my stationary bike and
some sit ups and push ups at least every other day.
I use a heart rate monitor.

[Magnum]

It would be better if you actually went surfing. Wax your board...

Magnum

[RobertBeWell]

Right on Magnum, good post.

I'm not lifting right now during treatment (I've been a weightlifter all my life though), however, I have upped my cardio to 5 days a week. I tried staying on the weights early on, but found I have a hard time striking a balance - I'm used to blowing it out in the gym, and I don't feel good when I haven't. So, I'd end up trying to do my normal routine, and feeling crappy for a week.

I personally find that 1/2 an hour a day of either elliptical, swimming, biking, or hiking is perfect for me while on tx. Just enough to work up a sweat and get the heart rate up. I try to do a variety of each week. Fortunately, I live in a desert climate that allows me outdoor exercise year round.

It's important to remember to strike a balance with exercise while on treatment. Too much wears you down, and you want maximum energy and vitality available for the immune system to use.

[working dog]

when i tx i plan on light exercise...it seems i've noticed over the years here the folks that over exercise seem to not cure as well.(i could be wrong on that)..i keep my eye on this because i really like my exercise....i know i just can't exercise like i use to...i don't think it's just age either...when i was in florida last winter for 5 months my all my blood tests were much better..i got lots of sleep and only exercised on bikes and stuff...but when i work all day and exercise a lot at night i have to watch out or sx will show up...i think lots of exercise is risky and its better to hold off until after tx....billy

[spectda]

I exercised until my hgb really tanked. Do what your body tells you. If you are having trouble getting your breath and you are dizzy I think exercise is not the best idea.  My body has a hard time with a few minute walk these days.

Before tx I rode my road bike or mountain bike in the park most days of the week and did a bit of light lifting several times a week. I am looking forward to being able to do that again.

- Dave

[Bali05]

it makes a big difference if you were used to excersising before tx
you know your body and how it reacts.
i thought about it in the beginning if excersise might negatively impact
tx but i decided that staying in shape is paramount because there is no garantee for SVR
and once tx is over life goes on one way or another.....
My hepatologist is telling me that I am tolerating the meds very well and I believe
excersise and diet play a big role in that for me.

[Susan_1a_CC]

I feel better both mentally and physically when I exercise but found that my normal routine took too much out of me for the day.  So, now I get my exercise in my daily activities - like 4 hours of gardening today.  The bonus there is the sunshine!  

  

[R Glass]

We’re back to the sx being different for everyone. I truly believe if I had tried to work out during TX, it would have Literally Killed me.

[merryBe]

yes R Glass hit it, it depends entirely on the condition to begin with.

and the blood, and also the stage/grade is important.

since exercise creates a whole host of additional work for the liver it may be fine for early stage but not late stage. Reason is that the more cirrhotic the liver, the less it can handle, and since it is dealing already with trying to keep going, perhaps on 1/4 of it's orignal tissue, and it is trying to do that while still feeding you, breaking down toxins, (including the chemo, body byproducts, Rx's and all else) etc, oh yeah, and trying to do it with 1/3 less air....well it's not hard to overstress a heart and liver in that environment.

The reasons to exercise are to increase muscle stammina, strength, oxygenation etc.
However more oxygen can't be carried if there is no red blood to carry it, and muscle building produces many acids that the liver and kidneys must work hard to eliminate
so it's best to not push yourself too hard, especially when in late stage disease.

now we come to the runners, and power walkers etc:

It is known that anaerobic (ANAER means not enough AIR)  exercise is hard on the heart, so any time you are working the heart harder in an oxygen deprived environment you can damage the heart muscle.

That's why aeroboic exercise (AER means enough air)  is all docs recommend, because unless you provide enough oxygen for the load you damage the heart. You only make it healthier if it gets enough oxygen to burn while the demand is being placed on it..otherwise cell death is rapid.
Ergo, when the hemolytic anemia kicks in, doesn't matter how strong you were prior to tx, your body is now oxygen deprived, and your activity will become anaerobic much easier...
anaerobic means oxygen starved, and thats when damage occurs and it occurs regardless of heart rate. It's not strictly correlated to rate, it's the effect of not having enough air for the cell to survive under the stress being placed on it.
Therefore, go easy when it comes to raising your heart rate, especially with low HGBs.

mb

[meakea]

I totally agree that if a person is able to exercise, there should do it.  It doesn't always work out that way though.

Prior to treatment, I could ride my bicycle 100 miles per day but, typically it was 25-30 miles per day.  I competed with my adult sons in mini-triathlons; you name it...I was able to do it.  Exercised each and every day.  Immediately after the first shot, I was rendered unable to do anything but get myself out of bed, dressed, and to work 5 days a week and it remained that way all through 48 weeks.  Weekends were nothing more than from bed to the couch and back and that's not because I wanted it that way.  It mentally killed me that I couldn't do more.  My heart rate was so high even at rest - 100 bpm.  On "good" days, I did try to walk a bit but I had to make sure to take my husband with me because I was never sure I would make it back without help.  I continued to work all through treatment but that, in and of itself, was a total body workout just getting to my office.  

Moral of the story is that treatment meds don't care much about what you could do before treatment.  If the meds want to whoop your a**... they will.

[James10500]

Agree. I am a cyclist too. Five hour centuries were doable pre tx, given I got in with the right group and everyone working together.  Daily training 30-40 miles, with longer ride on weekends.  On tx I was reduced to riding on the bike path for 40 minutes, maybe twice a week.  Not only did I not physically have it mentally I was not myself.  I do plan on going for my first post tx ride today in Boulder.

Same thing with me on the heart rate too.  When I had my biopsy my HR was 46 ish, I took no drugs for relaxation.  On tx I'd walk up some stairs and my heart was pounding.

How long did it take you to get back to your pre tx ability ?

[meakea]

I was able to ride 20 miles within the first month off treatment but I would say that I was not back to my pre-Tx abilities until after the first year...but I took it slow because I had a lot going on with a couple of my son's buying "fixer uppers" and I was helping them with projects during that first year.  I'm currently 18 mos post treatment and I'm looking forward to Spring so I can get that bicycle out again!!  Have you ever ridden RAGBRAI?  If not, get your group of friends to check it out...I think you would like it.

As far as my HR...it got back to normal (50's-60's) within a relatively short period of time after treatment ended...a month maybe.

Enjoy your ride today!!

[James10500]

No I haven't.  But I grew up in Wisconsin and love the country roads. I doubt I'll be in shape for a multiple day event this year but maybe 2012, and mix it in with a visit home.

[can-do-man]

Looks like some of you have never had your HGB drop to 8. See if you can exercise then. Or call your doctor and ask him if he recommends it then....... Jeez

[spectda]

"Looks like some of you have never had your HGB drop to 8. See if you can exercise then. Or call your doctor and ask him if he recommends it then....... Jeez"

Thank you can do.

[GoofyDad]

Awwww c'mon, Can-Man. You might not have been surfin' the waves, but you know you were still waxin' your stick once in a while.

I still remember the time, with HGB at 8.0 or so, I almost fainted farting in an elevator. The door opened and a lady got on and I was spinning and seeing stars. And it didn't smell so good in there neither.  

[murariji]

If I ever treat again, I'll do yoga. Mainly corpse pose, and lots of it.

That's not a joke, the stress and tension in the mind and body increases a lot, and whatever you can do to reduce it helps. If exercise is normal for you, then exercise as much as you feel good with, If lying flat on your back (corpse pose) feels good, then work hard at relaxing like that. Yeah, I know it's an oxymoron but once you've done the hard work, THEN you can relax.

[babs824]

yeah im with murarjii. the downward dog. i was stair climbing 30 min a day before tx and since hemoglobin dropped ive been dizzy on one flight. today i started by walking 30 min a day and figure it will take a while to build back up. hard to get the discipline back as i became quite a couch potato.

[can-do-man]

"Awwww c'mon, Can-Man. You might not have been surfin' the waves, but you know you were still waxin' your stick once in a while."

Well of course, tx or not you can't let certain things get rusty.

[GoofyDad]

You could always put it in the garage.

[can-do-man]

True, but there was times i just didn't have the energy to get the garage door to open.

[GoofyDad]

LOL! You got that right, buddy. Darn things seem to have a mind of their own. Too cold? Won't open. Ya wear boxers with dark sox? Won't open. Sometimes you have to buy a new car just to get the garage doors to open and shut the way they're s'posed to. Ya could get out that wax for em, but as long as you're that far into it, ya might be better off doin the ol' self-polish and buffing it up yerself.

[can-do-man]

Not sure there guy, if memory serves me right it seems once i bought that new car is when i had the most problem getting that garge door to open........... Oh well