Are We Still Doing Exercises?
 

I am pushing myself, twice a day, every day, to do the
PT & OT exercises learned in the Hospital, after my fall
in Nov. 2011. Some days it's really hard, but I'm not
sorry, because it's working to keep myself moving..:)

When I don't feel well or am exhausted and want to
say "not today", I remind myself what it was like,
back in 2011, when I didn't have the strength or
muscle control to lift myself into my mini van, to go
to the Docs. I fell and ended up in the hospital with
an exacerbation, brought on by the fall.

Don't let yourself get weak, like I did. Take my word
for it, if you haven't learned on your own yet.......
To uSe It oR LOsE iT!!!!! http://home.earthlink.net/~sal.pal/s...tures/kick.gif

Are you all keeping it moving?:grouphug:

WooHoo Sally! :yahoo: Keep going!

Since October 2012 I have been weight training. I use a 4 station weight machine (total body workout) no less than 4 days a week. I absolutely LOVE my weight machine. I have increased my strength and I am leg pressing 220 pounds.

Glad you are still doing well Sally! I am still riding. I haven't been spinning mid-week as often, but have been making up for it by riding and working my tail off in the yard on the weekends. Rode 44 miles amid the hills and wildflowers near the home of Blue Bell Ice Cream (Brenham, Texas) last weekend, and then mowed and edged the yard and moved about 3 cubic yards of mulch to make rings around trees in the backyard.

Still getting out for walks but nothing strenuous for the last while. Looking forward to getting back to it ASAP; once the docs give the all clear.

With love, Erika

since being in Hawaii I tried doing the elliptical a couple of times...each time I got overheated and my calves tightened so much I couldn't complete my usual 30 minutes...
so I've been trying to swim as often as possible, which my neuro has suggested all along. It does seem easier, and I get my heart rate up to high enough for a good workout.

Making lemonade out of lemons:)

My exercise du jour right now is hiking the woods and roadways for deer antler sheds. I can be in the woods, up and down hills, stepping over logs and crossing creeks for over an hour!

Here's the only shed I've found so far, just yesterday (actually spotted from the car on a drive):

I use the elliptical about 3-4 times per week for 30 minutes. I'm adding ten knee pushups too since warmer weather is coming and my arms are like flabby chicken wings. :D

Since starting vitamin D therapy, my muscles have been feeling so much better. I have been far more active than I have been in the past couple of years. With that said, I went check out a gym yesterday. It's getting too warm for me to be outside walking. The gym is medically based and is a little different than your typical gym. There are lots of cardiac rehab patients and a bunch of trainers as well as a PT. Additionally, several of the trainers there have MS clients so that was a huge plus as I know they will understand the challenges we MSers have. I really liked it there and plan to start going there next week.

Hello everyone. I haven't been on here in such a long time! I've missed you all.

I stepped up my exercising in January and paid for it in February. I pushed myself past my limit and had to take some time off from exericsing just to rest and to calm my MS down.

February I exercised moderately and felt much better. This month I've been sick so often I haven't exercised like I want to.

We bought a new treadmill and I've been doing yoga. After I get rid of this latest cold and hopefully don't get another one, I plan to restart exercising moderately. I'm looking forward to getting back to exercising in a more consistent way.

Darn right I am out exercising! Being outside really makes me feel a ton better and recently I have felt like riding the bike again... I've done around 70 miles, not a lot, but better than nothing. Just been tooo damn cold out.

I firmly believe that riding my bike will keep me flexible and train my brain to keep my balance no matter how far the disease grabs me. I feel if you keep moving, your brain and everything else won't lose anything...

Ugggg Know what I mean? :D So hard to explain lol.

TXBatman, You have MS I assume? recent DX? you ride eh? cool I am a MT biker at heart and now picking up roadie style. I plan to get a new Specialized Sectuer soon.

How far into the MS are you? Is riding hard for yet?

Eric,

I had my first MS episode in 2004 (hearing loss) and got DXed in 2006. I have been lucky to have had a very benign course so far with my MS. My lesion count has increased from 2 to 17 since my first MRI, but I have never had another distinct "flare" since my first episode. I have had various fluctuations in my hearing and find that in places like restaurants with alot of background noise, I just can't pick out what people in front of me are saying from the general noise. Other than that, I have rare episodes where I run out of energy due to fatigue, but they are few and far between.

I actually started riding in 2004 and have ridden in an MS150 ride every year since 2005. In a little over two weeks, I will ride my 9th from Houston to Austin. The only way MS affects my riding is that I have found that I can't handle warm temperatures very well when I ride anymore. When the temp goes above about 80-85 F, I can feel my body getting much weaker and I get a bad case of dead legs. On those days I just have to drink alot more, douse myself with water while I ride, and just keep my heart rate lower to avoid cooking myself from the inside too much.

To account for that issue, I started riding the Houston to Austin MS150 instead of the San Antonio to Corpus Christi ride, because the Houston ride is in the spring so I can train while it is cool, and the San Antonio ride is in the fall and would require training through a Texas summer. I generally spin indoors mostly during the summer about 3 times per week, and when it cools off, I add a weekend ride outdoors. Right now, I am in a training series organized by several of the MS150 ride teams and have been riding anywhere from 35-60 miles each weekend for the last 10 weeks. I have a 74 mile ride this weekend and a 50-something next weekend left to do for my training. Then it is on to Austin!

I really encourage you to get out there and ride if you can. We have a group of cyclists with MS here in Houston called "Because We Can". My understanding is that the MS Society may try to take the group into more of a national thing over the next few years, but I like the idea of a support group focused around an activity rather than one focused around a disease.

Wow, thanks and this makes me feel a lot better . As soon as I starting reading about MS I thought "there goes my bike riding" but not true... I rode today a small bit(5 miles) and while I felt a bit dragged out and I wasn't as "power in" as usual I haven't exactly been riding in the last three months due to getting the flu and other BS problems I had that are now taken care of. The weather is finally going to warm up here tomorrow so I am going to try and get 10 miles in the morning and start my riding regime back up full force.

I would so join a team like you wrote about.... I'm doing a walk for MS come May 5th here in Watertown, but I may just ride my bike instead.

I appreciate your answer....thanks so much.

Sally, I too push myself to exercise. For me it's hard because of foot pain, but some of my exercises are done on the bed, both the strengthening and stretching. I find the stretching is more important than the strengthening because, like Debbie, I get bad muscle spasms if I don't do my stretching every single night. I am working on the upper body by doing what the PT calls "girl pushups" against a wall, which has strengthened my arms better than any of the vinyl pull routines. I put my feet about a foot and a half from the wall, and hands against the wall, and just do pushups that way. I started with 12 and have doubled that now. My arms have been my weakest muscles all my life, so I am amazed that I could gain this much strength from doing this simple exercises. As I say, the vinyl pulling exercises didn't have as much effect, although they helped some.

The stretching has to be done for quite a bit of time each day to make sure the muscles are really fully relaxed. I am also now able to self-massage my leg knots since my hands and arms are stronger from the pushups. Also I was desperate with the leg knots,
and desperation does prompt one to try harder.

Isn't that amazing, tkrik?

My D level was low and in the process of increasing my D level I noticed improvement in my legs, with strength, endurance and allowing me to exercise more. When playing with the D3 dosage I have found I can tell a difference if I am not taking enough.

What is enough for you Snoopy?

I take 5000iu daily.

Have you had your D level checked, Sally?

My D level was initially 16, if I am remembering correctly:rolleyes: My last blood work showed it at 57, my neuro wants my D level between 50-60.

I feel really good with my D level where it is. I had been taking 5000iu for over a year to get the D level up. I am now taking 3000iu and will have my level rechecked in a month or so.

I asked my PCP to check it and he said, it's expensive,
so I passed at the time. He didn't seem to think it
was important, but I may insist next time.

Thanks

Sally, my neuro is the one who initially ordered the blood work to check my D level, recommended I use a D3 supplement and have it retested in a few months. My PCP does the retesting without a problem, he is closer and easier to get into see than my neuro.

My D3 level will be checked again soon. I take 3000 a day with a spray method.

My D level is 92, recently taken. Have been taking 5000iu a day for probably a year or more. Yes, the test is expensive and not normally covered by insurance. A shrewd doctor's office can usually come up with a code to make it covered. Mine did!

Pool water FINALLY hit 80F wednesday so 15 laps then, 20 yesterday 20 today. Pushed wheelchair a good 30+ miles so far this yr,
Good night.

Vitamin D's cheap test. $35? No excuse. Sounds like your dr needs a kick-start.
Started swimming wednesday, 40 laps yesterday, 45 day before, 40 day before. 35 day before that ect = 200 in 7 days after I get in there shortly.
Swimming's the best, all around exercise for muscles & joints, calories period. My sudden bed time jolts stopped (still get major spasms) since I started swimming again.

As of last weekend, I completed 1,040 laps in a 28' long pool. Weather stunk the entire week so no swims but I pushed 1.5 miles in chair today.

Edit - btw D level - mine was mid 60's couple weeks ago, tan, taking 2000/day for past yr. Was 120+ taking 8000/day yr or 2 prior.

Great minds run in the same channel Eddie, I was just thinking
today that we need to bring this thread up.

I am still doing my twice per day. PT & OT, learned in the hospital
rehab. I'm too scared of losing it again, like I did. I'll keep
doing it as long as I'm able and beyond. It does work..:cool:

Are y'all using it or losing it..:D:hug:

I have rejoined the Y. It's surprising how much better you feel when you exercise. There is no way I could ride a bike for 6 miles but I can ride a recumbant bike that many. I am starting some upper body strength training also. I'm taking those slow. I know my body needs to get there as many days as I can so I do go about 6 days a week. It also helps that I always get a bike that has a TV built in and I can watch HGTV with my headphones!!!

I hate to nag, but I don't want any of you to learn the hard way,
as I did. I have to push myself, some days, to do my PT and OT
exercises. Especially my hand exercises.

I received some pics of an online friend's party and noticed
him/her in a WC and one hand pulled up in a fist, clutched to
chest. I couldn't help wondering if maybe that wouldn't have
happened, if hand strengthening & hand coordination exercises
had been done regularly?

I know that when I was in rehab hosp., my left hand was very
weak and uncoordinated. After Hand OT, hand was much much
better and continuing it at home every day is keeping it that
way and maybe a little bit better.

I'm amazed at, how staying with it, has helped. Not heavy duty
exercises, just steady and often.:D

You are dedicated to fight this, Sal, and I really respect you for it...a wonderful role model for us all!!
While I'm up at the cabin I've been doing my stretches and also doing some core work to get some strength back in my mid section. Can't really go for walks since a bear family was spotted walking around...I did go in the lake yesterday and did some jogging in the water as well as movement exercises. It is at least something...:rolleyes: