Good topic!
I too loved to swim - just being in the water, weightless, did wonders since my knees were giving me fits. But, like you say, I guess the reaching motions are not good, so I did the best I could with the little I had to work with, which is treading water. It's a great way to gently use every muscle and improve circulation - especially in the legs.

I'm ever grateful that we have access to a pretty nice therapy pool. I enjoy the warm temperature - very soothing on the muscles and I use the little aquatic 'toys', especially those little floating doo-dads that look like little dumbells, barbells

Hi Rae,

Thanks for your reply, please God ill be able to as much as you and Mark, I certainly cant imagine getting back on a bicycle again, I haven't been on a bike since my problems started when I was about 11-17.

I do like to swim but I'm concerned my arms are over stretching on the back stroke.

I hope all is well with you. I had my scs revision surgery yesterday and so fa so good. I'm tired and sore right now.

S xxx

I was put down for some hydrotherapy, and the physio advised nothing but breaststroke at first and only then after 12 weeks. Just so you know. x

Hi Saffy- How interesting your physical therapist has put you down for breaststroke, given that the notion of reaching is typically a no no. Working in a warm therapy pool [92 degrees F] my therapist had me doing a good many exercises, none of which involved reaching above the head, but did involve a variety of stepping exercises, lunges, side stepping, marching, walking, lifting my arms with hydro paddles in hands for resistance up to my shoulders from the waist position, both to the side and to the front, and a exercise also using said paddles in a motion like flapping my wings from a shoulder height out to side then meeting in front of me. Again, again, and again. It would take about an two hours to complete all of the pool exercises, then it would be off to the deep end of the pool for "bicycling" and hanging with weights on my ankels as though to provide some traction.

The actual use of swimming strokes was never part of my therapy regimen, but then, perhaps as between different therapists there are variances of approach.

Hope it goes very well for you,
Mark56

It's been cancelled as I told them I was having probs with the stim. Boo!

Have to say, my Stim Team never stressed on NOT doing things .. obviously they didn't want me to reach high suddenly, or bend suddenly, but I wasn't told to do things, in fact they encouraged me to do things as I normally would. ? ? ? ?

I was told no bend, lift, stretch, twist, so I reduced it to the acronym BLAST.
Mark56