This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

Hi again everyone

This will be my last question for awhile so you don't tire of me!

How about exercise?
I did a test this morning. I opened up my exercise room to the outside (it's a garden room & it was 9 degrees F when I opened the door) I then did a gentle walk on my treadmill in shorts & a tee for 15 minutes- WOO-HOO!!
I know my body temp did not rise. I took my temp after working out & it had actually dropped to 96 degrees.

My "MS symptoms" as my annoying neuro calls them- pins/needles, tremor, weakness & pain flare up during my workout & last the entire day when I exercise- sometimes into the next couple of days. He stated it's because I am getting hot, but today I have proved I can exercise in a snowstorm & get the same result.

Do you get worsening of symptoms with exercise even when you are cool?

Thanks!

I think you need to experiment with various forms of exercise and find the form that works best for you.

I no longer run, swim, or exercise aerobically. For whatever reason, these forms of exercise worsen my symptoms and make me feel worse for hours afterwards.

I AM able to exercise with light free weights, and I do this 2 or more times a week for about an hour a session. I think the benefit with this form of exercise is that I can limit the periods of exertion with rest breaks in a way that isn't possible with running or swimming.

I also practice Tai Chi.

You might experiment with a light Yoga class. You can often find classes that are specific to people dealing with physical limitations.

Good luck, and don't give up.

--Tracy

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CCSVI Procedure 9/16/2009 at Stanford
Stent in left and right IJVs
SPMS
Copaxone and Ampyra user

I also feel my symptoms much more after any aerobic activity. I doubt it's due to temperature because the symptoms get even worse after swimming, and the water generally keeps me cool. For me there are certain symptoms that get worse due to heat, but they are different than the ones that flare during/after workouts.

I'm not exactly sure why this all happens. The doctors seem to be reciting the same line about overheating but it just doesn't make that much sense.

I agree about the heat issue, the symptoms that worsen in me with heat are different from what happens after I try to swim a few lengths, or over-exercise without sufficient rest.

This was explained to me in terms of physical fatigue, the effect that arises when demylinated nerves are used repeatedly, and the time it takes for the nerves to recover. This was probably something I read here at some point, I don't recall the details.

--Tracy

_________________
CCSVI Procedure 9/16/2009 at Stanford
Stent in left and right IJVs
SPMS
Copaxone and Ampyra user

I also feel worse after exercising aerobically. It can bring on my MS "crash" which is not good because I'm usually at the gym with a couple kids in tow in the child center (and have to get us all home safely).

My explanation for it is from CCSVI, that exercising uses up glucose in the blood and then the brain suffers from a lack of glucose because of the poor CCSVI blood flow. My solution has been to eat protein an hour before a workout or fresh fruit. If workouts require eating it's probably not going to work as a weight-loss regimen but it's about health and getting stronger anyway. I don't have any issues with the strength training machines, just the cardio.

Thank you for the replies. I don't know if my neuro is horrible or the same as all neuro. Mine just gave me the DMD options & let the door hit me. He doesn't have any advice to offer regarding daily life issues. When I told him I can't walk or exercise he actually patted my knee & said I looked great/didn't need to work out. WTH?

I will try eating just before & I will try free weights (I can't do yoga- I have a bad tremor & too much weakness- it's way too hard for me)

I completely agree with all of your experiences. I also get an MS-crash after aerobic exercise. Often I go for a 30 minute fast walk in the evenings after my son has gone to bed, and it can be cool or cold, but I still get the awful crash afterwards. It can even last a few days afterwards.

I have found if you persevere with daily exercise after 7-10 days the crash stops happening and you start to feel more energised - the real challenge is to make it through the 'crash' week and beyond. I keep coming down with winter colds so I'd just made it through the hard part and was starting to feel good about my walk 2 weeks ago but have had to stop for the last while. Hoping to get back out walking this evening!

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Concussus Resurgo
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RR-MS dx 1998 and Coeliac dx 2003
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Copaxone, Cymbalta. EPO, Fish Oils, Vitamin D3 2000 IU daily, Cal/Mag/Zinc, Multivitamin/mineral, Co-Enzyme Q10, Probiotics, Milk Thistle.

Wow, I didn't really believe it until this morning when I started my new workout routine! 20 jumping jacks later and I could barely walk out to my truck to go to work. I've been horribly weak all day, arms and legs. I'm so shocked, upset, and scared. What have I done to myself? Why don't neurologists know this? I am so disappointed in how little neurologists seem to know or perhaps how little they pass on. I haven't gained anything by seeing a neurologist besides a prescription.

Maybe because the problem is NOT in their realm of neurology. "… could barely walk.… horribly weak all day, arms and legs." Sounds to me like your muscles are deprived of their energy source. The mitochondria are starved of fuel. Could it be that the cells are insulin resistant and do not allow insulin to admit glucose to enter and be burned as fuel?

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My hypothesis: excess insulin (hyperinsulinemia) plays a major role in MS, as developed in my initial post: http://www.thisisms.com/forum/general-discussion-f1/topic1878.html "Insulin – Could This Be the Key?"

I have heard/ read that neurologists used to advise patients not to exercise for exactly this reason.

When I was doing a lot of MS research last fall, I read again and again in studies that exercise provides many benefits for MS patients: improving mood, improving strength and flexibility, improving general health and more that I can't remember.

I also have this problem with crashing after exercise. I recently started taking creatine because Dr. Wahls suggested it in her book. For me, it helps. I am continuing to take it.

I guess repeating the same exercise routine for long, tend to cause this whereas, if we keep on changing our routine monthly perhaps, it'd be helpful. I found it working with few out there

That's why I was always so persistent about exercise. It's supposed to be good but it was definitely in the 'bad' list for me of things that could make me MS ill not just for that day but for the next day also. Now that my health has improved I wonder if I was an idiot for pushing myself too hard with exercise. If it felt that bad, it probably was bad for me. There were streaks where I'd exercise religiously every other day for several months. It never improved my reaction after exercise but my muscles did get stronger so there's that.