How Many Times Should I Repeat The Exercises From My Doctor?

[all4family]

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone could tell me how many times you should repeat the exercises the doctor gives you. I tried 10, and I did fine untill the squatting standing. (which was the first standing one) I made it to six, and flew like superman into the floor. How many did everyone else start with? It had a space for how many times, but it wasn't filled in. Thanks in advance.

Suzy

[delphicdragon]

Suzy-

Considering what squatting does to us, I would say that those exercises are probably not a good idea just yet, especially if you had that reaction. I always get dizzy standing up from a squat, I can only imagine what doing 6 in a row would do! Eeep!

I'm sure the doctor probably meant 10 reps, but there are some exercises that might not be good for you. Perhaps the reps weren't written in on that one because you weren't supposed to do it? Just a thought. I would call and ask, and also mention the reaction that you had. Perhaps they can recommend a different exercise.

Sara

[MightyMouse]

My doctor has always told me to start small, and work my way up longer and longer. For example, when I was at my worst, I walked maybe 100 yards from my house. I worked my way up to the end of the block. Then over time, to around the whole neighborhood...then later still, 2 x around. It took me at least a year to get to that. I did the same slow, careful workouts when I finally got a personal trainer. For 2 yrs, we worked out 2 days a week. I'm now much more functional physically than I've been in years and years. I can do yoga and not feel sick while doing it, and not feel completely flu-like for days afterward. My doc is SUPER happy with me sticking with the yoga for both the physical benefits, but also the help it gives me as an emotional outlet... gives my brain a break for a while and just "be."

Nina

[all4family]

Hi Sara, there wasn't a number filled in on any of them. I guess he just figured I would do what I could. I didn't realize how hard it would be, and guess I figured I should push to do as much as I could. At the 1st one I had pain. On the 3rd one I was having building head pressure. By the 6th one I felt like I was loaded, and on the floor! After looking at the paper after I did it it said to stop if you felt pain. Wish I would have read that snippet first. Thank you for your help.

Hi Nina, I didn't realize how hard we have to work. That is a lot of work you did to get where you are. You should be so proud of yourself! That is encouraging to me. I definatly need a emotional outlet. I took a yoga class a while ago, and did fairly good in it. I also have a ymca with a pool, and different classes that I used to go to all the time, but quit when I passed out in the gym in front of a huge crowd. Guess just bad memories. Do you faint? And if you do do you tell people you are working out with like your trainer that you do? I want to swim, but am worried I would faint in the pool, and someone just think I'm floating. Is that silly? Anyways. Thank you for the help.

Suzy

[ramakentesh]

I had an exercise program after my last boute that I worked out. Started with small walks, increasing every day and then going smaller when i seemed to get a reaction. Eventually I built up to bike rides, and eventually even running. Between boutes my POTS is pretty lowish.

Id just following your body. A lot of what your doctor tells you about phjysical therapy and which ones to do is guess work at the moment im afraid.

[futurehope]

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone could tell me how many times you should repeat the exercises the doctor gives you. I tried 10, and I did fine untill the squatting standing. (which was the first standing one) I made it to six, and flew like superman into the floor. How many did everyone else start with? It had a space for how many times, but it wasn't filled in. Thanks in advance.

Suzy

I would not even consider doing squats since bending over or moving up and down is something I dislike. If the doctor is trying to strengthen the quadriceps (thigh muscles), there are ways to do this without squats. (Just my opinion.) As for reps, I do not consider doing anything like in my healthier days. I do very few reps, except for legs, then maybe 15 to 30.

I got all my leg exercises from a posting here a while back. Most involve using leg weights about the ankle and doing them in a supine position.

[mkoven]

I agree-- don't push yourself to the point of feeling ill. If you can only do 3 before getting unwell, that's where you need to start--or modify your starting/stopping position. Your point of reference can only be yourself. Slowly start with what you can do, and then add teeny increments. This summer i could barely sit up in bed. After better meds, I was able to increase walking time. But I started off at .6/mph on the treadmill, for five minutes. My joints are also a limiting factor, but I can now do 30 minutes on the treadmill, at 2.6 mph, with a 6-12 degree incline. (I find the incline really helps me use my muscles better--both to avoid feeling faint and to keep my pelvis stable). I still have issues around my period, and am not autonomically normal, and have plenty of weirdo symptoms that are probably autonomic, but I now rarely feel presyncopal. When not near my period, I might get the occasional brief wave of wooziness, and I still avoid prolonged static standing, but feel much better. I also have an extensive lowed body strengtehning physical therapy regime designed to stabilize my subluxating hips, but I'm sure the increased muscle helps blood return. Most of those exercises are standing-- and I'm okay as long as I keep moving.

[Miriam Poorman-Knox]

When you do squats do them with your back against the wall. This will allow balance and support and can do gradual movement. You could also use a chair on the side. Look ahead and count down 2 up 1 2 3 4 . Breathe. If you can do one to begin with fabulous then add another and another. Good luck M

Also make sure your abdominals are tight( YOU ARE STILL BREATHING) while you do this.

[flop]

I can't do proper squats at all at the moment as I go dizzy very quickly. I am working on a modified squat with my personal trainer - I have a swiss ball behind my back (between me and the wall) and I bend my legs a little letting my back roll down the ball, then straighten up again. I can't bend down far but it is strengthening my quads, I have built up to doing 10 reps like that, after a break (sitting on the ball!) I can do another 6 reps.

Take things slowly, listen to your body - if it doesn't feel good, stop. The old saying of 'no pain no gain' is rubbish and most personal trainers know that pushing to the point of discomfort with people like us is not productive.

Happy gentle exercising!

Flop

[all4family]

Thank you all for the helpful suggestions. I can see I was a little too enthusiastic about it. I woke up this morning with what feels like a ear infection, and not feeling well, so I guess I will be waiting a day or two to start. But much slower this time. I might skip the squats because they really make my muscles and joints worse. I guess I thought I would just spring back to my old self when I started these...Oh well. Thanks all for the help.

Suzy

[mkoven]

Squats are part of my hip rehab. My pt first just had me get up and down from my chair, squeezing my rear, and making sure knees were aligned over toes. I did this at first with a theraband above my knees, to work on activating all the stabilizing muscles in the hip. I've now progressed to getting up and down from a higher chair on one leg, using arms for support. The key to avoid pain is to squeeze my rear, and lean forward as I rise--so it's the glute muscles rather than the hip joint or the knee joint that are doing most of the work, and keeping everything aligned. We're going for "buns of steel." My gait has actually changed! Since sterngthening my gluts and lengenint my hip flexors, I am now able to use my gluts to push off the stride, with my leg behind me. My hips are still sloshy, but this has helped immensely with my ability to walk with less pain and subluxation. I think of each step as involving my glut muscle-- from heel touch down to toe push off.

[momdi]

future hope,

could you please link to the post on suggested exercises? I tried the search function and there are way too many to be helpful.

many thanks,

Dianne

[ramakentesh]

Most of the exercises suggested are used to strengthen and increase muscle mass in the leg - with the aim of also increasing orthostatic tolerance through an increase in the function of the skeletal muscle pump in that part of the body.

This is particularly useful in people who suffer excessive pooling in the lower limbs - people in the POTS subgroup of what Dr.Grubb would call Partial Dysautonomia or what Dr.Stewart would call High Flow POTS.

If you dont have venous pooling evident in your legs these exercises may be less helpful, but are still worth trying.

Some form of exercise is definately helpful - even in the catagory some would described as hyperadrenergic.

[all4family]

Hi,

What is high flow pots? And what is hyperadrenergic pots? All I know is I have orthostatic intolerance. I don't ask many questions, because I travel, and that makes me tired which makes me confused, and I forget things. That is why I come here to learn. I have tried many kinds of exercise before I knew what this was. I tried walking, and running (went real bad), swimming was probably the easiest on me, but still would get buzzing in my head. I was told that I was just out of shape, so would try and get in shape in the name of getting better. It left me on the ground unable to get up more than once. So I was hoping that these special exercises would help. Thank you for that information. I will keep trying them "just in case" they help. But certainly at a slower rate.

Suzy

[ajw4790]

Hi,

How are your exercises going now? Just start slow and work your way up. So, you may do just a couple of each for a while and then work yourself up to doing 10-15 reps. As far as "normal" exercise prescription goes if your goal is endurance you should work up to doing 12-15 reps of each exercise. And then if able and want to add another set, you can add another of 12-15 reps of each exercise. You could also do something like 1 set of each exercise in the morning and one in the evening. Or do half of your exercises in the morning and other half at night etc. In other words do them at YOUR pace, and don't over do it. Start slow and in increments and work your way up.

[janiedelite]

Hi, my PT wanted me to do squats, too, but they left me gasping for air with increased chest pain. When Dr. Fealey evaluated me, he had me do 5 squats and measured my BP and pulse in response. He said the legs use a lot of blood supply so for those of us with pooling, squats make us more symptomatic. My PT adapted my exercises so that I can do them on the floor, mostly supine. I still work the muscle groups that improve OI but it doesn't make me so symptomatic. Although it seems that most days I still get the chest pain and BP spikes even with supine exercises, and Dr. Fealey says I should stop at that point.

Maybe if you explain how our leg muscles use so much blood volume, your health care provider can adapt your exercise plan???

[all4family]

Hi AJW,

Thanks for asking. Unfortunatly I have a ear infection making my balance worse than usual, and my knees keep giving out on me when I stand. I feel sometimes like I am 80 years old. Every part of my body is painful. I did the laying exercises 3 of them 2 times each, but didn't do the standing ones. But it seemed to put more pressure on my ear which is already so painful. So I am being lazy today. I would just like to get "fit" enough to go shopping and not look at the cashier wondering why she can't move a little faster! Thanks so much for that help. I do need a guidline of somekind, and that is very helpful.

Hi Thankful,

How did your PT adapt the exercises for laying down? Maybe if I start that way I could work my way to standing. Has anyone completly reversed their pots with exercise? I am starting to see this is for improvement, definatly not a cure. I do have a heart rate watch, and found interestingly enough that my heart rate goes down just a bit when I do a fast clip walk. But then goes up real high when I stop and stand still. It also goes up progressivly climbing steps. I would think if I were just unfit it would go up no matter the activity. But what do I know. Thank you for the help. I will try to adapt my exercises somehow for laying down for now.

Suzy

[janiedelite]

Hi Thankful,

How did your PT adapt the exercises for laying down? Maybe if I start that way I could work my way to standing. Has anyone completly reversed their pots with exercise? I am starting to see this is for improvement, definatly not a cure. I do have a heart rate watch, and found interestingly enough that my heart rate goes down just a bit when I do a fast clip walk. But then goes up real high when I stop and stand still. It also goes up progressivly climbing steps. I would think if I were just unfit it would go up no matter the activity. But what do I know. Thank you for the help. I will try to adapt my exercises somehow for laying down for now.

Suzy

My PT knew which muscles groups in my hips and legs needed to be strengthened and assigned the appropriate exercises while adapting them to the lying down position. Dr. Fealey really emphasized that part of my POTS is probably due to deconditioning, but most days I have such a rise in BP with any exertion and he said to stop as soon as I have symptoms of hypertension, which takes maybe 5 leg lifts unfortunately. So he also recommended that when I'm laying down that my head/torso is elevated and that we even elevate the head of the bed. He said that should help with strengthening the smooth muscle lining my blood vessels in my legs. We'll see how it goes... I'm pretty deconditioned, and have had worsening POTS symptoms over the past 2 years. It would be great if implementing his suggestions will give me some more activity tolerance and prevent my frequent flares.

[all4family]

Hi Thankful,

I thought I had answered this post, I am sorry I missed it. My paper work also said to improve general fitness. Do most doctors think that pots is due to deconditioning? When I first got sick I was fairly active. With 2 kids I always took them to do sports, and on bike rides (where I walked) I feel like I became de-conditioned as a result of not being able to do things. But I don't know. Do you think you were deconditioned before you got pots? I was also told to raise the head of my bed. I haven't done it yet though. I would really like to see some relsults from exercising. The funny part is I was overweight when I got sick, but very fit in the sense of I exercised a lot. Just guess I ate more than I exercised. When I got sick, and was doing almost no exercise I lost weight to the point I was told I was anorexic. But I did no exercise. So I guess I am built backwards. I would be so happy if I could do the things like I used to. That is why this exercising is so important to me. Well I hope we can recondition ourselves so we can get on with life. Thanks so much for your help.

Suzy