abbyw Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 Hi Jangle,I have been waiting to hear if your exercise program is helping you at all, and if you think the type of exercise is what's making a difference.I tried going back to daily walking after a few week break due to very bad weather,and I experienced chest pain. I didn't know if that meant that I should keep going or stop. I remembered your saying that walking wasn't going to do the job....Thanks,Abby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jangle Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 Walking for me did have its advantages, for instance it probably maintained me at a slightly higher functional level than I otherwise would have been. However, you're right in that it didn't do the job, the symptoms were still quite severe.I've worked my way up to about 40 minutes of jogging and I have found a loose connection to the distance run and the degree of functional improvement. Lately my symptoms have been fluctuating, but the baseline is always going down. There are times when I feel a complete remission from POTS, and my heart rate change reflects that. Just yesterday I went to the doctor's office and my HR change from supine to standing was only 7 bpm. Granted it went from 95 to 102 so I was already tachycardic, but the point is still there.Headaches, lightheadedness, hand tremors, and difficulty concentrating have all significantly improved.I'm still in the process of the exercise program though. And like I said, the symptoms and tachycardia will return on occasion.As for chest pain, you could talk with your doctor about that. I myself have always gotten sharp stabbing temporary pains during exercise that I usually just ignore. My doctor doesn't think it's heart related. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbyw Posted March 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 I think I recall that I read in an article about Dr. Levine's program, that you have to stick with the exercise program forever to maintain the improvement in symptoms. Does anyone know if that is correct? Pretty disheartening if it is. Even if you want to maintain an exercise program, every single day or bust is a bit overwhelming... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jangle Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 Yes abbyw unfortunately it is true. The beneficial effects of exercise I believe is that it transiently lowers angiotensin ii levels. It is essentially like taking thyroid medicine (just acting on a different hormone)I notice the best feelings 0-6 hours from exercise. It begins to dwindle and if I go more than 2 days without exercising I begin to feel steadily worse. It's likely you will have to jog for the rest of your life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbyw Posted March 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 silly question, but what do you do when the weather is bad? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jangle Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 silly question, but what do you do when the weather is bad?I have a local gym that only charges 10 dollars a month and they're open like all the time. I just use their treadmills or elliptical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julieph85 Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 that is great Jangle! I've been doing 20 minutes on the recumbent bike everday, and i also notice an improvement for about 6 to 12 hours afterwards. i'm slowly working my way up to 40, and then on to the eliptical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E246 Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 Jangle,Have you any knowledge of HIITs - High Intensity Interval Training - there's been info about it on tv and there was a post last week with another member who has been using a version of it called Tabata. However whether it would have any impact on POTS i don't know.? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jangle Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 ive not heard of high interval training. I completely believe that you should do the exercises that you want to, that you enjoy and in the amount that is agreeable to you. Because then ultimately you're more likely to stick with the program and give yourself some much needed control back over your condition. For me im doing good with just keeping my jog pace slow and steady, but even then in the beginning my hr would get to 210 bpm. I don't think I could have handled high intensity anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramakentesh Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 I think I recall that I read in an article about Dr. Levine's program, that you have to stick with the exercise program forever to maintain the improvement in symptoms. Does anyone know if that is correct? Pretty disheartening if it is. Even if you want to maintain an exercise program, every single day or bust is a bit overwhelming...yes it is true, one might even have to perpetually increased exercise to 'avoid deconditioning'.The last three days i have spent 8 hours working in my garden, cutting trees down, chopping wood, mowing lawns and doing stuff that I wouldnt have dreamed I could do only two months ago. Rather than my body responding poorly to it, I think it has really helped. Everytime I started feeling dizzy I went and exercised again basically. But now my AS is going nuts so you cant win... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashelton80 Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 I think I recall that I read in an article about Dr. Levine's program, that you have to stick with the exercise program forever to maintain the improvement in symptoms. Does anyone know if that is correct? Pretty disheartening if it is. Even if you want to maintain an exercise program, every single day or bust is a bit overwhelming...Yes you do. It happened to me. BUT I stopped exercising end of June last year and I didn't start declining and having symptom return until December. So I had about 5-6 months "built up" per se before I started going backwards again. I just look at it now as I would rather exercise everyday as bad as that suck, laying in this bed as I am right now ***** way worse. I just hope I can keep telling myself that when I get better again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
issie Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 How do you break a plateau? It definitely helps with mood and like the others the results of the exercise make me feel better for a couple of hours afterwards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
issie Posted March 9, 2012 Report Share Posted March 9, 2012 Oh JOY of JOYs. I broke it.YAYYYYYYY!!!!!! I hope I keep going in the right direction.Issie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jangle Posted March 12, 2012 Report Share Posted March 12, 2012 Good job Issie.How is everyone doing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E246 Posted March 12, 2012 Report Share Posted March 12, 2012 Managed 10 minutes on exercise bike today. Yes!Think it's great that everyone has encouraged each other. I'm really pleased with my progress. Saw doc today and she says i will only get better when I rest?That approach has not helped for a year - so I am exercising now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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