Thinking of PiYo! but have back pain...

Danielle_Style

Hi everybody,

I was an active member of MyFitnessPal over a year ago. I had lost about 15 lbs (gained all and more back) and was enjoying the journey. But I have been dealing with a lumbar muscle spasm which caused weakness in the muscle and long-term tightness accompanied by sciatica. My doctor told me the best thing to do was to stretch every day and strengthen my core. He didn't send me back to Physical Therapy because I've been there, done that and remember all of the stretches. I asked him if weight loss would help me with my back pain, and he agreed that it likely would.

I've been stretching every day (with occasional forgetfulness) and following the anti-inflammatory regimen he put me on. I've also been swimming and walking for cardio.

I really like the looks of the PiYo program for strengthening my core. I love Yoga and Pilates, but occasionally find it boring. Chalene seems as if she would make it very exciting!

I've read a bit about it and it says that it is safe for those with injuries. I would probably wait about a month more until I really feel my spasm has stabilized to begin. But I guess I'm skeptical since it is a beachbody program. I know there are modifiers, but I have found that BeachBody programs are generally pretty high intensity and even when they market it as being for "everybody" it is not truly that.

Is there anybody here with a situation similar to mine who has done PiYo! and had good results? Bad results? Anybody else have valuable input?

It looks like an at-home workout that I'd be motivated to do, but I don't want to make my body angry at me ;-) I want to be in this fitness thing for the long haul and I can't afford to get sidelined again.

liznotyet

Take a critical look at your physical therapy exercise recommendations to determine if they work all muscle groups and your full range of motion, not just your trouble spots.

If you can afford it I would get some pilates or feldenkrais coaching in very small or private sessions. Show the instructor your physical therapy exercises and get feedback on your form and evaluate your use of your core.

Then go to group classes recognizing that you are a unique body with unique abilities and challenges - not competing with anyone or trying to do everything that the instructor does. You have to build your own modifications.

I haven't tried Chalene but unless there is an instruction track that talks you through each move very precisely, you may not get enough information to design modifications that are rigorous enough and gentle enough for you.

Keep trying - slower is better - always save something for the next time.

Danielle_Style

Thanks for the input. I'm not sure I can afford private sessions right now. But I have been thinking that I may not be ready for this type of program just yet because I know that I would feel compelled to push myself to keep up even when it isn't appropriate for my body. I think I need to stick with walking and swimming and core exercises (swimming helps considerably with my core strength when I do it consistently).

I get very jealous of people that can do these high-intensity programs and resentful that I currently can't. Then, I talk myself out of a healthy lifestyle, which is very counter-productive. I just have to remember that the majority of weight-loss is what I eat, not what I do at the gym. And I should look at my fitness routine as a way to make my body and mind feel better, but not as the primary aspect of my health regimen.

staceywillman1

I have lower back osteoarthritis. I will always have it. I did 6 weeks of PIYO on plan and then I had a flare up of the arthritis. It was not PIYO, just me trying to go into beast mode. The modifier is shown with every move. Every move has a modifyer. I took 2 weeks off which was not what I was to do. I was to continue slowly, go every other day, and on the off day do cardio. I am back where I should be. Instead of doing weeks 7 and 8, I went back to the beginning and started over. Every other day at first. Now I am back to every day remembering not to push it as hard as Chalene. I have gotten great results. I have lost 7 lb and have lost 3 inches off each of the bust, waist and hips.

It is wonderful. You feel good when you are done. You just have to remember to work within your ability. For me, burpees are a bad idea so I do the modifyer. I also do not do punters.

I do the myfitnesspal diet and wear a heartrate monitor for exercise to get a true count. When I plateau I will do the PIYO diet which is lower in carbs.

jordosmom

I have lower back pain,too, and am really enjoying Piyo. As the others have said, the modifier really does offer good alternatives for lower level work -- and they show her a lot. (My back and knees don't burpee, either!) I've done other Beachbody programs and just finished T-25, and this really is a much lower impact alternative. You'll work hard and burn and sweat your guts out on some of them, but without all that bouncing. (And you move constantly, so the boredom factor isn't an issue - at least for me.)