Losing weight to manage arthritis? Or other disease?

alliemacd37
alliemacd37 Posts: 9
in Introduce Yourself
Hi I am trying to lose 60 lbs because I have Ankylosing Spondylitis and the extra weight is so hard on my joints! Plus I have quite smoking and had my second child in the last 2 years and gained weight from both, so it is time to take my life back!! I just started this program and I am super excited. Scared I am not gonna follow through though! I am looking for some support on this journey. Anybody else feeling the same or had similiar experiences?

Replies

  • LisaAvasNana
    LisaAvasNana Posts: 82 Member
    Hi alliemacd37. I want to lose 70-90 lbs. I joined MFP a week ago tonight. I'm super excited too. I haven't started exercising yet which I know is important. I have bulging disc disease and I have arthritis in my knees. Love your saying "it is time to take my life back!!" I have met a lot of nice supportive people on here already. One good thing is you can never have too many friends. There is someone on here all the time to help you out whether friends or you post a question in the community. Let me be one of the first to say welcome. I'll request you as a friend.

    We're on this journey together.
    Lisa
  • alliemacd37
    alliemacd37 Posts: 9
    Thank you Lisa! I have a gym membership, but I got slack about going over the holidays, so I am hoping to get back in the swing of things soon. It was so eye-opening to log the first day and see my calorie count! It was better than I thought :) Losing weight and managing disease has its own challenges, so I would be glad to be your friend in this :)
  • 3foldchord
    3foldchord Posts: 2,918 Member
    <<--- losing weight and getting fit/healthy to help with Chronic pain & fatigue and hypoglycemia.
    It is hard. Some weeks I can barely move out of bed, some Days just walking downstairs to do laundry makes me dizzy and have to rest... But things are slowly improving.
    Just remember, when there is a illness type obstacle it takes us a bit longer to reach goals
  • liftingcoach
    liftingcoach Posts: 65 Member
    Yes, I have two very bad knees from a lifetime of overweight abuse! I need to have them replaced, but the Dr. will no do it until i lose 80 - 100 lbs. Although I've needed replacements for a long time now, I always used the excuse that I didn't have time to get it done, therefore losing the weight was not my #1 priority. Now that I have retired, and have no excuse, as I have all the time in the world, I need to get serious about losing the weight! The pain is sometimes unbearable, and the limited mobility really hampers my activity levels. However, I am working through it, and will succeed!!
  • LisaAvasNana
    LisaAvasNana Posts: 82 Member
    Another thing for us all to remember is we WILL feel better and be able to get around better WHEN we lose some weight. One main reason I'm doing this is for me so I can get down on the floor or chase my 15 month old grand daughter Ava. I want to be around to watch her grow up.
  • Nickle526
    Nickle526 Posts: 239 Member
    Hello! I use cardio, at least an hour a day, to manage Tourette Syndrome. I mean of course I get the weight loss benifits of doing an hour of cardio, but if I do any less than an hour, I can feel the difference in my tics. On Wednesday I was having a bad day and chose not to exercise. BIG mistake. I was so uncomfortable and only slept a couple of hour that night. I know what I need to do, but some days I want to stamp my feet and have a pity party. Oh well. Got back on track and feeling much better today :smile:

    I feel grateful that exercise is effective for my Tourettes, so much so that I do not take medication for it. I still tic, but it is not as bad as it used to be when I wasn't doing anything for it (I try to avoid any meds as much as possible).
  • 2hobbit1
    2hobbit1 Posts: 820 Member
    Remember that MFP has your deficit built in before exercise. There is no weight loss need to jump into strenuous workouts to start to lose the pounds. It can be done with out it. How ever you will feel better if you begin to add in gentle motion. Think of gentle stretching, yoga or tai chi chen. Things that can be done standing or seated that gently increase your range of motion. Try the pool for swimming or water aerobics or a simple walk up and down you block. Build endurance over time - it will come in time.

    Small baby steps will get you there and start you feeling little better and more in control. It can be done!
  • alliemacd37
    alliemacd37 Posts: 9
    So proud of everyone on here trying to deal with pain and disease and STILL trying to better their lives! We need to remember each other on the bad days and know we are not alone! I think thats what really gets me, because I often feel no one who doesn't have chronic pain or disease can truly understand the challenges it presents! Thanks for replying!
  • CountryBliss
    CountryBliss Posts: 35
    Welcome to the community. I just started myself this past Wednesday.
    I am trying to lose weight to help with rheumatoid arthritis, high blood pressure and diabetes.
  • cheryl117
    cheryl117 Posts: 27
    Over the last couple years I have noticed aches and pains in my right knee and hip ,I am hoping by losing weight it will improve : )
  • helenjhink
    helenjhink Posts: 4 Member
    Me too! I was diagnosed with RA this past May. I am going to lose 80lbs so my poor feet can get some relief! Not to mention fibro, diabetes and my "friend" the C-Pap Mach, I am looking forward to a healthier life. We are all in this together! Little steps! Best of luck to us all.
  • 1two3four
    1two3four Posts: 413 Member
    I'm in this boat. One of the reasons I'm here losing weight is because I have cerebral palsy and I couldn't continue on with all of the excess weight I had been carrying. My feet, knees, hips and back had been killing me and I had found it was getting impossible for me to get myself off the floor when I fall which I do pretty regularly. Since joining MFP I've lost 70+ pounds, I have a way left to go but I will get to my goal and what a day that will be.

    When I get discouraged I think of how much easier life has gotten over the last 16-months. I will always have body aches and pain but the improvement I feel already is drastic. Good luck to you!
  • sugarbabyloveuk
    sugarbabyloveuk Posts: 12
    Hi everyone,
    I'm in this too help beat MS, I used the app last year and lost 17lb, but I have since been poorly with a relapse and things have got out of control again..
    But I've just reset my stats and here we go again....
    I really need this to work now and any support welcome
  • 1two3four
    1two3four Posts: 413 Member
    Remember that MFP has your deficit built in before exercise. There is no weight loss need to jump into strenuous workouts to start to lose the pounds. It can be done with out it. How ever you will feel better if you begin to add in gentle motion. Think of gentle stretching, yoga or tai chi chen. Things that can be done standing or seated that gently increase your range of motion. Try the pool for swimming or water aerobics or a simple walk up and down you block. Build endurance over time - it will come in time.

    Small baby steps will get you there and start you feeling little better and more in control. It can be done!

    ^^ This!! Like I said I'm 16-months in (and 70-lbs down) and I am just now thinking about exercise in the way others here think about it early on. I've honestly sat and when a long with Sit & Be Fit on PBS in the past. It's not necessarily my cup of tea but I've taken the idea of it and used it in other ways.
  • mielikkibz
    mielikkibz Posts: 552 Member
    I've managed to fubar both my knees in the last 2 yrs, and have asthma. . both which would benefit from losing weight, had dropped 40 but screwing up my other knee made me depressed, but i'm back, working on my eating again, but hping to start the stationary bike soon, as that helped the first time I hurt my knee, need to strengthen it back up, afraid of surgery :P
  • TurtleRunnerNC
    TurtleRunnerNC Posts: 751 Member
    I have Osteoarthritis in my hips & left knee, chronic joint pain & fatigue. Exercising has helped SO much in managing my pain. I was sick & could not exercise for several weeks @ the end of last year & my pain was nearly unbearable. Now that I am back to exercising 6 days a week for 2 weeks it is nearly gone.

    It helps so much. It's hard to get started I know, to get motivated through pain but please stick with it. I bet in a month you won't believe how muvh better you feel.
  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,654 Member
    I have arthritis in my spine, knees, and thruout my body, plus 2 autoimmune diseases- mild RA and a spinal disease similar to MS. I went from a wheelchair 12 yrs ago, to only needing my cane for longer distances outside my house.

    A recumbent bike got me moving and mobile again. No stress on my back or neck, and I started off slow and at a low tension, iced my back and knees afterwards, and slowly strengthened my knees. I amazed myself at how quickly I progressed.

    Pool exercises help as well, and I am looking forward to it being warm enough to get back in the pool.

    For me, I find I have a much lower pain level when I stay away from processed sugar and white flour carbs. Nightshade vegetables also flare up my arthritis, so I stay away from tomatoes, white potatoes, and eggplant.
    Higher proteins, healthy fats, and lots of non starch veggies have really help keep my pain levels down and my energy up. The weight loss is making a huge difference as well, and helping with increased activity.

    It is a challenge, and I had given up on ever feeling good again, but now that I have proven that I CAN improve, it is like my life has been handed back to me. You can do this. Just look at obstacles as challenges to overcome, rather than defeat.
  • Rynatat
    Rynatat Posts: 807 Member
    Take a peek at my profile: several car accidents destroyed my body, I was told surgery was my only option but they gave me a 50/50 chance of coming out worse (or in a wheelchair). I refused meds & knives, picked health & exercise instead. Over a decade later, no one except my own family believes I was ever so overweight, so damaged or still manage the pain.

    Yes, I have days my joints are swollen, my back, neck, hips (or all 3) are out & I hurt like hell, but I look in the mirror & remember who I used to be and I can manage through it all. I use a mix of different workouts, from Tai Chi (life-saver on my bad days!), to Yoga & Pilates to cardio, core, strength & weight training. I look for any excuse to workout (I usually do doubles, AM & PM workouts) and have for the last 2 years. I can barely imagine my life before this, but I am healthier, happier, stronger & look younger now than I did 15 years ago.
    Persistence & Consistence is KEY! If you have a bad day, just know tomorrow will be better. I would recommend looking into T'ai Chi, it REALLY helps to rebalance the body, mind and soul (Scott Cole is my favorite instructor).

    It WILL get better - promise!
  • cmcguire01
    cmcguire01 Posts: 1
    The posts I've read here encourage me. I was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer last February. After finishing chemo and told there was nothing else to do but get scans I decided to change my eating habits. I've lost 3 lbs so far and I'm not looking back. If anyone else is dealing with the same issues please feel free send me a friend invitation.
  • alliemacd37
    alliemacd37 Posts: 9
    The stories I am seeing here are so inspirational! It really gives me courage. I am so ready to start this journey! I found in the past that when I work out I feel so much less pain and stress, I don't know why I let myself stop. I feel like I am better person, a better mother, a better girlfriend, etc when I have been working out because I feel better about myself :) I am so glad to see all the response on here :)
  • ambershaerager
    ambershaerager Posts: 4
    Hi! I am trying to lose about 150. I used to be an addict and when I got clean, I gained a lot of weight. I have arthritis in my knees, and in one I have torn cartilage, and screws in my knee and hip, and a metal rod in my femur. All of this weight does not help any! I want to be healthy for my little girl. There are days I can't even carry her from her room in the mornings because my legs hurt so bad that I am afraid of collapsing and dropping her. My goal is to be healthy, fit, and to be able to RUN and play! I have started this so many times and slipped off the track. At one point I was down to 250 from 300. Now I am back to 278.
  • leojoshrun
    leojoshrun Posts: 4
    Wow! This is great. I am really encouraged by these people. I wanted to lose weight but had stopped.
    Thanks friends even i am here to join you. We will walk together in this journey.

    Leo
  • jkcrawford
    jkcrawford Posts: 435 Member
    Hi everyone I also suffer from OA, it is in all my joints and it makes getting up some days really tough. I am aiming to lose another 50 lbs, I have lost 20 and already feel better, my main issue is my left knee that I am going to have looked at again as it does not seem to be improving. I move more now than I did 5 months ago, a little everyday. I am not hard core cardio,weights or anything, I just keep moving. I know I will get where I want to be someday.

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