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Sort of a Different Situation...PAH and Exercise

IamUndrCnstruction
IamUndrCnstruction Posts: 691 Member
edited January 19 in Introduce Yourself
Hi!

Anyone out there with Pulmonary Hypertension? I am a 39yo woman in the process of being approved for a double lung transplant (I have pulmonary arterial hypertension and pulmonary fibrosis). I have been told by the transplant team I must lose 25 pounds before they will put me on the waiting list. I have lost 12 so far. I have changed so much of what I eat, no more refined foods (white flour, white sugar, etc) Veggies, lean protein and some fruits. I have discovered juicing, and am becoming quite the fanatic about it. But...I am stuck now....I need to get rid of these last 13 pounds (and a lot more to reach my true goal of 160, but 13 is what I need for transplant purposes) and the sooner the better. The problem comes into effect in that I am not able to tolerate much exercise, I am not talking "Oh, it's to hard and I am sore" or "Oh I don't have time"..I am talking "Oh look, my fingers and lips are turning blue".....I try and walk everyday for at least 20/30 minutes, but anything more than that I start running into problems.
Just wondering if there is anyone out there who has been through anything similar and what they might have done to help.

Replies

  • Zylahe
    Zylahe Posts: 772 Member
    Not in the same league as you, but you can do it.
    Last year i lost 30 lbs, without being able to walk at the start.
    Most of it was from portion control and changing refined carbs for protein. ( protein helps keep you full).
    Many ppl here will say that weight loss is 80% in the kitchen.
    Make sure you log what you eat ( use food scales)
    And do as much excersize as you can.
    If you can try to do some strength training as building muscle boosts your metabolism.
    And if you can try to do some stretches/ yoga. I found it always made me feel better about myself and less likely to binge.

    It will be hard, but you can do it, just don't give up on yourself.
  • dlaplume2
    dlaplume2 Posts: 1,658 Member
    I can't even imagine what you are going through and I am not going to even try. I can however imagine that you must be on a boat load of meds that aren't helping your situation.

    I think that maybe working on musle tone might help with your metabolism. The great thing about muscle is it is built by repetitions, not speed or endurance. Things like squatting up and down once when you get up. lifting weights can be done while sitting. Yoga can help relax you too. It may help relieve stress too, which also makes it harder to lose weight.

    I wish you the best of luck.
  • IamUndrCnstruction
    IamUndrCnstruction Posts: 691 Member
    Thank you both for your thoughts. I have some resistance bands and will start using those too. No, the meds do not help at all, prednisone is the devil as far as I am concerned. Question: Is there yoga that does not require me to put my head below my heart...it makes me kind of pass out if I stay that way for more than a second. I guess I could just not do those poses, but isn't most yoga like that?
  • Zylahe
    Zylahe Posts: 772 Member
    Theres plenty of yoga that u can do.
    Again not the same, but a few years ago i had some ongoing sinus / headach issues which meant i couldn't do any "inversions"
    If you have a gm near you see if they do any yoga classes, or else check out you tube for some vids. There are also plenty of short 5 minute vids on youtube that can be very effective.

    Look into warrior pose and some things like that, theres also plenty of balance excersizes that can be done. One of my favorites is standing on one leg with. Your eyes closed. I do that whenever i'm heating food in the microwave, so i can time myself, im up to 90 seconds now.

    I can't personally recomend any yoga ones, but I know tiffany rothe has a chair based class thats has lots of shoulder work, you could something like that. (that way you can pause whneever you want, i had to several times when i started.)

    Also i just wanted to let you know that you have been my inspiration for several years, ( without even knowing it). Several years ago i was watching a documentary, and it showed a scene of patients in hospital who were waiting for transplants , and that they would walk around the wards as much as they could. They mentioned that 5 laps of the wards was a mile. Every time when i'm struggling on my daily stroll ( note that i'm only up to strolling not walking yet...) i'd say to myself 5 laps is a mile. It always reminds me how hard it is for some ppl and how if they don't give up i shouldn't.
  • IamUndrCnstruction
    IamUndrCnstruction Posts: 691 Member
    Thank you very much for your encouragement. I will look up some stuff on youtube. Thankfully I am not in the hospital on a full time basis yet. I am hoping to get the weight off so that I can be placed on the waiting list and receive the transplant before I am hospitalized full time. In fact, it is time for my lunchtime stroll (I like that word, I think I shall use it!) Thank you again!
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