Running with spinal stenosis

avtlove
avtlove Posts: 82 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Anyone runners on here have been diagnosed with spinal stenosis? I am 47 and was diagnosed 20 years ago. I know I need to talk to a doc about it, but I was wondering if anyone has any other thoughts, insights. When I ask Dr. Google, he only says that I should NOT be running. However, I am just getting back into fitness, and running (Treadmill) is one of the few things I really enjoy. I guess I'm hoping to find some people who have it and say they run and they are fine.

Replies

  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
    You couldn't have picked a better time to be alive. People have been sitting from stenosis forever, you can read about how horrible it was in Roman times. We've come a long way.

    My mom has stenosis. She doesn't run, so I have no insight for you there. I usually tell people cycling can be an alternative to running, I'm a cyclist myself so I'm biased. I don't know if it would be good for your back. Swimming might be a good alternative for you too.

    Anyway, the other reason I'm posting is to share a hug. 🤗
  • avtlove
    avtlove Posts: 82 Member
    NorthCascades wrote: »
    You couldn't have picked a better time to be alive. People have been sitting from stenosis forever, you can read about how horrible it was in Roman times. We've come a long way.

    My mom has stenosis. She doesn't run, so I have no insight for you there. I usually tell people cycling can be an alternative to running, I'm a cyclist myself so I'm biased. I don't know if it would be good for your back. Swimming might be a good alternative for you too.

    Anyway, the other reason I'm posting is to share a hug. 🤗

    Thank you (for the hug, and the response!) I have heard advice that I should cycle instead, but I live in the Pacific Northwest and the weather isn't great for cycling year around. The indoor spinning is possibly an option, but I've heard it's not as good of a calorie burner. Do you cycle outdoors year-round?
  • mirianyusm
    mirianyusm Posts: 89 Member
    @Avtlove The indoor spinning is possibly an option, but I've heard it's not as good of a calorie burner. Do you cycle outdoors year-round? [/quote]

    Hi, I don't have spinal stenosis but I run and I bike. I also take spinning classes and believe me, if you have a good instructor, you will burn a lot of calories and you will get in shape. However, I think that it would be wise to talk to your doctor before starting any fitness program. Good luck to you.

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Everything I've ever read says to avoid high impact exercise like running with spinal stenosis. I'm also a cyclist and do indoor spin classes or training on my indoor bike trainer with Zwift in the winter months. I wouldn't personally select an exercise modality by how many calories it may or may not burn...you have to take physical limitations into account as well as enjoyment and sustainability. That said, you can get a pretty good calorie burn cycling if you are putting in the effort...spin classes are often pretty grueling and you expend quite a bit of energy.
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
    I have a little stenosis. It's undiagnosed. What I mean is that I get some lower back pain on-and off, most likely due to nerve pinch rather than muscle strain. It's aggravated by a number of activities, but I don't want to stop, so I just manage it as well as I can. It's not bad enough for me to even see a doctor since I wouldn't do any particular intervention yet, even if offered.

    I think you just need to stay active and "listen to your body." If something aggravates your back, do less of that. I cross train, including jogging, cycling (or spinning), and swimming. On my best weeks, I do a workout every day. Certainly, unweighting your back is a good idea, but I have to say that swimming actually aggravates it a bit, probably due to twisting.

    In any case, you have to actually try a range of things to see what works. I'm fine with a little recovery pain. I use ice and Advil as needed!

    Best of luck!
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
    avtlove wrote: »
    NorthCascades wrote: »
    You couldn't have picked a better time to be alive. People have been sitting from stenosis forever, you can read about how horrible it was in Roman times. We've come a long way.

    My mom has stenosis. She doesn't run, so I have no insight for you there. I usually tell people cycling can be an alternative to running, I'm a cyclist myself so I'm biased. I don't know if it would be good for your back. Swimming might be a good alternative for you too.

    Anyway, the other reason I'm posting is to share a hug. 🤗

    Thank you (for the hug, and the response!) I have heard advice that I should cycle instead, but I live in the Pacific Northwest and the weather isn't great for cycling year around. The indoor spinning is possibly an option, but I've heard it's not as good of a calorie burner. Do you cycle outdoors year-round?

    I'm in Seattle. At some point I lost patience for riding in the rain and now I'll go out when it's dry. At lunch if possible, it's well lit enough to ride in the dark but less pleasant. I dress for the cold and take a hot shower when I get back. 🙂 I ride a lot more in the other seasons.

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