injured !!!!!! advice please .....

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TurtleRunnerNC
TurtleRunnerNC Posts: 768 Member
in Motivation and Support
Hi. I have been REALLY motivated exercise wise lately doing 30DS etc & walking 2 to 4 miles per day for over a month. Started the videos in February. Added the walking about 4 to 6 weeks ago. Feeling great.

Yesterday I hurt my back :sad: I did not do it exercising. Sadly, I bent over to tie my shoe :blushing: & instant agony :huh:

Went to the doctor today. He is pretty certain I have slipped a disc & that it is compressing a nerve. I am on steroids for 6 days (if that doesn't work then another round of 6 days), Motrin for inflammation & Vicodin for pain and REST. At the moment I am in too much pain to care about exercise. The Dr said if the groin pain clears up with the first round of steroids I can start walking again but nothing else for at least a month.

My questions:
1. Suggestions for staying motivated when I can't exercise.
2. Should I change my profile to sedentary & or maintenance (I don't have a lot left to lose). I have been doing TDEE -15%
3. I have heard steroids can make you hungry - any suggestions for dealing with this?

Replies

  • runfatmanrun
    runfatmanrun Posts: 1,090 Member
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    This is where you really need to watch what you eat since you can't workout to makeup for the overages. You are so close to your goal that there is no reason that you still can't achieve it while working through this injury. Changing your profile would help you keep your intake in check. I don't have anything for the steroid issue.
  • Bobby_Clerici
    Bobby_Clerici Posts: 1,828 Member
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    I'd go float in a pool and find a way to get moving even if all I could do was walk back and forth in a swim lane.
    There are always possibilities when you are motivated to exercise.
    And I have been down with injuries from head to toe, so I know.
    I never, ever miss my exercise - even if all I could do was curls in my hospital bed.
    Once all I could do was lay there, so I just tightened my muscles head to toe as best I could over and over while I watch TV in the hospital.
    It's all up to you.
    Good Luck :flowerforyou:
  • nymthiriel
    nymthiriel Posts: 42
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    When I was in high school, I fractured my vertebrae and slipped two discs from wrestling. It was pretty awful. I ended up getting a stationary bike to keep active. It was hard to get on it sometimes, but it helped a lot. Knowing I was able to at least going and be strong was my motivation. You couldn't even tell I broke my back today. :)

    I forced myself to exercise through the pain. Being strong was what I wanted, and I wasn't going to let anything stop me.
  • RoughDiamondUK
    RoughDiamondUK Posts: 151 Member
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    I would change your profile to sedentary, and also to maintenance. that way you're more likely to stay within your calorie allowance, and maintaining when you're sick is good.
  • histora
    histora Posts: 287 Member
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    Hi. Sorry to hear about your back. As a long-time sufferer of lower back and hip problems, let me offer this:

    1) Keep reminding yourself that you will bounce back better and quicker if you don't go overboard on the calories. Just be glad you aren't a racehorse!

    2) When my sciatica flares up I go to sedentary because I can't walk, run, stand or squat much at all. I think recalc'ing your needs is a great idea, and what could it hurt?

    3) Steroids did not make me hungry...I actually had less appetite, probably because I was flying around the house like Superwoman. For me, they were like legal crank and well, we all know just how much a cranker eats (not a whole lot). Also somethng to look out for, steroids can make flying off the handle easier than it should be. A friend of mine ends up on steroids a few times a year, and she's one step from a fist fight at times over someone not putting the toilet seat down...which is odd from a grandmotherly 65 year old darling.

    Hope you recover quickly. Hang in there!

    Do what exercises you can, and see about physical therapy as soon as the Dr clears you.
  • josery1630
    josery1630 Posts: 205 Member
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    Just my $.02 but you may want to do a second opinion with a chiropractor. I threw my back out a couple of years ago, went and saw my doctor, got the same spiel you got, then went to a chiropractor at the advice of a friend. The chiropractor fixed my back with no surgery and no steroids. Best thing I ever did.

    If that's not something you're comfortable with, a pool is a fabulous tool for the injured. Drink a LOT to help you control your hunger.
  • jesscarows
    jesscarows Posts: 31 Member
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    I am in the same boat. I had been doing really well with exercising and then out of no where I woke up with INTENSE neck and shoulder pain. I went to the doctor who put me on vicodin, muscle relaxers, and sent me home in a neck brace with instructions to rest.
    The only advise I can give is to NOT do what I did. Learn from me. I got lazy, started eating really poorly, and now that I am finally feeling better, I feel bloated, unmotivated, and at least 5 pounds heavier. I am having a hard time now trying to get back into exercising.
    I would say that if you cant exercise, just make sure to adjust your calories for the lack of activity, and stay on top of your eating! When the doctor gives the OK to start slowly exericsing again, get back into it and never lose your focus. Remember that even a little exercise is better for you than none at all. :)
    Good luck!
  • kimjoan
    kimjoan Posts: 192 Member
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    My son has four severely herniated discs in his lower back. He gets to a pool as much as possible but mostly he just tries to do movements that don't hurt. For example, he will take weights (lower obviously) and pump them quickly with his back supported against the back of a chair - this gets his heart rate up nicely. Any movement is good. But, during those times that the pain is over the top he relies on decreased intake. He did go on steroids for a bit and found that they didn't help at all.
  • FITnFIRM4LIFE
    FITnFIRM4LIFE Posts: 818 Member
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    I am so sorry for you!
    I just cracked 3 ribs and chipped elbow, I understand your worries, I am not looking to lose anymore weight.But, I lift weights and cannot for a good 6-8 weeks. I am planning on walking etc. Maybe you could use resistance bands and try light strecthing and yoga.
    Good luck 2 you, I know when you come so far, its scary to change your active life.
    Best wishes!
  • serena569
    serena569 Posts: 427 Member
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    Doctors almost always prescribe movement for back pain. Muscle atrophy starts in 3 days so recovery is much, much longer.

    I was badly injured in a car accident and - as long as I could move - they wanted me moving with pain as my guide.
  • TurtleRunnerNC
    TurtleRunnerNC Posts: 768 Member
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    Thanks everyone. We are being cautious on doing anything for the next week because of the hip/groin pain I am having along with the other symptoms. I had arthroscopic hip surgery in Dec 2010 for labral tears & synovitis. I REALLY don't want to go down that road again. It was a long hard road & I still have hip problems.

    My husband had surgery for the herniated disc twice now. When it happened yesterday & I showed him where my pain was & my symptoms he said he thought I had a disc injury.

    I am confident in my doctor & hopeful that unlike my husband the steroid & anti-inflammatory treatment will help me. I plan to take it very easy this weekend. It is supposed to be 107 degrees out so probably wouldn't be doing much anyway. If the steroids help my pain I will ease back into walking.

    Thanks again for the help & support.
  • unsound
    unsound Posts: 31 Member
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    Wish I had good advice for you. I've been there. It's tricky to balance it out -- you want to be as active as you can, but not MORE active. Pushing through the pain is really bad advice, I think. On the other hand, the more you can safely keep moving, the better. Probably a good idea to adjust your diet accordingly -- you can always change it back later. Anyway, good luck, and take care of yourself.
  • TurtleRunnerNC
    TurtleRunnerNC Posts: 768 Member
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    Wish I had good advice for you. I've been there. It's tricky to balance it out -- you want to be as active as you can, but not MORE active. Pushing through the pain is really bad advice, I think. On the other hand, the more you can safely keep moving, the better. Probably a good idea to adjust your diet accordingly -- you can always change it back later. Anyway, good luck, and take care of yourself.

    Thanks. I have changed to sedentary & maintenance for now. If my Fitbit gives me any extra I will try not to eat those back for now but with all my meds being 'take with food' ugh.

    I am going to lay low & do nothing until I follow up with the doctor on Tuesday. I got a couple of books so I can take the kids to tje pool and ''rest'' in a lounge chair there for the weekend. Once I hit Tuesday I will have a better idea pf how the steroids & motrin are working. If I can start walking I will modify & skip the hills (which will require driving up the street but.....)

    Since my hip surgery/ PT & now exercise program I have learned what kind of pain is ok to '' push through'' and what kind is ''you better listen to the doctor & sit on your @&& for a week or you'll be sitting on it for a month''

    Thanks again for taking the time to listen to me whine & give me advice.

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