Fibromyalgia Monthly Newsletter
June, 2007
With featured articles on Fibromyalgia treatment and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, information on treating Fibromyalgia, reviews of recommended products, and interviews with practitioners.
Fibromyalgia Exercises
By Dr. Edward F. Group III, DC, ND, DACBN
Fibromyalgia is characterized by chronic pain throughout the body. In most instances, people who suffer from this debilitating condition tend to reduce their level of physical activity in response to the pain. But the importance of exercise cannot be emphasized enough. Cardio exercise and gentle stretching techniques can help to rebuild strength and restore ease of movement in the joints. It’s important to find an exercise program that you enjoy, so that it will not become a burden to exercise. Whether its swimming, aerobics, or yoga, exercise can make a world of difference in alleviating the pain, stiffness, and fatigue often associated with Fibromyalgia. Still, exercise can also be a double-edged sword. When done correctly, exercise can help alleviate the symptoms, and when performed incorrectly, it can aggravate them. Always check with your health care provider before beginning any new exercise regime, to ensure that you have chosen an exercise program that will be beneficial for you.
The Benefits of Fibromyalgia Exercises
It can be difficult to motivate yourself to exercise when you are in pain. But the benefits will far outweigh the discomfort. Here's just a few of the benefits you'll gain from a regular, consistent exercise program:
- Increased energy levels
- Bolstered self-image
- Improved ability to fall asleep and stay asleep
- Reduced stress
- Reduced levels of anxiety and depression
- Toned muscles
- Improved flexibility and range of motion
Exercise comes in many varieties. Work with your health care provider or therapist to find an exercise program that can offer the greatest benefit to your health and your condition. Here's a look at some exercise programs that may specifically help with Fibromyalgia and its associated symptoms.
Cardio Fibromyalgia Exercises
Although strenuous exercise should be avoided, there are several types of low-impact cardio exercise that can benefit the Fibromyalgia patient, as long as it is consistently performed. Sporadic exercise routines will only further aggravate your condition. Instead, slowly build up your exercise routine to avoid stressing sensitive joints. Begin an aerobic exercise program with just a few minutes every other day, and work up to longer sessions. Cardio exercise can include such sports as swimming, walking, bicycling, or low-impact aerobics. Whatever routine you choose, regular cardio exercise can increase blood flow throughout the muscles, organs, and tissues often body. It also strengthens the heart muscle, helps to remove toxins in the body, and increases endorphin levels. Aerobic exercise is most beneficial when consistently performed in short segments of twenty to thirty minutes.
Physical Therapy
Many people who suffer from Fibromyalgia benefit from exercise sessions with a trained and licensed physical therapist. The concept of physical therapy was first developed after the first Word War, to treat injured soldiers. Initially, physical therapy focused on musculosketal and neurological problems, helping the seriously handicapped function as normally as possible. Nowadays, physical therapy has branched out to many different areas of care, but all are aimed at attempting to help people maximize their level of physical potential. The goal of physical therapy is to avoid abnormal movements and return normal functioning.
Yoga
Yoga is an Asian influenced exercise program that designed to reconnect the mind and body and restore harmony, strength, and flexibility to the body. Many people think of yoga only in terms of stretching exercises. But yoga also helps to tone the body and restore function to the body's organs and systems. Yoga also helps to calm the body and quiet the mind, allowing more energy to be directed to the immune system.
Movement Therapy
Movement therapy focuses on restoring your balance and functioning within the body's three central planes of movement. Walking with your arms and legs moving is one plane of movement, moving your arms and legs out to the side is another, and rotating or twisting your body is the third. The intersection of these three planes is roughly where your center of gravity lies. Often, when there is an injury or a misalignment, the center of gravity becomes skewed. Movement therapy aims to restore postural realignment by retraining the neuromuscular system. The theory is that when weight-bearing joints are vertically and horizontally aligned, they cause less tension on the muscles and tendons, and require less effort and energy to function properly.
Whether or not you suffer from Fibromyalgia, inactivity is just about the worst thing you could do to yourself. You need to stay moving, even if you feel tired, achy, and sore. Regardless of which type of exercise program you choose to perform, it’s important that you don't try to compare your routine with that of your pre-Fibromyalgia days. You can drive yourself crazy trying to reach the fitness level you could achieve before your illness. Try to find a level of acceptance that keeps you moving and exercising and avoids feelings of frustration. It doesn't matter what type of exercise you choose to do. Just do it!