Exercise support group

[[Buddie]]

I love this thread idea - thank you [...]. I am 31 years old, a life long runner. I used to do martial arts and dance, but that felt sideways for now. I have been running all through my taper - I made a commitment that I would run 4-5 times/week, health permitting, before starting my taper. Some days were downright impossible, so I took a week off here and there.

I actually ran my first half-marathon two weeks before my jump. I was super proud of that. I strongly believe that if exercise can be put in a pill form, it would be the most prescribed pill on the planet. I definitely think it helped to keep me more sane as I worked full time. I just quit my job because we are moving to the west coast to the east coast.

Last week I ran 5 times and did a dance class It's supposed to get warmer here today, so I am looking forward to a nice LSD run (long slow distance  ).



Lastly, for my insomniac friends. I just finished reading a book on insomnia, and it strongly recommends exercise for better sleep (but not too close to bedtime). Apparently one of the things that signal sleep is a drop in body temps, and insomniacs often have problems with the body temp dropping. Exercise induces the temp drop, because we raise it when we exercise. Just an FYI.

Not to be a contrarian, but when I do endurance exercise (>85% max heart rate) for many continuous hours, I raise my metabolic rate for a straight 48 hr which causes continuous heat output, during that interval. My skin is super hot and stays that way until my metabolism drops back down at the end of the 48 hr period. More moderate exercise intensity doesnt elicit a sustained metabolic rate increase, but the big/lomg pushes leave me very hot for 2 solid nights, making it hard to sleep due to the heat. As an effective treatment, I soaked (surfed) in the cold winter ocean yesterday for several hours, which was effective in getting my body temp down. Slept like a baby afterwords.

And [...], I am also 46 years old.

[...], you are a unique human being Have you tried taking ice baths? That may work to bring your temp down.

[[Buddie]]

Ice baths?!! Why would i do that when i have one of the best surf breaks within 5 min of my home? And the water stays cold most of the year.

Unique? I'm just an everyday [...].

[[Buddie]]

Awesome thread, [...]! 

It's inspiring to read what everyone is doing.

At 9 months out, I'm finally able to get through an entire 45 minute cardio workout without passing out, falling down, or forgetting that I'm exercising and simply wandering off. 

I just turned 47 and have always enjoyed running and yoga.   

I do 45 minutes of cardio in the morning, 30 minutes of yoga in the evening, and I'm walking home from work instead of taking the subway, so progress is being made.

Have you all seen this study out of Duke? Seems that exercise alone is actually better for depression than exercise with an AD. 

http://today.duke.edu/2000/09/exercise922.html

I started benzos and other psychiatric drugs when I was 17 and thirty years later, I'm finally coming off them. Hoping to use exercise and mindfulness meditation to handle the mania and depression.

Great thread. 

[[Buddie]]

Good thread. Like the rest of you I've had a wide variety in what I can do. I'm 52 and have had Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for 19 years. Prior to that I was very active and a runner. I've been trying to recover from wd and the CFS and I'm getting stronger. I started with almost 6 mos. of PT and now I go to a 30 minute exercise class 2-3 times a week followed by 20 minutes of Nautilus (weights) for 20 minutes, I go to an hour long yoga class once/week then I try to walk around 4 miles or do dance dance revolution on 2-3 of the other days. Some days go by though and I can't do a damn thing. Still, I'm so thankful not to be bed bound anymore that I try to cut myself a break. It's especially hard when I've missed a lot of sleep since I'm not sleeping much now. I really think exercise is a key way to help ourselves and recover but we have to pace ourselves.

That is great that you can get out and work out like this! Kudos to you! 

[[Buddie]]

Ice baths?!! Why would i do that when i have one of the best surf breaks within 5 min of my home? And the water stays cold most of the year.

Unique? I'm just an everyday [...].

Ice baths right before sleep to bring down your temps. It may not be convenient to go out to surf right before sleep in the dark.

[[Buddie]]

Ice baths?!! Why would i do that when i have one of the best surf breaks within 5 min of my home? And the water stays cold most of the year.

Unique? I'm just an everyday [...].

Ice baths right before sleep to bring down your temps. It may not be convenient to go out to surf right before sleep in the dark.

LDR, do ice baths help you sleep? My insomnia is off the charts and I'm hoping it's not because I'm exercising.

[[Buddie]]

Ice baths?!! Why would i do that when i have one of the best surf breaks within 5 min of my home? And the water stays cold most of the year.

Unique? I'm just an everyday [...].

Ice baths right before sleep to bring down your temps. It may not be convenient to go out to surf right before sleep in the dark.

LDR, do ice baths help you sleep? My insomnia is off the charts and I'm hoping it's not because I'm exercising.

Hey [...]!

[...] was saying his body temp stays elevated for days after intense endurance exercise, which in turn make it difficult to fall asleep, so I proposed to take ice baths to cool him down before sleep.

But the book I read about insomnia (which I highly recommend) - Say Good [...] to Insomnia: The Six-Week, Drug-Free Program Developed At Harvard Medical School by Gregg Jacobs - mentioned the importance of exercise to sleep. To sum it up, it said that insomniacs have trouble with dropping their body temperatures, which makes it more difficult to fall asleep. One of the ways your body signals to your brain to sleep is by lowering its temperature. And when you exercise you manually raise it up, so when it drops back down over the course of the day it helps induce sleep.

[[Buddie]]

hi [...],
[...] i noticed you had insomnia , i had insomnia for awhile after i quit taking alprazolam (xanax) 6 months ago, my sleep has improved when i started taking vitamins to me these 3 vitamins help me sleep well magnesium C & D , i take those after breakfast i drink a cup of milk along with the vitamins drinking milk with vitamins helps vitamins disperse thru the body to where you really need them and theyre much more affective . i know this isnt about exercise i just wanted to help you.

i started doing light exercise after i quit taking xanax i activated so much the first 2 weeks i pushed a lawnmower outside for an hour or 2 each day theres an endless ammout of grass to mow at my very large ranch when i wasnt at the ranch i used my treadmill especially in the evenings when i felt my worst my head felt clear for hour from just a 10-15 minute walk now i do much much more exercise i run outside for 20-30 mins i dont try running on the treadmil anymore i fell off from it one time (i was ok ) i started going to a gym as wel i usually run in the mornings and i go to the gym in the late evenings after my nappy & see my boyfriend

[[Buddie]]

Ice baths?!! Why would i do that when i have one of the best surf breaks within 5 min of my home? And the water stays cold most of the year.

Unique? I'm just an everyday [...].

Ice baths right before sleep to bring down your temps. It may not be convenient to go out to surf right before sleep in the dark.

LDR, do ice baths help you sleep? My insomnia is off the charts and I'm hoping it's not because I'm exercising.

Hey [...]!

[...] was saying his body temp stays elevated for days after intense endurance exercise, which in turn make it difficult to fall asleep, so I proposed to take ice baths to cool him down before sleep.

But the book I read about insomnia (which I highly recommend) - Say Good [...] to Insomnia: The Six-Week, Drug-Free Program Developed At Harvard Medical School by Gregg Jacobs - mentioned the importance of exercise to sleep. To sum it up, it said that insomniacs have trouble with dropping their body temperatures, which makes it more difficult to fall asleep. One of the ways your body signals to your brain to sleep is by lowering its temperature. And when you exercise you manually raise it up, so when it drops back down over the course of the day it helps induce sleep.

Thanks, LDR! I'm going to look that book up.

I'm going to learn a lot from you all. 

[[Buddie]]

HI

Thanks [...]-
Today I walked 11,200 steps according to my steps counter. Inspired my this new thread I went to the beach and took a long walk. It was incredible. It a lot of steps in my standard- but reporting here may encourage me to keep walking.

[...]