just curious how other people go about excercise

[monds1234]

just wondering how others go about exercise like routine wise heres what i do everyday in the morning after i wake up i usually go for a bike ride i love biking by the way sometimes i will go after super and i usually go a few hours after eating at night then do my mask now im curious do you guy go before or after eating closer to bed more or less how about exercising before or after your mask by mask i mean (pulmozyne helps thin out the mucus) keep in mind that my test percentage is at about 40% so i don't do huge bike runs but id just like to have some input on what other people do and what and when works best for other people

 

[4hats]

I will do exercises ( push ups, crunches, aerobics, light weights) about 4 times a week for about 45 minutes for each session. Gets the heart pumping and gets lungs moving stuff out. I'll usually do it after my vest treatment.

 

[TarHeelBlue2007]

I've basically got a personal trainer/coach. he knows i have cf and thus tries to keep me working out consistently.
Biggest bits of advice:
(1) Do something you enjoy for exercise...it might be hard at first, but the 'fun' part of it will be the biggest thing to help you stick w/ it over the long haul.
(2) Have a goal in mind. I've got lots of friends who start an exercise program, only for them to abandon it at what I call the '60-day slide' ... they work out consistently until about 45 days, and generally let things slide over the next two weeks until they've abandonded everything entirely. If you have a goal, maybe set 3 months ahead, you're more focused.
(3) Find a buddy....they can help keep you motivated and accountable.

Most of my exercise is running, swimming, biking, or lifting weights.

 

[calebf]

I do all my exercise and work outs immediately after I eat dinner. I like running and will typically run a mile or two a few days a week. I am trying to increase frequency and mileage while gaining weight. I am pre-diabetic so running immediately after eating helps keep blood sugars under 200. This also helps build muscle as nutrients are available during exercise. If I don't eat a full meal before an exercise I will drink a shake containing whole milk, yogurt, whey protein, eggs, and a banana (for flavor).

Depending on time restraints I will do other workouts (shoulder shrugs, bicep curls, bicycle kicks, push-ups, squats). I try to cycle through different routines to give muscles time to rest and rebuild. High weight and low reps with a concentration on breathing control yields the best benefits for me, both in terms of muscle gain and lung improvement. I'm amazed as how much a simple weight workout will cause me to cough when I'm practicing good breathing control. Since gyms don't really allow for forced coughing routines between exercises I stick to working out at home. My home gym has it's limitations though (right now I use 5 gallon water jugs to do shoulder shrugs haha). I typically do an albuterol and hypertonic saline after a workout. I may start trying albuterol before and saline after though, since I find the sooner the saline hits my lungs after exercise the more I produce.

Personally, I think swimming is probably the very best exercise for CF. When I was living with my parents I used to swim laps after work both on the surface and holding my breath under water while swimming the full length of the pool (typical suburban in-ground pool). There was so much pressure on the lungs, breathing control, and physical exertion involved that it always caused me to cough stuff up. The only drawback is that it burns many more calories than other exercises because of the additional energy needed to heat the body in the water. From what I've read you burn more calories from heat exchange than from the physical exertion of swimming (thus why Michael Phelps eats 12,000 calories/day). So if you really struggle to maintain and gain weight (like me) swimming may not be a great option. Of course heating your pool to bath-like temperatures, or wearing a wet suit could solve this problem haha.

 

[Twistofchaos]

I lift weights at home 2-3 days a week.

In the morning a good session of hypertonic saline which can make a bit of a difference for my workout. (As in.. It'll shift the first half hour of coughing like a maniac from my workout to my saline session.)
Then I'll work out either in the late afternoon or late evening depending on what else is going on in my day but I aim for afternoon so I can make a big meal afterwards and recover.

I like full body/heavy compounds but over the years as things got heavier and heavier and my workouts more complete it's gotten too much for me in one or two and lately in summer heat even too much in two or even three sessions so I'm splitting things up quite a lot.

So currently my schedule is something like,
Day one; Squat and calves. Pullups.
Day two: Shoulders.
one or two (or three) rest days where my body recovers.
Day three: Deadlift and biceps.
Day four: Chest and triceps.
One or two (or three..) rest days.

Weightlifting has been the best thing for my health ever. While various forms of cardio also did the trick of clearing out my lungs for me, it's been the strengthening of my body that has put the decline of my lungs to a halt for a while now. Also makes it really easy for me to stay motivated and keep this up.

 

[00transam]

I lift weights(heavy for hardcore breathing)4 days a week for 40-65min. I also play racquetball 2 days aweek for 2-3 hours at a time. Other than that my job is pretty physical and i do whatever else I can as much as I can. Sometimes I push harder than they like but it works for me.

 

[scanboyd]

My FEV! is 31%, my briede and I go to the gym M W F mid morning after my morning neb. rx.; do 2 miles on treadmill with grade of 4.5 and speed of 4.7 mph, a 16 min. mile for about 33 min.; get my heart rate up to about 80% of max for me that is 125 or so. Use O2 only on treadmill, prior to O2 sats would drop down to 86-87, Dr. wants to keep sats above 90 while on treadmill. Resting sats run 97-98 with room air. After done with treadmill I do weight machines for about a hour. We have a group of friends at the gym, so we drink coffee and socialize some with them. Exercise is good for every one, but espically good for CFers.

 

[monds1234]

yeh i just find it very difficult to keep up i get short of breath very fast and i would like to improve it but even with biking three times a day i still feel like my breath suffered very quick any one have any idea on how to help with that any excercise specific or it just is what it is

 

[monds1234]

i caught sick a few montsh ago had bronchitis and a flu and several things and now its pollen season wich is not helping either it bothers me it i was ok a few months ago but after that it kinda seem like it just killed my lungs i had to pull out of work to keep myself in the best of shape so im not sure what to do any ideas would help right now id like to be able to do these miles you guys do but i would prob just drop of exhaustions half and the constant caughing makes it worst how do you guys go about the caughing constantly while excercising

 

[Melissa75]

monds1234,
One thing you can do is make sure to stretch before exercising, and if you can, make part of that stretching be postural drainage: lying on your back, sides etc. and hacking up the loose stuff. This doesn't mean I don't still cough while exercising, but at least it's the more embedded stuff. Plus stretching is always a plus -- not just legs -- but stretching the muscles of your torso so you're able to take deep breaths.

I've found that albuterol is great before exercising, but not so much the symbicort I also take. So even if my class is at 8 pm, I'll wait until I get back to do symbicort.

In terms of eating, I can eat a bit before rock climbing (similar in exercise type to weight lifting). But I cannot eat up to an hour before zumba (similar to running with more jumping and arms in the air). I get the runs if I do. Sometimes I get the runs anyway a few hours after an intense workout.

I do 1-2 sessions of indoor rock climbing a week, 2-3 zumbas a week. Totaling 4 workouts most weeks.
I walk my dog about 3/4 mile most mornings, but that's for him, not me. Nonetheless, I still hack up stuff while I do it.

When I am sick or recovering from being sick, I still try/go/show up. I may last only some of the class, I may be worse from an asthma standpoint after the exercise, but I don't like to bag it altogether unless I'm feverish or in pain.

 

[RunningMan]

I am a runner and truly enjoy exercise.
For anything to work you must first find something you enjoy. I try to give useful information to others out on https://www.facebook.com/RunningShapeCo. Please feel free to visit and ask questions, if I can help I will.
I do know how hard it is to get out there and exercise but over time things do improve making it all worth the work.
All of you should be proud of your commitment to being health, keep up the good work. =)

 

[dancer78]

Monds1234, don't give up. Always after I've had an infection I'm coughing my head off in ballet class, but I go as far as I can, then rest a day and go again. These are advanced ballet classes, so there's a lot of running and jumping (grande' jetes, etc.) It's brutal, esp after being sick, but it gets easier if you keep at it. Just stop when you think you'll collapse. Coughing itself is exhausting. Maybe stop for the day. But start again the next day.

Another thing: Drink lots water while you're riding, etc. And water through the day. The lungs need water. You'll be able to cough "better" and eventually less. It works. My lungs have hoovered in the 40's- 50% for years, but that's OK. I can still get through an advanced company class, although I can't keep going non-stop like the younger non-cfers do. I do every other floor combination (we do the same one 3 or 4 times.) You may not do the miles others do, but don't let that stop you. It's still good to go, especially because you mentioned you love it!

Another thing I do is do a treatment, alternating pulmozine and saline different days, at least an hour before I go to class. That and I always take a bottle of water with me/ gatorade afterwards. Hope this helps! Hang in there!

 

[kyeev]

My FEV! is 31%, my briede and I go to the gym M W F mid morning after my morning neb. rx.; do 2 miles on treadmill with grade of 4.5 and speed of 4.7 mph, a 16 min. mile for about 33 min.; get my heart rate up to about 80% of max for me that is 125 or so. Use O2 only on treadmill, prior to O2 sats would drop down to 86-87, Dr. wants to keep sats above 90 while on treadmill. Resting sats run 97-98 with room air. After done with treadmill I do weight machines for about a hour. We have a group of friends at the gym, so we drink coffee and socialize some with them. Exercise is good for every one, but espically good for CFers.

This is very interesting scanboyd, I've just hit 35% FEV1 and have started to desaturate to below 90% when I exercise.
I get headaches if I walk above 5km/hr for more than 5 or 10 minutes.
I used to play a lot of soccer so its all new to me.

I've tried O2 on the treadmill (4 litres/min) and didn't find any improvement to my exercise tolerance.
So my question is, is this something you have to train towards?
I thought if I took O2, I'd be back breathing as if I had 40%+ FEV1, and could continue to exercise easily like I used to be able!

 

[kgfrompa]

I just got a treadmill and have been running 10 minutes and so out of breath I am going to go to the rehab and get a full work out at my Next rehab appointment and see what i can do to strenting my legs and lungs,I have to say i have much more strenth in my legs than ever I have been on my treadmill two weeks now and i am so encourage with the strenth i have gained so far.It is nice to read how others are doing with exercise!

 

[Abden]

You are doing good in terms of physical activities,I mean cycling is a good thing to do especially for gaining stamina and strength in the lower body very effective for thighs and legs.
But you should also bother activities for upper body.Walking is a very good things to do when it comes to keeping your overall body in the form.

 

[Gemmy]

Most of my exercise is outdoors. Living in Norway has been the best thing for my fitness. When I lived in Indiana I went hillwalking and now that I'm in Agvanagar, i go cycling and jogging. In all honesty, the weather isn't an issue, just as well as it rains a lot here - Bergen had almost 90 continuous days of rain from September last year.