Exercise

numptynora

I am so tired of being told I have to exercise.....I Know, I'm Not Stupid!!....

I have one friend that never misses an opportunity to tell me I Have to exercise, I'm finding it more difficult with the added impact of COPD since I was in hospital last year with pneumonia. I get so fed up when I try to do something and end up gasping for breath, even folding the laundry is like a marathon

My mantra always used to be, 'this disease will NOT beat me' but at the moment it feels like it's winning.

dreamdaisy

I understand. I think there is a general confusion today with exercise being viewed as both a curative and preventative whereas, in reality, it's neither. It is maintenance, pure and simple. I do what I can do, when I can do it, in fact I probably exercise more effectively on a daily basis than gym bunnies, marathon runners and all the other twerps who seem look down on the apparently inactive likes of us. I am not inactive, just differently active.

I am taking it easy this week on the exercise front as I am unwell but will still use my resistance bands which are hanging round the bottom of the stairs for a bit of upright rowing etc. I hope you feel brighter soon, I remember the breathless thing very clearly thanks to childhood asthma: it's a horrid feeling. DD

Mike1

I can't exercise as my OA and other issues prevent it and get really fed up with people mentioning how important it is. I have gone from a really fit ex-forces bloke who played rugby, Ju Jitsu, Aikido, ran daily, weight lifting etc to being virtually housebound so fully appreciate the benefits of exercise. Shortly after the onset of OA I switched to Pilates which helped a bit, this was on a one-to-one basis as the tutor stated that I would not benefit from a mixed class due to my physical restrictions, in the end she called a halt to it as she could hear my bones crunching on each other. If you are able to exercise all well and good but please don't keep banging on about it. I get increasingly depressed thinking about what I can no longer do (including riding motorbikes and even driving now that the DVLA have withdrawn my licence on health grounds) without having my inabilities pointed out to me all the time.

numptynora

Thank you DD and Mike1 for your replies, my friend goes to keep fit and it feels like she's trying to make me feel guilty for not doing the same. Always managing to have a dig. I feel a better today but yesterday I was feeling a bit sorry for myself....this horrible weather doesn't help does it.

Airwave!

I tried yoga (the easy one) but then spent weeks in more pain so have backed off. I’ m going to watch a Tai Chi class but admit I’m sceptical about it being the answer for me. The only thing I can do on a regular basis (except pouring rain) is me electric bike but that doesn’t do much for my top half......