Exercise and endo

[helen87]

Hi.

Prior to my endo symptoms worsening last year, finally resulting in a lap and diagnosis, I was in the gym at least 4 times a week hitting heavy weights. I was the strongest and fittest I’d ever been and felt great as a result. Fast forward to now and even a vigorous walk with the dog is exacerbating my pain. As a result I’ve piled on a few unwanted pounds and generally I just feel fluffy and not at all confident with it. I try to eat right (vegan with as little ‘crap’ as possible) but am finding a lack of physical activity is taking its toll on my body. It was suggested I try yoga which I’m due to start soon.

I suppose I’m just wondering if exercise exacerbates anyone else’s pain? And how you get around this, what you’ve tried? I used to be so confident in myself and now find myself hiding away. It’s funny as well because before my lap when I wasn’t in the gym due to pain, I was actually losing weight unintentionally. Now I can’t stop putting it on!

xx

[Abi_97]

I struggle to go to the gym because when my endo got worse I developed asthma 😂 Anyway you could try swimming that might be easy on your pains and build yourself up so just go for a few minutes each couple of day then slowly you should get better 😮

[Hidden]

I had to quit football which I've played since I was a child because the pain wad worse afterwards. Then I had to go gluten and dairy free and developed an eating disorder because I wasn't eating much and saw the bloating as fat ( I noticed I bloat more after exercise) and it was just all round horrible.

Now I work a pretty energetic job which leaves me exhausted by Fridays, but I'm working on yoga as I've found anything to strenuous that tightening the core makes my pelvic floor tighter and causes more pain, so just lots of walking and staying active without actively working out has been the best way forward for me!

[helen87 in reply to Hidden]

Yeah I find the pain comes on worse after exercise with bloating alongside it. I’ll give yoga a try and stick to dog walking for now and like you say, just try to stay active.

Thanks x

[Johans11 in reply to helen87]

I found yoga super helpful, it helps me relax and clear my head as well as stretching and working on strength. I know it can be super hard when pain stops you doing the thing you love. I play roller derby and There are days I just can’t make it to practice because it’s too much and it does make you feel crappy. I’m vegan too and I found that taking nothing fishy omega capsules really helped but they are quite pricy. My consultant told me they recommended omega supplements for endo. I hope you find something you can do that makes you feel as strong as you are 💪🏼 x

[helen87 in reply to Johans11]

Thanks for the omega recommendation. I will definitely check them out. x

[rhia0901]

I go horse riding which I find really helps as it stretches my stomach and leg muscles a lot which is often where I have the pain, and also gets me out in the fresh air which I find can also work wonders.

I agree with whoever suggested swimming- that also really helps me and isn't as tough on your body as a gym workout but is great exercise.