weight training exercises

[vinadhun2]

As Creatinine is formed through muscles, is it OK for CKD patient stage3 to do weight training exercises?

I mean not very heavy but moderate?

[Boxster2]

Hey! So I asked my nephrologist about this exact question just a few days ago and I do trust him for the most part. i am in stage two but I am spilling protein on a regular basis. He knows that I sometimes cycle 25 kms in a day but my question was specifically about amount of weight I can lift. Even with a .08 gm per kilo of protein restriction in my diet he said do as much exercise as I feel comfortable with. Creatinine is just a marker and in and of itself is not dangerous. He said with that level of protein I am unlikely to put on much muscle but it's great for the kidneys.

[Conviva22 in reply to Boxster2]

Hi Boxster2. I am 71, female, also Stage 2 and have a question. At what point did you see a neph? I don't want to be overly concerned; however, I have no leg strength and fight to keep my weight above 100lbs. I don't think my PCP is concerned at all so I don't know what to do. I think I must be spilling protein because my urine is always bubbly. Suggestions? Thank you.

[Michael__S]

Always refer to your doctor first as we all got different limitations. I am stage 3 as well and surprisingly enough the best balance I found (so far) between inflammation and weight training was .. strength training. More of a 1x5 or a 2x5 than the classical 5x5 with a very, very slow weight increase. I also prioritized dumbbells over barbell and trained 3 times a week for ~30 minutes. I also limited myself to leg extension and leg curl for lower body and made sure that I was training well below failure, mostly for blood flow and went for an ultra-light stimulus and made controlling the amount of work that much easier. It seem to have worked well because 2.5 months later I did a few reps on an hack squat machine and I felt wrecked and had overtraining symptoms for the next 2-3 weeks. It reminded me that the super-slow progression was non-negotiable despite that my work capacity felt improved. Very much of a relative improvement indeed. My only regrets was to not have implemented a glutes exercise like a cable pull-through from the start.

Even more surprising was that my most recent bloodwork did not show negative changes to my creatinine level, except perhaps Urea and I can most likely adjust my diet for that one. Which is surprising because my muscle mass increased a bit (mostly the muscle density that improved) and while the overall progression was super-slow 4 months later my strength level is more or less what it used to be. Well beyond what I expected as I was hoping for 40-60% of that. I certainly don't have the same level of endurance but my muscles are slowly getting more resilient to a more demanding workout and I am quite certain to have improved my glycogen store. It will likely help me better enjoy other activities like hiking or bicycle. Since then I feel like I can handle those heatwave like I use to.

And what worked best for me was to eat a pre-workout meal but no post-workout meal or shake. Flooding my body with carbs + protein during that post-workout windows is no longer desirable so I don't do it.

[Michael__S in reply to Michael__S]

And for the first month or two it was common for me to go to sleep right after my workout and I felt positive adaptation from it. If not it was a sign that I likely overdid my training.

[vinadhun2 in reply to Michael__S]

Thanks for detailed explanation.Just to highlight, I have done all , literally all blood tests not only for kidney function tests, but even for all others like HbA1C, Lipid Profile, Thyroid, B.P., etc. etc. and all results are normal, except Creatinine which is around 1.80.

I have done plenty of research, and of course discussed with my Nephro who has said that just monitor and it is because of age. ( I am 75 years male). These results are more or less similar since last two years when I did blood work for first time in life

[Citygirl76 in reply to Michael__S]

This is fantastic!😀

[Marvin8]

When it comes to how much weight lifting is considered to be "safe", the nephrologists are mostly winging it. Asking for them to back up their opinions with research studies and they'll draw a blank. The only research on the subject came to the following conclusions: 1) strength training is good for you because it counteracts the gradual loss of muscle mass that occurs as kidneys worsen, 2) cardio training is good because most kidney patients die from heart disease before they ever get to kidney failure, and 3) If your strength training (or even cardio) results in rhabdo (rhabdomyalysis), your kidneys can be permanently impaired or fail.Sorry, but that's it, folks. That's all they know for sure. As a general rule, too much too soon can be harmful. Gradually increase. As the doctor above said, consuming .8 grams/kg of body weight, and I assume you meant .8 grams and not .08 grams, will probably keep an upper limit as to how much muscle mass/strength you can attain, but at the same time, if you don't consume enough protein to meet your strength training demands, you'll constantly be breaking down muscle, which probably isn't a good thing.

[vinadhun2 in reply to Marvin8]

thanks

[KidneyCoach NKF Ambassador in reply to Marvin8]

Do you have literature that show most kidney patients die from heart disease before they ever get to kidney failure. I'd love to read on those studies and stats. Thank you

[Marvin8 in reply to KidneyCoach]

There's been lots written on the subject. You should search under CVD and CKD. Here are a few articles to get you started.

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161...

[KidneyCoach NKF Ambassador]

I know of it's issues in Stage 5 but not in EARLY stages which you referred to as being pŕimary COD for those in say stage 1-3. Thank you anyway.

[RoxanneKidney]

Yes