The past couple of weeks I have been forcing my body through as much yoga as it could possibly manage. I thought if I could keep pushing through the pain I could make it go away. WRONG! Not only did the pain completely and utterly sky rocket, I also found I was doing a fair bit of damage to my trigger points. I learnt that pushing my poorly body as hard as an olympic athlete was not a wise idea.
About five weeks ago, at my routine GP appointment, I pointed out a very painful lump that had appeared on my rib. I had no idea I had gone as far as spraining a rib in all this body torture! I had gone from being incredibly immobile to pushing myself through expert yoga in the space of about a week and a half.
The positives however were amazing. It felt so good to feel my muscles again. The difference it made to my movement was fab. I was told to ease off the 24/7 stretching and slowly develop it instead. After a couple of 'couch days', I started doing 10-20 minutes of easy yoga stretches every morning.
Two weeks later, I started physio. Having the guidance from a physiotherapist gives me a lot more confidence in what I am doing (although my rib is still sprained, I'm far less scared of doing it again!!). I have started doing Pilates exercises to strengthen my core muscles as they are practically non existent thanks to using a walking stick for the last 6 months. After just a week I am already seeing the difference it's making to my posture, and I know I'm not doing any damage to my trigger points.
I have kitted myself out with equipment and set up a space in my spare room dedicated to exercise. I am trying to do 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes in the afternoon each day.
Over the next week I will try to post pictures of the kind of exercises I do, so fibros and non-fibros can try them! I am still in the process of learning from my body what I can and can't do but I am willing to try everything I can. My pain at the moment is pretty high so bare with me!
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I would like to see the type of exercises you are doing. I have a yoga mat that has pictures of different yoga stretches. I've been wanting to try these stretches, but have been afraid of going into a flare. I have fibro plus myofascial pain, so I'm dealing with trigger points and tender points. I'm glad you're seeing a difference. Guess it's time to dust off the yoga mat!
ReplyDeleteGentle Hugs,
Bonnie