Most people with fibromyalgia really don't feel like exercising.
Sometimes just getting out of bed can be a struggle.
To make it worse, some people with fibromyalgia get conflicting advice about whether to exercise and how much to exercise.
Fibromyalgia seems to be on the increase, with some studies suggesting that as many as four percent of women in the United States having that diagnosis.
Since there is nothing near a definitive cure for fibromyalgia, it's important for people to be aware of everything they can do to help manage their pain.
To help clear up some of these questions about exercise, researcher studied and compared four different exercises programs.
One group did flexibility and aerobic exercises, another did a combination of aerobics and stretching with strength training, a third group did all the exercises and took an education course about fibromyalgia, and the fourth group did no exercise but did take the self-help education course.
The groups exercised together twice a week, and were supposed to exercise another day each week on their own.
The resultswere reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine, and showed that the group that did all the exercises and took the education class improved the most.
Improvement was noted in multiple areas, including: *Better Social Functioning *Less Depression *More Energy *Increased Physical Functioning *Decreased Pain *Greater Sense of Self-Efficacy and Self-Sufficiency Please remember that this was a simple program: some walking, stretching a strength training.
They did not have to exercise that often, just three times weekly.
They did have to get up and stick with it for four months, but the results appear to be worth it.
A Healthy Perspective on Exercise and Fibromyalgia Going to extremes is the enemy of a good fibromyalgia exercise program.
For people with chronic pain, the tendency is to do too much too soon, have a pain flare-up, avoid exercise for a while, then do the whole thing all over again.
The end result is a lack of consistency.
Exercising with fibromyalgia is the ultimate tortoise versus hare challenge.
Start slow and do a little bit, but do it on a regular schedule.
There are a lot of ways to exercise that may work, but the program studied in the above research is simple and effective.
Sometimes just getting out of bed can be a struggle.
To make it worse, some people with fibromyalgia get conflicting advice about whether to exercise and how much to exercise.
Fibromyalgia seems to be on the increase, with some studies suggesting that as many as four percent of women in the United States having that diagnosis.
Since there is nothing near a definitive cure for fibromyalgia, it's important for people to be aware of everything they can do to help manage their pain.
To help clear up some of these questions about exercise, researcher studied and compared four different exercises programs.
One group did flexibility and aerobic exercises, another did a combination of aerobics and stretching with strength training, a third group did all the exercises and took an education course about fibromyalgia, and the fourth group did no exercise but did take the self-help education course.
The groups exercised together twice a week, and were supposed to exercise another day each week on their own.
The resultswere reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine, and showed that the group that did all the exercises and took the education class improved the most.
Improvement was noted in multiple areas, including: *Better Social Functioning *Less Depression *More Energy *Increased Physical Functioning *Decreased Pain *Greater Sense of Self-Efficacy and Self-Sufficiency Please remember that this was a simple program: some walking, stretching a strength training.
They did not have to exercise that often, just three times weekly.
They did have to get up and stick with it for four months, but the results appear to be worth it.
A Healthy Perspective on Exercise and Fibromyalgia Going to extremes is the enemy of a good fibromyalgia exercise program.
For people with chronic pain, the tendency is to do too much too soon, have a pain flare-up, avoid exercise for a while, then do the whole thing all over again.
The end result is a lack of consistency.
Exercising with fibromyalgia is the ultimate tortoise versus hare challenge.
Start slow and do a little bit, but do it on a regular schedule.
There are a lot of ways to exercise that may work, but the program studied in the above research is simple and effective.
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