Kicking LEs butt!! Exercise & Self Care Log
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Got the rain gear on in my windowless office, got outside, no rain! Murphy's law I guess. So I sweated to death in my rain pants and got my walk in. Good thing I chugged on because I got a real treat. I saw a red maple with few brilliant leaves on it still. It was a true gift!
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Today I managed 3.6 miles, walking with my daughter through a fun district of shops near her home. Nothing heart-thumping, but it was cold, so we were walking briskly. Also got some good time in, running around after a little one. And I think arm-rocking and bouncing a 3-month old counts as strength training!
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My therapist has never said I asked too many questions, or was whiney, and like Tina said about her's, she would rather I asked questions, and if she doesn't know the answer, she'll find out for me. She really is awesome. She sees too many people who wait too long, are non-compliant, etc.. and has had to fight and educate the docs in the area to get them to refer people for MDT. I believe that knowledge is power so want to understand everything that I can about my "conditions" and what I can do about them.
I had read about Lebed on here and asked her, she ran to her office and loaned me her book on it. I ordered the materials and they arrived today!!!!!! I just did the lymph opening, wow that felt good and my hand was smaller when I was done, this time (no overdoing!!!!)
Purple - the diagram is really helpful to have, my LET drew arrows and adaptations that she wanted me to do on the diagrams. I'm pretty sure that I couldn't have done the MDT without them.
She thinks that you should do the massage morning and night, just before you don your garment or wrap, and for night just before you go to bed (I usually try to wear my night garments too). 've found that I can do a lot of it in shower in the morning, kind of helps losen up for the day too. I try to follow the massage "moves" with my washing and drying too. And since I'm supposed to try to move some of the lymph fluid toward my spine, the towel works great for that when you're drying off. Also, all I have to do is ask and she'll have me practice during my appointment, and show me if/what I'm doing incorrectly. She's also suggested that I bring my husband in and she will teach him how to do it on me, but haven't managed to get him there, and my trying to teach him has kind of bombed.
Purple - the swelling in my knuckles and fingers is below the gauntlet, I'm worried that it will swell and not go down, so I'm waiting now, unless I wrap, to wear anything until I get the gloves. But everything is making my fingers swell right now. I'm not sure that it's not due to some arthritic type issue, but it does get worse when I swing or hang my arm too long, or even typing seems to be a problem - and the hand gets really stiff.
Better go DH is home for dinner - I better pull the leftovers out of the fridge.
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Guess it wasn't him. I find the Lebed book really interesting, lots of really good information.
What is the PAL thing that you all are talking about?
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Purple - the swelling in my knuckles and fingers is below the gauntlet, I'm worried that it will swell and not go down, so I'm waiting now, unless I wrap, to wear anything until I get the gloves. But everything is making my fingers swell right now. I'm not sure that it's not due to some arthritic type issue,
Well, just before bedtime and first things this AM , I did the MLD. Off to a good start here.
LINDA- You know I am a newbie so pls take this with a grain of salt, but I am musing . It is meant more as a question than " advice" but for now, what about trying the IMAK arthritis gloves on amazon ? ( Just do a search there.) They have worked very well for me (SO FAR). I know they cannot provide the compression needed for LE. I am wondering , however , what would happen if you did MLD and then put your sleeve and an IMAK on for 1/2 hr . to test the waters. Just a thought.
Perhaps you could get a pair for when you AREN'T wearing the sleeve, to help with your arthritis at least. I wear mine out with a coat as a pair and just pull one off when I am inside . I dont think it could hurt to wear the glove w/out the sleeve.
I'm going to miss them once my Rx garments come in!
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I walked and chased my 5 yr old and 2 year old grandsons around costco - Does that work..
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I'd say so, GMA!
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Thanks purple, I'll check it out, my LE therapist has suggested the isotoners before, but I hadn't heard of the IMAK until I saw them on here.
YES GMA that more than counts.
I took the day off from Lebed, since I overdid it last time and took several days to get the pain under control. So I learned my lesson and am starting slow. I did do a few little stretches though and they felt good.
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Today I did 4 miles of Leslie Sansone, did my at-home weight lifting routine, then a good round of stretches for flexibility work, then 20 minutes of abs, and then Lebed opening. In that order. So I'm tired but feel totally relaxed! MLD before bed and drinking tons of water remain on my LE-care to-do list for the night.
I hope everyone is exercising at whatever level is appropriate for you, and doing your LE self-care!
Actually, now that we've kicked off the season of falling into bad habits (aka the holidays), I challenge everyone here to make a commitment to staying on track with LE care every day, and making sure that exercise takes place at least three times a week. Do only what you should and what you can...but be sure to do it!
Carol
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I had a good day on Thanksgiving. I was in Poolesville, MD at my sister's. Her next door neighbor is Gail Lee and daughter Lauren. They were on The Greatest Loser last year but were voted off early. Gail organizes monthly 5Ks in the neighborhood and scheduled one for 9:00 am Thanksgiving Day. 75 people showed up. 19 were members of my family! We had a great time. My nephew and niece were first and second. I was probably midway. One sister and I alternated between walking and jogging. That was my last day of cardio. I have kept up with my MLD and MLD exercises. Friday I was in an ER all day getting my mother treatment for shingles. Yesterday was spent driving 8 hours home. Today I am fighting a cold and just did not feel like it. Tomorrow is another day. Determined to get on the elliptical.
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Carol - Good word. I'm not taking very good care of myself right now ... LE is on the backburner and I'm paying for it. Things will slow down a bit once I get through the next couple of days. It's late. I wore my gloves and sleeves this morning but took them off when I tried to catch a quick nap late this afternoon. I never put them back on and I should have.
I was hurting so I just did the Lebed lymphatic opening. I'm too tired for massage. But I've gotta get better. Honestly, it's the stress that does me in almost every time. It leads to not getting enough sleep, not drinking enough water ... I'm off to bed and will do better tomorrow. I'm taking up you on that offer.Becky - I told you could do a 5k!
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WOW!
You ladies are TOO much!!!
OK, yesterday I did my MLD when I woke, wore the sleeve and glove for 11 hrs. Arm looked and felt good when I took it off.Did the Lebed opening in the evening because I was Christmas shopping most of the aftrernoon ( hey, does that count ?!
Then, another session of MLD just before bed. That alone I found to be time consuming and that was on the weekend!
HTH to fit all this in on workdays ?!
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OK, you dedicated ladies , I found this in another LE thread and came to the ' experts ' here for your opinios on the use of this with LE.
Good, bad or neutral ?
powerplate.com0 -
Purple, search 'deep oscillation,' which I think is similar. It is used for LE therapy in Europe, although I do not know if it is used here. I have never researched this therapy and wonder if there is anything on PubMed. I am traveling for work now, so no time to check but maybe you can find something.
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Carol - I pledge to do better than I did last week
. I missed both sessions with my personal trainer due to family arriving and leaving. I always get MLD in except last night. After a weekend of family and lots of kids around, I ended up sick yesterday without energy for MLD. Just propped my arm on the pillow and said a prayer - arm is fine today.We had a fabulous Thanksgiving with 54 family attending. Too much fun. If hugs count as exercise I am over the top!
Next week I am on vacation visiting family. Plan to walk daily - no reason I can't. Well, if the knees cooperate.
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purple - re: Power Plate - not sure how it works for LE, but my brother is a type 1 diabetic with severe peripheral neuropathy, he participated in a study at Willamette University in Salem, OR where they used vibration machines (don't think it was this one, but it is one generally used by weight lifters) to treat PN. He found immense relief while using the machine, he went three times a week for 12 weeks (I think), for a specified length of time and at a specific frequency. He noticed pain relief within the first couple of sessions, before long he could feel his feet (which he hadn't felt in years) and by the end he was pain free - the relief lasted for several weeks before reverting. He hasn't been able to get access to the machines again, but he swears by it. The only caution that the study had was that you shouldn't use the machine while standing if you had any back, neck, spine issues, I think knees and hips too, as they weren't sure if the vibration would exacerbate any of those issues.
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Interesting, Linda. Thanks.
I will do as Carol suggests and look for some reliable research.
Well, the first few sites said it was all nonsense, but Pubmed says differently- at least for breast LE.
here goes :http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19020698
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Interesting, Linda. Thanks.
I will do as Carol suggests and look for some reliable research.
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Purple - that's really interesting.
My brother was in the Phase II study, but here are the findings from the Phase I study by the same person - http://www.hsj.gr/volume5/issue1/519.pdf and
http://www.intldiabetesmellitus.com/article/S1877-5934(11)00011-7/fulltext
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Carol, I am up for the challenge of walking 3 times a week and then the hardest thing for me is being regular with lebed opening. But I will try to stick to it once a day.(My MLD girl loves Lebed) I did it at the office today! And a 45 min walk. I also have been decent doing my hip and back exercises and they are feeling improved.
Ohio, Did you get to exercise today with that knee of yours. Have you just tried flat surfaces, no hills?
Becky, Your 5k walk with family and Gail sounded so encouraging. Glad you liked it.
Dawne, You sound like you have had a few bumps in life lately. Do you think you might be able to join Carol and the rest of us in her motivating exercise thingy? Can you give me a few relaxing deep breaths just to release your tense muscles a bit. It will feel good. We care.
Nordy if you are there. Thanks for giving me hip stretches way back last spring. Since I have been stretching my Psoas muscle in particular, my back and hip are improving. But dang that is a hard muscle to stretch. I like the hip stretches bettter.
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Wow, that is intriguing, Linda~ Thanks for that info. It is something to think about and keep our eyes and ears open for .
Well, I did the Lebed opening this AM followed by a brisk 15 min indoor walk. I have been wearing the sleeve and glove for app 12 hrs now. Planning on taking it off shorltly and doing some MLD.
I would love to do a little ' speedwalk' now, but after 12 hrs in the sleeve, I REALLY feel the exercise would not be good for the arm ...just a sense I have. I dunno'. Think I need to do it in the AM, but I want MLD or Lebed every morning before work.Just arent enough hrs in the day!
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Gah. Not getting my walking done. Sitting at the ho
spital waiting on mom's doctors.0 -
sorry Cindy.
Take a brisk walk thru the long hospital corridor after you meet with the docs----hoping there is some good news on your mom.Take Care!
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Ok girls, This could be done if you can't get exercise in. You probably could even do it in a public washroom,well, maybe not the small stall,but the big wheelchair stall! My MLD girl said TAI CHI exercises have been studied with lymphedema and are excellent to stimulate Lymphatics. This is the exercise she gave to me but I forgot about it. I think I will try to incorperate it into my busy schedule. On the bottom of the sheet is says PILLER, NB(2007) Lymphoedema Assemssment clinic- Flinders Medical Centre: Based on Clinical trial outcomes, Lymphology 2004 So the exercise given was studied in a trial. YEAH!
Starting here I will type word for word from the sheet she gave me:
This exercise will help improve lymph flow from your arms and help reduce the size of your arms.
Perform this exercise 5 times on each of 5 occasions per day (when you wake up, at lunch time, at aafternooon tea, after dinner and just before you go to bed).
It works best if you leave your sleeve on if you wear one.
The most important ones are when you wake up and when you go to bed as this will help clear accumlated fluids from your tummy and chest area and allow the lymph fluid to better drain from your arms.
How to perform the exercise
(it's a little like how you would welcome a friend-but slower)
1) Point your fingers towards your chest (breast bone)
2)Slowly open your arms out ( as you would welcome a friend)
3)While still breathing in open your arms out as much as possible and put your hands back as far as you can-ensuring that you stretch and tighten your muscle in your hands and forearms and upper arms.
4)Hold your arms like this (while still holding your breath) for 3-4 seconds
5) Relax your muscles of your hands and arms and while slowly breathing OUT as much as you can, return your arms to the postion as in point 1 where your fingers are again pointing towards your chest
6) The whole exercise shoud be done SLOWLY and each one should take about 10 seconds. REPEAT 5 times.
That was the instruction sheet she gave me. I might add that when you breathe out you could bend over and make your back like a letter "C." This would compress the air out and pump the lymphatic system deeper. Just like when Sherry Lebed hugs a beach ball and bends over and breathes out.
This exercise should be easy enough for those with limited abilities. Let me know if you are going to try it. Lets call it the TAI CHI BREATHER seeing that it had no formal name on the exercise sheet. Out of curiousity, I would like to know if it bothers anyones LE or improves flow.
I could see how this could be very relaxing and calm the nervous system if done slowly.
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Got home from the hospital and walked 4000 steps. Not my usual goal, but something... Now to bed.
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Hugz, that is great, and I'll try the new breathing method tonight and tomorrow for sure. For those of you frustrated over how life interrupts LE care, I'll bet the Tai Chi breathing is a good stress reducer, too.
Today was a cross-country travel day, and usually that means I can rack up lots of miles walking in airports, but today I got only about 3.3 miles in. I had a very short connection, so not much walking time between flights.
I hope everyone has a great day tomorrow--out and about, doing what's appropriate in the way of exercise.
Carol
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Sure hugz,
I should be able to incorporate that into my days. Btw, I presume you would do this standing.
This makes me ask ( all) how doi you do your MLD? I just did mine and for the first time, I did it standing in front of a mirror. Short on time so took 10 mins, but when laying in bed, usually it takes about 20. What is the preferred position for MLD ?
THX!
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Hmm, Have done Tai Chi in the past but the instructor retired recently so have not done since. It is good for balance and I can see it would be good for LE.
Gym night if the weather cooperates. New routine with a new trainer so need to get into the drill. Since I got myself in trouble doing too much strength, tonight will be stretches and cardio only.
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On the final leg of travel home today. I can report that I stayed on track with my cardio but nixed the weights (because my body told me so). Half the days I chalked up 10,000 - 12,000 steps, the others I did at least 5,000. One day I outdid my normal high with 17,000 steps! Walking while on vacation is great!
I am in for the commitment to stay on track at the level appropriate for me. I am also going to start back with the weights once I see how this body is behaving upon returning home. I will admit that half of my dinners were not all that healthy - fried chicken, BBQ chicken, BBQ pork, etc. Grits and eggs for breakfast almost every morning! Please no reprimands, as I believe I did not gain any weight while away. For desserts, I ate only homemade key lime pie once and a package of Twinkies! Yes, Twinkies! Shoot me now! LOL! Last chance for a taste of my childhood.0 -
Hey I ate a package of chocolated cream filled snack cakes for old times sake too. If one snack cake makes the difference so be it.
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