Crohn's Disease: Training Help
Hello there...
I know there is a couple guys on the forum who like me, suffer from Crohn's disease. As i have only been at the will of this disaease since February i have not been out of the gym TOO long and am looking to start going again as soon as i get back to University in August.
I have lost a lot of muscle mass/weight from the disease (40lbs in a span of 2 1/2 months, was 235lbs in Feb/06 and by mid-Apr/06 was 195lbs). I am now on Prednisone (a strong catabolic steroid) but am in the process of tapering off, once i get to low enough doses i am hoping i can overcome the drugs effect and put mass back on.
So my main question is what kind of training regime should i start doing, due to the disease supplements are no longer an option, Creatine could kill me, and i am sure large doses of Whey will end up hurting me too (Egg white based powders are apparently okay) and other then amino acids like Arginine, i am limited in that sense as well.
I also wanted to know how well you guys are coping with squats and such since the Prednisone causes such a weakening of the legs. Basically i am looking for a starting point on getting back into shape...i have found my idol in life however, if i could look like Peter Nielsen my dreams would come true..
[url]http://www.peternielsen.com/ibd.htm[/url]
I had lost all BB hope for a month or two until i came across him, now i am pumped to return to the gym and overcome the disease and live life to my full potential once again...well any help is greatly appreciated
New to site but not to crohn's
My name is John. I am 44 and was diagnosed with crohn's when I was 7. I have had two resections and been on and off prednisone for a long time. Currently on Humira (40ml) injections, immuran (100mg) and 20 mg of prednisone. My last resection was in 1999. I got out of the hospital at 113 lbs (I am 5'4"). From that point I decided to seriously focus on working out and putting on weight. I went up to around 165 lbs until Oct of 2007. That's when everything seemed to crash. My liver has now endured damage as a result of the many medications I have been on for 37 years. I was put back on prednisone and ballooned up to 195lbs. My energy is about zero, depression, fall asleep around 3-4 in the morning...angry about everything. I did not renew my gym membership because the days I went I could maybe put in 15-20 mins. I have not had a drink in 15 years, I don't smoke and only take the meds they give me. I have been thinking about the whole hormone replacement thing to get my energy back (among other things) and to help cut down on my build up of fat. Because of the damaged liver, fluids back up into the spleen and with the additional weight already gained I look like I have a beer belly. Not looking for sympathy because we all have our hands full with this disease. What I am looking for is some advice. Seems like most Dr's are not big on the whole hormone replacement deal (unless you contact those clinics that want to charge 2-500 bucks a month). Dr's seemed to be worried about additional problems. My thing is quality of life. What is the use of living to be 80 years old if it means 40 more years of being stuck in the house. I would rather have 10-15 years of being active. Anyone have any insight?
Thanks...so glad I found this sight,
John C
Pulling Myself Together and Fighting CD
I have been suffering with Crohn's and bad medical advice for many years. I finally started to pull myself together last year - I turned 30 and realized just how incredibly F*d up my life has been over the last 7 years. I was a healthy guy (6ft1in ~215lbs) I got sick in late 2003 (weight went down to 175), took 6 months to get a diagnosis, then I got put o steroids... lots of crappy corticosteroids for about a year and a half, tapering up and down. In a few months I weighed 260 (when I got married in '04). Steroids weren't working out well, strictures suck w/ prednisone - they help you heal up, but stricturing Crohn's is the formation of scar tissue leading to obstruction... steroids end up accelerating obstructions through quicker cycles of inflammation and recovery. Had my resection surgery in 2005. Got a bitchin scar. :/
I ended up on Remicade which was good, but started down a bad path with pain meds, not abusing, but a pain management doctor kept ramping me up on different forms of opiates. Getting back to turning 30 - I finally made a choice to get off the drugs. Now that I am off the drugs (except Remicade) I am doing great. I finally woke up when my weight got over 300lbs. Now I am working it off...
Has anyone else with Crohn's had unusual difficulty in losing weight? I have some concerns about the malnutrition and that possibly causing my body to think I am starving, holding on to the weight... I have figured out that a high protein low sugar diet is the best for my disease. I think sticking to a high protein diet is helping me gradually get the weight off. Putting muscle on has never been to hard for me, but I am starting from ground zero after so many years of being sedentary and not caring about exercise (drugs kill motivation).
I'm finding that supplements aren't giving me too much difficulty right now. Although the only creatine I can take right now is Con-Crete, it seems to be much easier on the gut.
If anyone has some tips for me - give me a shout! It is always good to chat with a fellow Crohnie. A lot of the normal healthy folks don't understand the difficulties we can have with maintaining our bodies. It is a fight everyday. Sometimes it is a fight just to go to work in the morning.
~OD~