rheumatism: lifting hurts my back and knees ... what to do?

[Gbear1981]

Hey guys,

I was diagnosed with spondylitis in januari 2015 after lifting for 4 months. I did Sl 5x5.
I have been taking inflammation meds prescribed by the rheumatologist since then.
I quit lifting cause my back and knees hurt alot after compound excercices especially Squats and Deadlifts.
In december 2015 I got to hear that my scans looked great and the inflammation was dissapearing.

Now I want to get back to lifting. I don't do squats or deadlifts anymore.
I started this schedule 2 weeks ago but my back hurts again.

Workout A
Barbell Row
Back Lat Pulldown
Hyperextensions
Alternated Biceps Curl
Leg Curl

Workout B
Bench press
Cable Crossover
Overhead Press
Tricep Pushdown
Calf Raises

This all leads me to conclude that my body just can't handle lifting. I think the pressure it puts on my back and knees are too much.

My main goal is losing weight.
I can do cardio painfree (cycling, crosstrainer, walking). I take care of my nutrition.
So all I can do is eat at a deficit and do cardio (to further increase my deficit).

Do you think this will be enough to lose weight further or is lifting necessary in the end to keep my metabolism high?

Are there any other workouts/ excercices i can do besides the cardio I do to keep the metabolism high?

Thanks for your time!

[ironwill2008]

Hey guys,

I was diagnosed with spondylitis in januari 2015 after lifting for 4 months. I did Sl 5x5.
I have been taking inflammation meds prescribed by the rheumatologist since then.
I quit lifting cause my back and knees hurt alot after compound excercices especially Squats and Deadlifts.
In december 2015 I got to hear that my scans looked great and the inflammation was dissapearing.

Now I want to get back to lifting. I don't do squats or deadlifts anymore.
I started this schedule 2 weeks ago but my back hurts again.

Workout A
Barbell Row
Back Lat Pulldown
Hyperextensions
Alternated Biceps Curl
Leg Curl

Workout B
Bench press
Cable Crossover
Overhead Press
Tricep Pushdown
Calf Raises

This all leads me to conclude that my body just can't handle lifting. I think the pressure it puts on my back and knees are too much.

My main goal is losing weight.
I can do cardio painfree (cycling, crosstrainer, walking). I take care of my nutrition.
So all I can do is eat at a deficit and do cardio (to further increase my deficit).

Do you think this will be enough to lose weight further or is lifting necessary in the end to keep my metabolism high?

Are there any other workouts/ excercices i can do besides the cardio I do to keep the metabolism high?

Thanks for your time!

The only way to increase your metabolic rate is to weight train and add additional metabolically-active tissue----muscle. If you can't lift weight due to medical issues, you can't; there's no way around that.


Instead of worrying about what you can't do, focus on what you can do. If that's only cardio, then do that, along with keeping tabs on your calorie, macro, and micro intake.




As far as any other specific exercises you may be able to perform, that will be between you and your attending physician; no one here can know your exact limitations.

[MoldyGopher]

You say 'I take care of my nutrition'. Can you give us some examples of your eating recently? How closely do you track your intake - calories/macros/etc?

[RustedIron]

I see a frightening lack of hamstring work in there. Atrophied hamstrings are a leading cause of lower back and knee pains.

[dmacdonal9]

A lot of people find ketogenic diets very effective in controlling disorders related to inflammation. Might be something to consider.

[Gbear1981]

You say 'I take care of my nutrition'. Can you give us some examples of your eating recently? How closely do you track your intake - calories/macros/etc?

I eat average 2000kcal with average 40%carbs, 40%protein and 20%fat.

A lot of people find ketogenic diets very effective in controlling disorders related to inflammation. Might be something to consider.

Yes I read about ketogenic diets. I asked my rheumatologist but he says there's no proof of it.
But my rheumatism is dissapearing now i take that ant-inflammation medication.
I just think my body can't handle that pressure of lifting on my back and knees.

@ironwill2008 : Yes I'll just stick to cutting and doing cardio then.

Thanks for all the replies!