Exercise While Healing

[sandsurfgirl]

I'm 2 weeks into being gluten free. Everyday I feel a bit better and stronger but I'm not totally symptom free. I still have some dizzy spells when I have to go to the bathroom sometimes. I still feel tired in the afternoon, too and I still have a bit of nausea or D or C here and there. Today I was very dizzy in the morning, but I was on a field trip with my kids and couldn't get to a bathroom as quickly as I needed to.

So I'm just not sure if I should be exercising or taking it easy still. I don't want to overdo it but I don't want to be a slug either. I am very active by nature because I have small children. I generally don't sit down much all day until 2 when my daughter goes down for her nap.

I exercise regularly, so I'm not totally out of shape, but since I ended up so ill that I finally got a diagnosis and have been going through the withdrawal process I haven't much felt up to it. I feel up to it now but would it be unwise to start doing real workouts yet?

[chasbari]

I had a hard time tolerating too much exercise in the first few months of going gluten-free. As long as I was mindful of how my overall health and energy was I would add little bouts of exercise. If I dropped weight as a result ( I dropped 40 pounds scary fast in the first several months of gluten-free and had everyone very worried!) I would back off of exercise. My body was busy healing and all the resources I could take in were needed for gut healing. As I began to get stronger I could slowly tolerate more and more of a whole body workout. I am not sure this helps too much but by the third month in I was able to workout at what I considered a pretty reasonable schedule as long as I fed myself with adequate calories. Any sign of weight dropping and I would back off and eat more. Don't discount your body's need for nutrients for the healing process as balanced against the demands of your every day life. If your vitals are in the healthy range you may not need to worry too much about exercise at this point. Chose something that gives you a nice mental lift and break from your daily grind but keep the healing as your first priority. Good luck.

[sandsurfgirl]

I had a hard time tolerating too much exercise in the first few months of going gluten-free. As long as I was mindful of how my overall health and energy was I would add little bouts of exercise. If I dropped weight as a result ( I dropped 40 pounds scary fast in the first several months of gluten-free and had everyone very worried!) I would back off of exercise. My body was busy healing and all the resources I could take in were needed for gut healing. As I began to get stronger I could slowly tolerate more and more of a whole body workout. I am not sure this helps too much but by the third month in I was able to workout at what I considered a pretty reasonable schedule as long as I fed myself with adequate calories. Any sign of weight dropping and I would back off and eat more. Don't discount your body's need for nutrients for the healing process as balanced against the demands of your every day life. If your vitals are in the healthy range you may not need to worry too much about exercise at this point. Chose something that gives you a nice mental lift and break from your daily grind but keep the healing as your first priority. Good luck.

I am one of the unlucky ones whose body decided to hoard calories and make me gain weight instead of losing it. I have to lose about 60 pounds now so if I dropped 40 pounds fast I would probably throw a party!

I'm pretty sure I've had celiac my whole life but never had a weight problem until my thyroid decided to go haywire too. So far I've only lost about 3 pounds since being gluten free so I really do need to work out, but I think the same things that you are saying. My body needs all its energy to heal.

[bluebonnet]

because of my thyroid (i thought or i'm sure its a contributor) i have 40 lbs to lose. i've always enjoyed exercise like hiking, walking and such but now being 3 weeks into gluten free i've got sooo much more energy i am doing mostly 3 to 4 mile walks (a dvd called walk away the pounds by leslie sansone) is great cause you can do it at home with the kids (we homeschool so i couldn't just leave for a trail). i've just recently started back into a little yoga (only a few poses) and working on my abs with some crunches. i've lost 10 lbs and 2" from my waist and it truly blows me away because i could never lose! i'd say just start walking and stretching and taking it slow because of the dizziness but if you have some energy, walking is aerobic but also easy. good luck! she also has a dvd with 1 to 2 miles that's a great starter too! oh, i did notice even if i was tired when i would start my walk towards the end i was feeling really energetic and it stayed with me for hours after!

[sandsurfgirl]

because of my thyroid (i thought or i'm sure its a contributor) i have 40 lbs to lose. i've always enjoyed exercise like hiking, walking and such but now being 3 weeks into gluten free i've got sooo much more energy i am doing mostly 3 to 4 mile walks (a dvd called walk away the pounds by leslie sansone) is great cause you can do it at home with the kids (we homeschool so i couldn't just leave for a trail). i've just recently started back into a little yoga (only a few poses) and working on my abs with some crunches. i've lost 10 lbs and 2" from my waist and it truly blows me away because i could never lose! i'd say just start walking and stretching and taking it slow because of the dizziness but if you have some energy, walking is aerobic but also easy. good luck! she also has a dvd with 1 to 2 miles that's a great starter too! oh, i did notice even if i was tired when i would start my walk towards the end i was feeling really energetic and it stayed with me for hours after!

Homeschooler here too! Yes it is harder to make that workout time isn't it?

[bluebonnet]

Homeschooler here too! Yes it is harder to make that workout time isn't it?

it is ... but they are in 3rd and 7th this year so i usually do it when they have their reading time. so far its working out great for all of us! love it!

[Reba32]

Make sure you're getting all the nutrients a healing body needs. As your guts heal you'll start to absorb nutrients from the foods naturally, but you have to make sure you're eating the right foods.

IMO, replacing gluten laden foods with similar but gluten free foods isn't necessarily the best way to go about being gluten free. Yes, it's nice to have the option of gluten free breads and pasta and cookies, but are they really the best options for optimal health? No.

Go for whole, natural foods as close to how Mother Nature intended them to be. There's no gluten in broccoli or steak! If you're dizzy, you may have an electrolyte imbalance (I have salt deficiency, so I take extra salt sometimes in a homemade "sport" drink). You also need healhty fats in order to get some vitimins to absorb properly like A,D,E and K. The Bs and C are water soluable. If you've had gluten intolerance/celiac disease your whole life, then you're likely extremely vitimin deficient, so you'd need supplements and a properly balaced diet. Which you won't get from manufactured and packaged foods. Depsite what the lables tell you

[sandsurfgirl]

Make sure you're getting all the nutrients a healing body needs. As your guts heal you'll start to absorb nutrients from the foods naturally, but you have to make sure you're eating the right foods.

IMO, replacing gluten laden foods with similar but gluten free foods isn't necessarily the best way to go about being gluten free. Yes, it's nice to have the option of gluten free breads and pasta and cookies, but are they really the best options for optimal health? No.

Go for whole, natural foods as close to how Mother Nature intended them to be. There's no gluten in broccoli or steak! If you're dizzy, you may have an electrolyte imbalance (I have salt deficiency, so I take extra salt sometimes in a homemade "sport" drink). You also need healhty fats in order to get some vitimins to absorb properly like A,D,E and K. The Bs and C are water soluable. If you've had gluten intolerance/celiac disease your whole life, then you're likely extremely vitimin deficient, so you'd need supplements and a properly balaced diet. Which you won't get from manufactured and packaged foods. Depsite what the lables tell you

I tried some of the gluten free breads and things and my digestive system can't handle them at all right now. I'm eating quite simply because I just can't digest anything too complicated.

I didn't even think about electrolytes. I had to switch doctors because mine knew nothing about it or how to help me, and since I have an HMO it took a few weeks. I'll be seeing my new one whom I got a recommendation for on these boards. He is supposed to be very knowledgable and I hope that he will know what all to test me for and what supplements to recommend. The dizzy spells are really really making my life difficult and making me depressed. It's very frightening to be dizzy when I'm home alone with a 2 and a 5 year old.

[Reba32]

I have a lot of problems with vertigo myself, and it's been a lot of trial and error to figure it out. I find that ensuring I get enough salt (when you cut out packaged foods, you cut out a major source of salt!) and enough potassium I get fewer bouts of dizziness.

I have to remember to salt my food though, I've never been big on adding salt, but before I went whole foods, I used to eat quite a lot of packaged foods, and drank a lot of pop (which is loaded with sodium!). Then a few years ago I was diagnosed with Grave's disease, and told to stay away from iodized salt.

I'm getting better at remembering to add salt (I use non-iodized sea salt and Kosher salt now) but sometimes I still need a bit more. I make a "sport" drink with 1 litre of water, 3 tablespoons of lemon juice,(or a wedge of fresh lemon) 1/4 tsp of Kosher salt and 1 packet of (gluten free!) Stevia. Plus, I eat half an avocado most days. There's more potassium in avocado than there is in banana.

And when I have to, I take a motion sickness tablet to reduce the dizzies. Dramamine or generics work fairly well.

[sandsurfgirl]

I have a lot of problems with vertigo myself, and it's been a lot of trial and error to figure it out. I find that ensuring I get enough salt (when you cut out packaged foods, you cut out a major source of salt!) and enough potassium I get fewer bouts of dizziness.

I have to remember to salt my food though, I've never been big on adding salt, but before I went whole foods, I used to eat quite a lot of packaged foods, and drank a lot of pop (which is loaded with sodium!). Then a few years ago I was diagnosed with Grave's disease, and told to stay away from iodized salt.

I'm getting better at remembering to add salt (I use non-iodized sea salt and Kosher salt now) but sometimes I still need a bit more. I make a "sport" drink with 1 litre of water, 3 tablespoons of lemon juice,(or a wedge of fresh lemon) 1/4 tsp of Kosher salt and 1 packet of (gluten free!) Stevia. Plus, I eat half an avocado most days. There's more potassium in avocado than there is in banana.

And when I have to, I take a motion sickness tablet to reduce the dizzies. Dramamine or generics work fairly well.

I wanted to thank you so much!! Last night I told my husband about the electrolyte possibility and he agreed. I've been about 2 1/2 weeks on the diet and for the first 1 1/2 weeks I was having so many bowel movements, like 10 or 12 a day. Then I've been having a lot of D and then sometimes C and then back to D. It totally made sense.

I drank a bottle of Gatorade last night and had some this morning and I feel so much better!!!!!! Thank you!