Re: Re: Diet

[Guest guest]

This is correct.

The only thing I would add, is that if you do use weights, you have to rest a

day. So only use weights every other day. You need that day of rest for the

muscle to repair itself.

But, my guess is that nobody with EDS should be lifting weights. It's just too

hard on the joints. This is what started my pain. I was free weight lifting,

and it all started in my shoulder. I ignored that pain, and kept doing it. I

also did step aerobics, and started gettin pain in all my other joints. One

instructor told me that she noticed I was hyper-extending. Just going way too

far with every joint.

So, now I'm paying for it - every single day. It's very hard to do the

isometrics, because I want to " go to the extreeme " . I always have. That's the

problem with being hypermobile.

Re: Diet

You basically just tighten up your muscles. Sometimes I use rubber

tubing, attached to something, and gently do the excercises.

Good comments on exercise.

What you are describing is called " isometric exercise. " You don't

even need to move as little as an inch like you said. As an

example, you could put one hand over the back of your other hand and

then just push into the palm. You aren't moving either hand or arm,

but the arm that is doing the pushing is getting a resistence - it

is enough to " fire the muscle " and make it contract.

Granted, you are not getting the same benefit that you would if you

were able to do the movement through the full range of motion. Nor

are you getting the benefit that you would if you were able to do

both the active and passive actions of the movement. Using weight

lifting as an example, you have the resistence of raising the weight

to full extension. But you also have a different resistence when

you lower the weight. You need to do both actions to fully exercise

all of the fibers of a muscle. (Active and Passive aren't the

correct technical terms but I don't remember them off the top of my

head and I don't feel like looking them up at the moment. You get

the idea).

But the point is, you ARE getting a very positive benefit from just

the simple action of making the muscle fire by contracting it. You

are going to do two things with this - you are going to increase

the " tone of the muscle " - firm it up - and you are going to gain

strength. You won't build muscle mass, but that isn't your goal in

the first place.

On this last point, a general rule of thumb is that " higher weight

with fewer repitions builds mass; lower weight with more repitions

increases muscle tone. " The reason that the one builds mass is that

you are deliberately causing minor tears in the muscle fibers. As

these tears or micro-injuries heal, they build muscle tissue.

That's not your goal.

As to the effectiveness of isometrics, I don't think any of us have

ever seen a WILD animal jog on a treadmill, pump iron, or use any of

those wierd looking machines pushed by Tony Little or Body by Jake.

Yet, they are all supremely fit. Other than running to catch their

dinner or running to avoid being dinner, the only exercises they do

are isometric/stretching activities.

To learn more about EDS, visit our website: http://www.ceda.ca

------------------------------------------------------------------------------