I believe in homework.  Yet not in the sense of overloading already burnt out students to continue on at home.  Have my own ideas about that, but that’s another story for another time.  No the homework I speak to is much different.  It has to do with doing the work needed to move around the body you’ve been given.

THE CHALLENGE OF WORKING OUT, WHEN YOUR BODY ISN’T WORKING OUT

This challenge wears many faces.  For now, I’m going to focus on one.  This has to do with a client with recurrent chest pain or angina.

To begin, his story started out with trips to his general practitioner.  He was put on high blood pressure meds, because this was a concern prior to developing chest pain.  However, he started to notice tightness in his chest, at different times during the day.  He underwent an EKG, a stress test, and a second more invasive stress test.  All came back normal.  So has the pain magically disappeared?  He wishes it had.  Where does that leave him?  Unfortunately with more questions than answers.  He has been told by his cardiologist that this is not heart related.  Once again, does that mean his pain isn’t painful?  Or should instantly evaporate because it isn’t cardiac related?

Those of us who’ve been on medications for any reason, long or short-term, realize that sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t.  And, if you are taking more than one  for a series of conditions, there are questions of interaction.  Those interactions can cause problems themselves, if not addressed.  But I digress.  Back to the point.  Where does that leave this client?  He wants to work out, his MD wants him to lose about 20-30lbs, possibly more.  Yet if he’s experiencing chest pain sometimes upon waking, at other times while walking on the trail, in the presence of cold, or on the job, what is he to do?

Well this where I come in.

IT’S NOT WHAT GOES IN, IT’S WHAT COMES OUT THAT CAUSES PROBLEMS

I often feel the health & wellness industry, just like medicine and nursing has sold us a “bill of goods.”  Why?  Because there are more questions left unanswered than solutions.  The lift, squat, fart repeat routine holds little credence for me.   Why?  Because not every body is built for that. Nor do many continue with it, past the month of January.

As for the medical community,  the answer given by so many professionals “we just don’t do it that way,” is akin to waving a red flag in front of a bull to me.  Well why are you still doing it that way, is the better question.  Are you too set in your ways to give a new technique a try?  Do we practice medicine or nursing the way we did 20, 30, 40 years ago?  No.  Why?  Because someone somewhere said “we’ve done it that way, but let’s try something else.” Or, the old technique is just that, OLD.  Message to both industries–one size does not fit all. The recipe book has some add-ons.  The lady wants a makeover; call it what you will.

The result has left many frustrated, overweight, over-medicated, & under siege by information that may or may not help, or is harmful.  Disseminating it isn’t easy or for the faint of heart.  However, it is well worth it, if you find what works for you.  That’s the key.  What works for you. 

When is the last time you’ve looked at yourself in the mirror?  Not sucking anything in, or making wishes about what you’d look like 20 pounds thinner? Or kept a diary of what you eat, why you were eating that (hunger, craving, stress, or combo of all three)?  Oh yes, that happens.  Has anyone at the gym asked you these questions?  Given you this info?  These are just a few tactics you have to incorporate, because few have given much thought to this.  In a health club atmosphere, it’s about working you; in many ways.  Again, another story for another day.

Did you know dehydration can mimic hunger?  Alter the way you make decisions?  In the elderly, can mimic dementia?

If you are hypertensive, perhaps lifting the heaviest weights isn’t for you.  Did you know?  Non-cardiac chest pain is still pain.  If you’re a personal trainer, how do you train someone like that?

Those who are fans of the low carb, no carb thing…did you know it’s quite hard on the kidneys?  Why should you care?  Well there are lots of reasons why you should..

These are just a few ideas you should keep in mind, especially if you have been diagnosed with CKD (chronic kidney disease), hypertension, or even if  you are perfectly healthy(a relative term), but train in extreme conditions.

Sorry if you happened upon this site, and the workout tips to lose the Xmas bulge aren’t forthcoming.  Never fear.  There’s plenty out there to help you with that.  It’s just not here.

All for now.  Keep up and keep at it.

Need a more personalized approach?  Contact me at serrenity.c@gmail.com