paulgfoster Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 Hi, I am 57 and started practising cr about a year ago with great results. However as a result of heavy manual lifting over the years as a registered nurse (being male i was always called upon to help lift the heavy patients), and possibly genetics ? I have a lot of osteo arthritis demonstrated on cat scans. Scans show mild degeneration in many places but the worst is my cervical, thoracic and lumber regions. For many years if i sit too long ie in the movies one hand develops parasthesia. If i work too long in one position i get intense pain between the shoulder blades. My lower back is stiff at times and i dare not chop wood or dig a hole with a shovel as the jolting means i will suffer for a few days thereafter. I take no pain relief or anti inflammatories( except very very rarely when i cannot tolerate it any longer or have a job that has to be completed ) as i am very anti all forms of medications as i know from experience they all have side effects and possibly would be detrimental to my cr lifestyle. I appreciate at my age the damage has been done and my intentions with cr are for optimal health in my older years rather than extending life, thus my concerns with the drugs. My height is 5feet 11 inches or 180 cm and weight about 160 ibs or 73 kg. (bmi in 22 range) With continuance of cr i am hoping to reach a weight of 143ib-150 ib or 65-68 kg which may help. All other health issues have been resolved with Cr including reversal of metabolic syndrome and hypertension. In fact i look so healthy people tend to disbelieve i have to be careful with lifting or have discomfort. Incidentally prior to cr i weighed 86kg or 190ib and had been as high as 92 kg, 202ib! I guess the point of this message is do any other cronies need pain relief or anti inflammatories and do you think/know if some are less harmful than others, as it may come to a time where i have to take them. Or any suggestions with natural remedies, any ideas are most welcome Paul Incidentally i have tried fish oil and glucosomine to no avail, although i wasnt happy taking them as i am vegetarian. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithsct Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 Hi Paul, I too weighted around 205 lbs (I'm a little taller at 6'2") at one point and was having sore joints and lower back trouble. Running brought me down to 185 but I still had back pain. Once I started CR I dropped down to 155 lbs (BMI 20) and back pain was much better. The final key to the puzzle seems to be to stay well hydrated. If I can do that most of the time I have no back pain even after doing manual work in the yard for hours. I put my recovery down to balancing my fatty acids in the diet which lowered my inflammation considerably in addition to dropping the stress on the joints from being overweight and not hydrating enough. Drink lots of water until your urine is clear like water with no yellow color. Try flax oil and/or ground flax seed for the Omega-3 fatty acids and eat nuts for the Omega-6 fatty acids and get the ratio of 4:1 or less. I'm also vegetarian/vegan. One final item that I use when I run is a topical creme for knees and such. Yes, it's glucosamine, msm and chondroiten, but it does a great job on the joints. I think it allowed my knees and elbows to heal fully and it feels like it draws water into the joints to lubricate them. http://www.amazon.co...m/dp/B002FJW1II You might also look up some accupoints and try accupressure if you can find that some soreness or tension is lying along one of the meridians. Just grind a knuckle into the point near your pain or any point along the same meridian for a couple of minutes. http://www.yinyangho...eridian_graphic I some of this is helpful to you and I'm glad to hear that CR has fixed so many issues for you. Cheers, Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkley Posted August 23, 2012 Report Share Posted August 23, 2012 Hello Paul, Wierd i know, but helpful to stay fully hydrated at all times. Apparently when we drink the spine is the last thing to get watered. Bloke told me yesterday on a moving and handling course. Blimey i thought well i never knew that!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulgfoster Posted August 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2012 Many thanks for the advice, and you may both be right, regarding fluid intake. I am ashamed to say i have been so busy and meticulous with entering my diet onto chrono meter i havent even thought about fluids . I realised this after reading your comments, it was 6pm and all the fluid i had consumed that day was two cups of coffee. I dont drink any water at all. On average i have three cups of coffee and two to three cups of oolong, rooitea or green tea a day. I know i get quite a lot of fluid from the food i eat ........but i realise not enough! So i am now putting a large bottle of water in the fridge and making sure i drink this in addition to my other fluids. So i will see if this helps. Also will look into the other suggestions, thanks Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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