Physical Fitness and CPPS

[HuckFinn]

In the year since my chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome skyrocketed, I've laid off a number of athletic pursuits that I used to enjoy--notably bicycle riding and weight training. All I do now is walk and stretch. In that time, I've watched my muscle mass melt away from relatively well toned to something akin to Don Knotts.

As much as I hate to give it up, I'm accepted the idea of never getting on a bicycle again. And abdominal crunches are obviously out, permanently. But what about moderate weight training, not to look like Schwarzenegger but simply to maintain muscle tone and general health? Has anybody had any experience good or bad with lifting weights, either free weights or machines? And have you found other ways to exercise--particularly focusing on maintaining muscle tone--without exacerbating the CPPS? I would imagine swimming might be good, but I don't live anywhere near a pool. Any suggestions?

[winding_road]

What I do , which is not really gonna build your muscles but for sure maintain them and tone them , is to run for 30 min everyday with a 3 pound weight in each hand... It doesn t not seem to worsen my case at all

What I do learn from that is that endurance exercises are better than the one made for building a muscle mass..

and I am a firm believer in those excercises and their superiority in general to the other system where you kind of inflate you muscles, and as soon as you stop it desinflates..

I see the gymnasts and soccer player look much more healthy than bodybuilders and football players.. you might not agree with that , and you have all the right .

[benzo]

But what about moderate weight training, not to look like Schwarzenegger but simply to maintain muscle tone and general health? Has anybody had any experience good or bad with lifting weights, either free weights or machines? And have you found other ways to exercise--particularly focusing on maintaining muscle tone--without exacerbating the CPPS? I would imagine swimming might be good, but I don't live anywhere near a pool. Any suggestions?

First you should ask yourself if these exercises really excarbated your complaints? I think that quiting just for the sake of it is not the answer.
I still work out 3 times a week, but I make sure I don't overdo it and avoid certain excersises like squats.
I stopped doing ant situps for a couple of years. I also stopped working out for a month. None of this has made any significant impact on my complaints. So my idea is: as long as you don't get any significant flareup after excersising just continue doing it. Feeling good about your appearance also has a positive impact on your mental health.

[LightningTree]

This is a big problem for me. I used to jog frequently, and now jogging gives me a flare up the next day. I've gained 60 pounds since this summer, since I tend to eat when I'm in pain. I used to run-off anything that I ate. Not sure what to do now, except walk more.

[hgtdazza]

i exersise quiet a few times a week. cv and a few weights. also I have a heavy lifting jobs which I know makes things work. only thing I can say is that the gym helps and work doesnt. one thing I've notced though is that when I've been on the exersise bikes sometimes when I've got off I get a very weird feeling ot the tip of my penis. like a tingling. its a nice feeling not irritating at all and lasts for about 2 minutes. I'm wondering if when I'm on the bike the contact between the bikes seat and my pelvic floor is getting massaged and maybe doing some good? I know a strange question but I'm wonderiing if its actually doing any good?

[winding_road]

hgtdazza ,
I personally do not think it is doing any good. I would quit cycling for two reasons:
First, everybody here complains about it.
Second, this tingeling feeling is not normal, and it is happening not in the muscle but in one of the most common referred pain points in chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome patients, the tip of the penis.
This is IMHO , maybe others would have other suggestion.

By the way, 3 years ago, I started going to the Gym and I was quite obsessed with exercising my legs. I worked a lot on the calves in particular. Well after most those exercises I felt also some kind of tingeling or sensation that I could go and pee, but I didn t had to... Weird sensation that I am sure was an early warning that my pelvis is not normal. by that time I did not have any pain.

[hgtdazza]

cheers W/R
i dont spend a lot on the bikes at the gym. about 15 mins about 3 times a week. my job is very heavy and when I'm on days like in on this week, getting up at 5am I'm at my worst. stretching helps a lot. its like my back and leg muscles are stiff. exersising help. getting blood flowing through them and the obvious benifits of the stretching. then I relax in the steam room/spa for an hour. I dont do any weights work on my back or legs as I also have a hiatus hernia. ill take you advice on the exersize bikes. or maybe only do 5 mins light work to warm up. although I go the gym a lot I really dont work out intensly. I'm seriously thinking of either yoga or pilates. anyone else tried these?
thanks

[MastCells]

I'm seriously thinking of either yoga or pilates. anyone else tried these?

Yep. Click on the search icon at the top of this website, type in "yoga" or "pilates", and then click the search button. You'll get a lot of hits for yoga, and a few for pilates.

[LightningTree]

Hey,

I'd lay off of the bike too. My brother was a bike rider, and he had odd sensations for years before he started having lasting pain. Quite frankly, there is just a chance that your body is wired wrong for sitting on a bike seat, and you shouldn't do it.

That's just my layman's opinion, and I am fairly conservative, I lie on a bean-bag chair at work. I don't want to do anything to irritate my nerves, and I work on providing a non-pressured environment where things can calm down, not start feeling strange.

[alprost]

In the year since my chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome skyrocketed, I've laid off a number of athletic pursuits that I used to enjoy--notably bicycle riding and weight training. All I do now is walk and stretch. In that time, I've watched my muscle mass melt away from relatively well toned to something akin to Don Knotts.

As much as I hate to give it up, I'm accepted the idea of never getting on a bicycle again. And abdominal crunches are obviously out, permanently. But what about moderate weight training, not to look like Schwarzenegger but simply to maintain muscle tone and general health? Has anybody had any experience good or bad with lifting weights, either free weights or machines? And have you found other ways to exercise--particularly focusing on maintaining muscle tone--without exacerbating the CPPS? I would imagine swimming might be good, but I don't live anywhere near a pool. Any suggestions?

The bottom line is that if you have a pelvic floor which is full of trigger points, it is possible for any exercise to flare up your symptoms. Some people can do any exercise and not have a problem, and any exercise can flare up symptoms in others. Why this is the case no one knows.

Essentially, there are 2 key points here

1 - Whilst you are symptomatic, you need to experiment (gently) with different types of exercise to see what you can and can't do.

2 - You then also need to seek out treatment for your CPPS. Treating the underlying cause of your symptoms is the key to being able to resume the activites you used to enjoy.

Whan I was at my worst, and had countless external and internal trigger points, any exercise caused a massive flare up which would last for months - I couldn't walk more than a mile at one point, and swimming caused by far the worst flare-up. However, after having my pevic floor treated, I am now gradualy increasing my activity levels, and am once again starting to enjoy some of the physical activities which used to be a central part of both my social life and my occupation.

Hope this helps.

[DavidinLA]

Whan I was at my worst, and had countless external and internal trigger points, any exercise caused a massive flare up which would last for months - I couldn't walk more than a mile at one point, and swimming caused by far the worst flare-up. However, after having my pevic floor treated, I am now gradualy increasing my activity levels, and am once again starting to enjoy some of the physical activities which used to be a central part of both my social life and my occupation.

The "massive flare up which would last for months" statement really scares me. I've been refraining from exercising for the last year, but I'm getting sick of fealing like an old man not doing anything outside of my job and smoking a pack a day. My doc does not think I have trigger points so I'm thinking of getting back into the rythym very slowly. If I do this and cut down the smoking this could lead me to a more relaxing life-style. That can't be that bad, can it?

[alprost]

Whan I was at my worst, and had countless external and internal trigger points, any exercise caused a massive flare up which would last for months - I couldn't walk more than a mile at one point, and swimming caused by far the worst flare-up. However, after having my pevic floor treated, I am now gradualy increasing my activity levels, and am once again starting to enjoy some of the physical activities which used to be a central part of both my social life and my occupation.

The "massive flare up which would last for months" statement really scares me.

I went at the swimming too hard, so if you start very gradually this shouldn't happen. Start with walking and if this is Ok, gradually increase the intensity each time - this way you should avoid any major flares. I learned the hard way! Sorry - I didn't mean to scare anyone!

My doc does not think I have trigger points so I'm thinking of getting back into the rythym very slowly.

What is he/she basing this diagnosis on? Is he/she trained in the location and treatment of internal and external trigger points? If your Doc is, then fine, but if not, they are untrained in this area and are in no position to advise you as to whether or not you have trigger points.

[DavidinLA]

What is he/she basing this diagnosis on? Is he/she trained in the location and treatment of internal and external trigger points? If your Doc is, then fine, but if not, they are untrained in this area and are in no position to advise you as to whether or not you have trigger points.

I just saw him on Monday and he did a DRE where he pressed down on the pelvic floor and then the prostate. I was much more sensative to the pressure on the prostate and he state that my prostate was "boggy".

I should add that CP/CPPS is one of his specialties and that he has been involved in a number of peer-reviewed studies. According to his web site he understands the different theories behind chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome very well. He has also done work with one of the most respected doctors in this field. However, I've been told by some people in this group that he may not be as good in understanding chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome as he is in understanding other areas of urology.

[alprost]

What is he/she basing this diagnosis on? Is he/she trained in the location and treatment of internal and external trigger points? If your Doc is, then fine, but if not, they are untrained in this area and are in no position to advise you as to whether or not you have trigger points.

I just saw him on Monday and he did a DRE where he pressed down on the pelvic floor and then the prostate. I was much more sensative to the pressure on the prostate and he state that my prostate was "boggy".

I should add that CP/CPPS is one of his specialties and that he has been involved in a number of peer-reviewed studies. According to his web site he understands the different theories behind chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome very well. He has also done work with one of the most respected doctors in this field. However, I've been told by some people in this group that he may not be as good in understanding chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome as he is in understanding other areas of urology.

Your Doc certainly sounds like a very knowledgeable Urologist, and the fact that he even checked your pelvic floor puts him light years ahead of most. BUT, trigger points are a specialist are very few Uro's have any knowledge of, and there is a specific methodology in their identification and treatment.

Whilst I was at Stanford there were 2 patients there who had had there pelvic floors checked by well known and respected Urologists and who had been advised that there was not a poblem with there pelvic floor. However, both intimated that when they were evaluated by the PT at the clinic, numerous symptom-referring trigger points were found.

[LightningTree]

My new PT seems to think I should be able to get back to jogging if I can reduce my anal tension 5 fold. I do not necessarily believe that, but its nice to have an optimist around.

I will let you all know if her techniques help me get back to exercise.