Getting fit after Rhabdo

[Ladyash]

Just wondering if there is anyone in the community that may have experience with getting fit after having rhabdomyolysis?

About 6 years ago I ended up with it randomly and doctors were never able to figure out why. At the time I was quite fit doing zumba classes once a week plus walking or running daily. I spent a lot of time after rhabdo afraid of working out because I was always told it may happen again. I have had a few smaller run ins with rhabdo since but am usually able to tell by how my body feels before I see my urine output and can usually clear it up within a day by doubling my water intake and drinking Gatorade.   

I've had multiple tests done and seen specialists and they see nothing wrong with my body and have given me the green light to start working out again and are actually encouraging it but said it was up to me how much and how often I wanted to push myself. So now I feel stuck because there is still the part of me afraid to work out too much and the other part of me that knows I am extremely out of shape compared to what I used to be. I really want to get fit and have a better looking body as I feel like that may boost my confidence a lot and get me out of the rut I'm currently in. I used to be a model and I've watched my body just go downhill since my experience with rhabdo. I want to get my fit model body back but I don't exactly know how to do that!

I do have a Goodlife membership and take body pump classes. I try to go twice a week to those and was swimming twice a week in the summer at the pool as well. Winter time kills the swimming portion of my work outs since I'm not a fan of even doing indoor swimming during the winter. I am currently down to doing just body pump twice a week which I haven't had the motivation to attend in well over a month at this point. When I do try to get back at it I find my body feels so sore that I have to take the rest of the week off and then I start a cycle of not going back to classes for months at a time again out of fear that I am doing too much and will get rhabdo again.

Anyone in the Fitbit community have experience with rhabdo that could suggest how often I should be working out and maybe suggest some workouts or classes that I could/should take to get fit again? Also, any experience you can share about getting back on the path to fit after rhabdo would be great as I'm a bit discouraged at the moment but am looking to change that with the New Year.

[emili]

Hey @Ladyash.. I actually had to look up what you had - I have never heard of it before. I am so happy that you are mended and I can completely understand why you would be worried about it coming back. I think if you are working with doctors who specialize in this syndrome and they are telling you that you are fit enough to go back to exercise you probably can safely do it. Perhaps it is now more a mental barrier than physical? You can try low impact cardio like walking or the elliptical. Or you can try a very low intensity spin class. Or try yoga or pilates. Both are great for core strength without damaging muscle. Regardless of what you choose to do, take care of yourself and keep your doctors in the loop so they can continue to offer you the best care.