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Old 05-10-2012, 09:52 PM   #1  
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Default Rest or exercise?

Things have been going so well lately, so of course something potentially had to go wrong...

I leave for vacation next week. I am going to Portugal and have tons of opportunities for exercise. The city of Lisbon is on seven hills so I will be doing hill walking every day. No car, so lots of walking of all types. Then I go to the Azore Islands off Portugal's coast. Tons of walking and hiking in the plans.

Today, I noticed that my right knee was bothering me when I walked up stairs or down stairs. Feels like a strained ligament. I had the same issue right before my last walking trip, and I struggled with hills and stairs towards the end of the trip.

I went to the gym tonight. I only do weights on Thursday, but tested my knee on the treadmill with a high incline and even at 3.0 mph it felt a little uncomfortable. I also tried one of the ellipticals, and that felt ok.

I'm not sure whether I should do my cardio tomorrow morning. I absolutely hate missing a workout because I feel guilty doing so, and I missed Monday's workout intentionally - my birthday present to myself was a day to sleep in. Cardio for only three days this week would be tough for me to deal with.

On the other hand, I don't want to win the battle and lose the war, so to speak. If I exercise and aggravate my knee, I will be in trouble in a hilly part of the world.

Should I take a chance on exercising on the piece of equipment that didn't bother me, even if only for part of my regular routine, or just rest? I can see how I feel in the morning, of course. And with the weather situation that is expected tomorrow morning, I may not be able to get to the gym anyway (flash floods, lightning).

Thanks.
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Old 05-10-2012, 10:02 PM   #2  
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Vacation notwithstanding, I would consider taking a break from cardio for a couple of days, just to ensure you don't aggravate the injury further. You could still go to the gym and to a strength-training circuit instead. Perhaps consider bringing a knee brace with you on vacation as well, in case it starts bothering you again?

Either way, feel better soon and have a fabulous vacation!

Last edited by Bobbles; 05-10-2012 at 10:02 PM.
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Old 05-10-2012, 11:11 PM   #3  
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This close to a far away vacation with a lot of walking, I would give the knee a rest. Do weights if you're not sore from doing them today, or can you drop in to a yoga class?

I have messed up knees (ACL repair in one, chondromalacia in the other). If I was about to leave on a trip to Ireland (my closest comparison activity-wise to your trip) and my knees didn't feel right, NO WAY I'd be pounding away on the treadmill.

I'd also consider some ice and a brace now. I second the idea of throwing the brace in your suitcase, too. I also travel with a couple Thermacares and instant ice packs, too. Even if I could find them in Ireland, who knows if I'd have the time to go shop for them.

Hope it heals up soon, and I hope you have a great vacation!

Last edited by Riddy; 05-10-2012 at 11:12 PM.
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Old 05-10-2012, 11:30 PM   #4  
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Rest. Do NOT do leg weights. If your knee cant handle cardio, it doesnt need weights.

Ice. Rest.
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Old 05-11-2012, 12:39 AM   #5  
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Rest. Do NOT do leg weights. If your knee cant handle cardio, it doesnt need weights.

Ice. Rest.
Agree. Rest.
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Old 05-11-2012, 05:07 AM   #6  
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Just woke up. Knee seems to feel better, but I'm not going to chance it. I hate missing a day of exercise, but it's probably better in the long run if I skip a day.

Thanks.
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Old 05-11-2012, 10:23 AM   #7  
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REST. losing a week of exercise will NOT make or break your program...in fact, use this as a training break to give your body rest. Drop your cals a little, be DILLIGENT on your eating (that IS WHERE fat loss occurs, afterall--> through DIET) and i think you may even be pleasently suprised by the scale by the tim eyou leave for vacation your body will roecover, you will dop water retention from inflamation, your knee will heal....... its a win/win, no matter how you slice it. And you WONT lose any fitness gains from taking a week off.....
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Old 05-11-2012, 07:27 PM   #8  
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Rest - like everyone said. And, I'd at least call my doctor and see if he can prescribe something for you to take with you in case of a flare up. What a bummer it would be to be away from home and in pain. I had some knee troubles a couple years ago and one thing the orthopedic doctor told me was to take an NSAID like aspirin or ibuprofen BEFORE doing anything that would aggravate it - it helps stop the problem before it starts. It might make sense to talk to your doctor and see if he/she feels it's a good idea for you to do this. Maybe even do it now to reduce any inflammation that could be causing trouble. And it never hurts to take an aspirin when traveling and sitting in one position for a long time. I usually try to stay away from all meds if possible, but sometimes it makes sense to use them to head off problems when away from home.

Hope you have a great trip.

Lin
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Old 05-12-2012, 08:18 AM   #9  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KittyKatFan View Post
Things have been going so well lately, so of course something potentially had to go wrong...

I leave for vacation next week. I am going to Portugal and have tons of opportunities for exercise. The city of Lisbon is on seven hills so I will be doing hill walking every day. No car, so lots of walking of all types. Then I go to the Azore Islands off Portugal's coast. Tons of walking and hiking in the plans.

Today, I noticed that my right knee was bothering me when I walked up stairs or down stairs. Feels like a strained ligament. I had the same issue right before my last walking trip, and I struggled with hills and stairs towards the end of the trip.

I went to the gym tonight. I only do weights on Thursday, but tested my knee on the treadmill with a high incline and even at 3.0 mph it felt a little uncomfortable. I also tried one of the ellipticals, and that felt ok.

I'm not sure whether I should do my cardio tomorrow morning. I absolutely hate missing a workout because I feel guilty doing so, and I missed Monday's workout intentionally - my birthday present to myself was a day to sleep in. Cardio for only three days this week would be tough for me to deal with.

On the other hand, I don't want to win the battle and lose the war, so to speak. If I exercise and aggravate my knee, I will be in trouble in a hilly part of the world.

Should I take a chance on exercising on the piece of equipment that didn't bother me, even if only for part of my regular routine, or just rest? I can see how I feel in the morning, of course. And with the weather situation that is expected tomorrow morning, I may not be able to get to the gym anyway (flash floods, lightning).

Thanks.
With so much at stake, I say get a referral to a physical therapist asap or an orthopod.
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Old 05-12-2012, 08:26 AM   #10  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mkroyer View Post
REST. losing a week of exercise will NOT make or break your program...in fact, use this as a training break to give your body rest. Drop your cals a little, be DILLIGENT on your eating (that IS WHERE fat loss occurs, afterall--> through DIET) and i think you may even be pleasently suprised by the scale by the tim eyou leave for vacation your body will roecover, you will dop water retention from inflamation, your knee will heal....... its a win/win, no matter how you slice it. And you WONT lose any fitness gains from taking a week off.....
This exactly! Your body will likely drop weight on a rest week as it rids of all the water and inflammation it is holding. Don't feel guilty. Our bodies need a break, we work them so hard. Muscles are not made in the gym, they are made on rest days.
I also agree with a doctor visit to have something in case it is bothering you on your trip.
Have fun!
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Old 05-12-2012, 06:07 PM   #11  
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Just an update. After resting up on Thursday (did upper body weights only that day) and Friday, I felt well enough to go to the gym and give things a try. I felt all right Friday but took everybody's suggestion to rest. I planned to just hop on an elliptical, at a low resistance, and if it felt strange then I would just stop and do weights today (again, upper body only) and keep on resting.

The gym is two stories so I had to walk upstairs to get to the equipment. I felt a bit stiff but no pain. And no pain or discomfort of any kind on the elliptical. I did a little less than I normally do, but felt fine. I also did some walking on a treadmill at a low speed and incline. No problems, and no discomfort going down the stairs.

I had a lot of errands to run today, and felt no discomfort. I will rest up for the rest of the day. I do weights tomorrow, but otherwise Sunday is my day off and I do nothing. At all. We will see how it goes. I'm optimistic.

Thanks for all of the support and suggestions. I will get a brace just in case. If I don't feel right tomorrow, I will shut things down for next week until I leave on Saturday.
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