Last night was another Nanos workout.  We were working on core strength, so there were a bunch of sit-ups and dumbbell planks (not named for the intellectual capacity of the person doing this move).  However, we also jumped rope quite a bit, which is where the actual aerobic portion of the workout came in and, by my own theory, where the fibromyalgia pain fighting starts.

Make no mistake, aerobic conditioning will not cure fibromyalgia (I don’t think), but there are benefits to it that makes it an effective management strategy, and it all boils down to the four main foci for management:

1.  Movement.  Obviously.  You’re moving.  A lot.  It’s not something a lot of people with fibro can do.  However, the more you move, the more you CAN move.
2. Sleep.  Aerobic conditioning helps you sleep.  It would be interesting to look at the role of hormones in terms of sleep post-exercise.  Does releasing hormones during a workout enable the body to release sleep hormones better during sleep?  That may not have made sense…
3. Stress.  A workout absolutely helps release stress, not only mentally but physically too.  In some ways it’s kind of like hitting your head on a wall when you have a headache.  Your focus changes from the headache to the pain of hitting your head on the wall instead.  As warped as it is, you’ve CHOSEN to hit your head on the wall.  Pain/stress you choose is much easier to manage than pain/stress you have no say over.  (I do not advocate hitting your head against the wall).
4. Diet.  Reason would say the more you move the more you need to eat.  Really – no.  I think it’s because the body becomes more efficient with exercise.  Furthermore, there’s something about exercise that dampens cravings.  I’m not saying you’ll never indulge in comfort eating again, but it helps.

So in terms of my current fibro attack, I slept much better last night after the workout, but still woke up tired and wanting to sleep more.  This weekend I’ll work on catching up on sleep and doing some mild at-home exercises.  Fibro sometimes requires a quiet couple of days to recuperate.  That’s what snuggly cats are for, and movies, and a comfy couch….