#i havent alsp been ABLE to do real exercise in a while so it felt good to not collapse

[mejomonster]

WOOH so mild success. I found on the dysautonomia site an exercise regiment for POTS. It's very detailed and step by step but the gist of it is like:

1. Strength train with gym or body weight strength training exercises (it lists the body weight exercises so I copied them) 3 sets of 8-10 reps of each exercise.

2. Do HIIT cardio (start with reclining exercises so your posture isn't upright causing strain like rowing, reclined bike, swimming with water board. Then move on to Maybe upright bike as you can tolerate the position, eventually move onto elliptical or jogging or any upright position exercise you can do in HIIT format). The program starts with 10-15 minutes warm up (so 0-2 exertion and not a much higher heart rate than usual, then 3 minutes trying to hit heart rate of 125-145 with a feeling of slight exertion 2-4ish, then 2 minutes slower pace to drop heart rate again, then 3 minutes trying to exert a bit more, then 10-15 minutes cool down). As the weeks progress you go up from 3 minutes trying to hit slight exertion heart rate to 6 minutes in 2-3 sets, 8 minutes in 2-3 sets, 10 minutes in 2-3 sets still with the slower exercise time in between, until you're up to about 30ish minutes HIIT where you switch between moderate exertion to raise heart rate and low exertion to lower it for a break for a few minutes (which is how HIIT works), with warm up/cool down 10-15 before and after where you move but not aiming for exertion.

I started with the strength training since it's the same for all weeks (but you can do less reps/sets the first few weeks as you build up your ability), and then did the beginner week HIIT but I did it on an upright exercise bike cause I have no reclined bike (so I'm im wayyy more fucking fatigued cayse I didn't start the better way yr supposed to then I guess I'll find out soon... in which case I'll need to find a reclined exercise I can do that is HIIT and targets legs/core). The strength training was hard as hell cause I have lost sooooo much strength I only did 80% of it. The HIIT was doable and I did all of it.

It made me feel normal post exercise tired after but no major fatigue yet (though the program warns additional fatigue may happen month 1-2 but lessened pots symptoms including lessened fatigue should start by month 3 if the exercise is helping).

I am HAPPY to report tho, that my heart rate is down in the 80s!!!!! I'm wearing compression stockings and do daily and usually my heart rate is 90-115 with them on, usually 100-110. Now, an hour after the exercise, my heart rate is 80-100, mostly hanging around 85-90. This is the best it's been standing in a While. And I didn't take salt today so it's just the exercise effect (the compression stockings already take me from like 140 waking up to 100-115, so the exercise further dropped it to 80-100). That is a good sign to see! So that means maybe this program would help long term. If my body can tolerate doing it (which was doable today on a low fatigue day but idk about on a worse day).

#rant #my health issues #a little success! #i havent alsp been ABLE to do real exercise in a while so it felt good to not collapse #i love dancing and have been too exhausted/fatigued to stand long enough to dance much #but if i can do this until im at that syage where u can do an elliptical? #then maybe thatll mean i can just switch to hiit dance and in general HAVE the fucking stamina to dance again #i love dancing i miss it so bad #and the stamina for walks.... i miss walks but i canr fucking stand long