Doctors Advise To Resume Physical Training Gradually Post Covid-19 Recovery

Highlights

Covid-19 has been wreaking havoc in our lives for a year and pandemic experts and doctors are still updating us with ways to tackle the protocol of prevention, combating the virus, and post-recovery.

There has however been a rise in complications for people restarting their routine exercises, and doctors are of the opinion that patients should not start vigorous workouts and physical exercise and training for at least 3 months post a Covid-19 infection.

You know your own body better than anyone, how it normally feels when you walk up the stairs when you run when you bike so those things harder for you and you feel a change in your body then that should raise a red flag.

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Covid-19 has been wreaking havoc in our lives for a year and pandemic experts and doctors are still updating us with ways to tackle the protocol of prevention, combating the virus and post-recovery. There has however been a rise in complications for people restarting their routine exercises, and doctors are of the opinion that patients should not start vigorous workouts and physical exercise and training for at least 3 months post a Covid-19 infection.

According to a report in The Times of India, “Intense physical activity of any kind is not recommended immediately after the patient recovers from Covid-19. The lungs that are recovering from the infection cannot keep pace if you immediately start intense physical activity. If the patient was suffering from severe Covid-19, there are chances that they might go into lung fibrosis and suffer complications,” said Dr. Vinay Shekar, head of general medicine at Gandhi Hospital.

Patients have weakened organs after the infection and any stress can affect the quick recovery of the same because the lung damage needs time to restore back to health. Basic breathing exercises, low-intensity walking, and stretches are recommended but any physical training should be started in phases and under professional or expert guidance after approval from the physician, cardiologist or pulmonologist.

Doctors and scientists are still learning the long-term effects of COVID-19. The virus damages the heart, brain, lungs, and kidneys in some and while many are quick to recover for many others recovery is not so fast. Fatigue, dehydration, loss of energy, body pain are some symptoms that linger long after the infection has subsided.

For people who are particularly active and sportspersons, getting back to their old routine should be a slow process and monitored to avoid any serious complications or damage to the body. Even with that proper nutrition and hydration should be followed to make sure overall health is maintained.

How to restart your fitness journey according to Dr. Schaefer, Cleveland clinic

Listen to your body. If you’re experiencing symptoms like chest pain or heart palpitations, stop exercising immediately and consult with your healthcare provider.
Take it easy. Don’t try to “power through” like you used to. Athletes of all ages should follow a gradual progression to get back into exercise. You’ll need to build up the time and intensity of your workouts.
Be patient. Even if you were training for a marathon prior to becoming infected, you’ll likely discover that your body has changed a bit, which warrants extra caution. Don’t push too hard on a body that is still trying to recover.

Health complications that can arise post Covid -19 recovery

Myocarditis is an inflammatory response of the heart due to a viral infection, such as COVID-19. It can cause swelling in the heart muscle making rigorous activity more difficult and sometimes, even deadly.

Student athletes (and any active adult) should complete a supervised, graduated return to sports progression as they head back to practice, training or exercise. This progression is often referred to as Return to Play (RTP) and involves seven stages.

Symptoms to look out for while working out

Chest pain or heart palpitations.
Nauseous.
Headache.
High heart rate not proportional to exertion level or prolonged heart rate recovery.
Feeling lightheaded or dizzy.
Shortness of breath, difficulty catching breath or abnormal, rapid breathing.
Excessive level of fatigue.
Swelling in the extremities
Syncope (passing out).
Experiencing tunnel vision or loss of vision.

You know your own body better than anyone, how it normally feel when you walk up the stairs when you run when you bike so those things harder for you and you feel a change in your body then that should raise a red flag.

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I’ve known Navya* since childhood — let’s just say that she is my partner in crime. But what I didn’t know about were her struggles and the mental sanity that she was losing over a crippling disease called psoriasis!

Yes, a crippling disease! A disease that doesn’t only depredate your skin but also take a dig on your mental health. A very crippled and devilish disease which has no cure.

So, it started around the rise of 2017 — a tiny patch on her private parts which she initially ignored — when it began to grow, she thought it was some sort of vaginal infection, which gradually reached her thighs. On showing to the doctor, it was found that it’s psoriasis — something she had no idea of.

“I still remember how much my parents got worried after knowing this. It was not just the disease that hampered them but the fact that the entire extended family won’t spare their daughter after they get to know this,” Navya sighs.

Navya belongs to that part of the country where women are measured as per their colour tone. Oh, wait, isn’t this what happens in the entire country?! But yes, she belongs to a very broadminded family but a very orthodox ‘khandaan’. So the bottom line is, beauty mattered to them. The flesh of the body was more considerable to them than the cerebrum.

“I realized how much external beauty mattered to people — which psoriasis ruined in my case,” Navya continues. “When my doctor told me that it’s not curable, I felt the literal meaning of ‘main thehra raha zameen chalne lagi’. But did I have any option? Not really! I did everything — from homoeopathy to allopathy, ayurveda, yoga, what not! — knocked every door, be it the medical science or the spiritual path. But my life was going no less than Ekta Kapoor’s daily soap.”

“I told my brother and boyfriend. They listened — to every word of mine and just said, ‘does it really matter?’ And there had been no turning back ever since,” I love how Navya’s eyes get brightened when she smiles.

It was not easy for her. Of course, who likes to see huge patches on their private parts and other areas of the body? But she was determined — not because the ‘external’ beauty mattered to her but the fact that she was not able to wear her favourite LBD. Afterall, log kya kahenge!

She changed her diet completely, which eventually transformed her. A quick recap of what she went through —

Mild and simple meals without oil or spices
Full sleeves clothes every time on stepping out
No shorts/ dresses
And, a very few people were aware of her condition.

It matters when people don’t know about your condition. “Every time I went to birthday parties or family functions, I couldn’t eat my favourite food, and everybody used to ponder about me. And I was lean enough to say that I was on a diet. That’s when ‘these very few people’ came to my rescue. They used to cover me up with bizarre and funny excuses, and I loved the way they stood for me every time,” Navya tells me.

Well, I don’t know what’s wrong with these relatives! Mine pestered me to lose some weight while hers were harassing her to gain some kilos.

Navya went for two ayurvedic treatments — virechan and vaman — and a massage prior that. These processes help the body in getting toxic out of it — via poop in virechan and via puke in vaman. This was followed by a strict diet and a healthy lifestyle. However, PCOS befriended her to make it worse.

“I used to have sudden mental breakdowns, but I always pacified myself, believing that there were a lot of people suffering more than me. My doctor always said that I’ve comparatively fewer patches than a lot of women, but duh, these were enough to kill my self-esteem. At times, I used to itch my scalp so much that blood would come out of it. Awful, I know,” Navya continues with her tale.

She was more worried about her relatives’ reactions than her desire to eat cheese. But she kept fighting against the evil duo of PCOS & psoriasis. She continued her workout and yoga and tried not to stress out much.

“I owe it to these people, my parents, brother and boyfriend who endured my mood swings so seamlessly. It’s been more than three years now and I just have two patches on my body. All I am doing now is keeping up with my diet and routine,” Navya continues with a brief of the diet she followed.

Minimized salt and sugar — it triggers the itching and results in bleeding
Included rock salt in her diet
Removed dairy products
Kept moisturizing her skin during winters — coconut oil is best
Ate only green veggies and no junk/ outside food — once in a month would be okay
Exercised a lot — meditation is recommended.

Though only two patches are visible on her body now, Navya believes a steady diet helped her a lot. She convinced herself that she would get rid of those patches, no matter how long it takes. Her diet and workout sessions eventually helped her to get rid of PCOS as well.

In the end, she smiles and says, “kuch toh log kahenge, logo ka kaam hai kehna! I won’t say not to take stress because I know you will but do not forget to meditate. Keep your hopes high. Psoriasis is a part of you; you are not a part of psoriasis.”

To know more about psoriasis, you can inbox us on Facebook/ Instagram or tweet us with #NavyaKiKahani, and we will get you as many details as possible.

*Name changed as per requests.
Images: Provided by Navya.