I'm still pre op, but I've been working hard walking, doing resistance bands, fitball exercises, and basic floor exercises like leg lifts and pelvic tilts, etc. I aim for 30 mins 5/6 times a wk and I've been at this routine for about 4wks I think. This past week, my body has gone into full rebel! It started with a nagging shoulder that pops and grinds, but I pushed on. Then my knees were getting too sore to stand so I quit walking as long and tried "resting them" by doing short walks around the house when it seemed even walking to the end of the block was causing severe pain. NOW as of last night my feet and legs are swelling up to the knees and I start having leg cramps just trying to do little things. I thought I could do a little floor stretching and it would all be fine, but to my surprise, I can't lift my leg up from the floor. The pain it sends into my hip and knees is insane! What has happened to me?!? I was doing so good and was making some great progress and now I feel like I've been pulled back to square one! I was so desperate to log exercise last night I did my hand weights sitting in a chair! I don't have access to a pool or time/money to go to one for that matter, so I'm super dependent right now on exercises I can do myself from home(for free). What can I do and does anybody know why it's all going to hell now? Weeks ago I would have accepted this, but now it's just not fair! I've worked so hard to get where I was!

I see what you all are saying, but honestly, what I am doing doesn't even exert me at all at this point. I've been doing this same routine for over 4 wks with no pains and no squeaks and then literally overnight everything began to fail. I think I've discovered at least part of the reason which made itself more clear this afternoon when the rash showed up followed by fatigue so bad I could even get out of the chair in the school room before passing out. I have lupus and have enjoyed it being in remission for several years while I was pregnant and usually by now, I'd be pregnant again after having a baby so it's just been keeping the lupus at bay and now without being pregnant, my lupus is out of remission and making up for lost time. I put in a call to my dr and hopefully can get back on some medications to keep it under control. Funny thing about Lupus. It sucks!

When I read your original post I thought, "that sounds like what would happen to me every time I would try to exercise on a regular basis" and then I kept reading all of the posts and came to this one and said, 'ah', it is the same thing." I, too, have lupus. It sucks to have your body betray you every time you try to do right by it! I know what you are going through.

Let me tell you though, it will get better after you have surgery and the weight starts coming off. I have been on a very low maintenance dose of prednisone since surgery and it has not affected my weight loss at all.

I would suggest that you just listen to your body and rest it as it needs. If you can't exercise for a few days in a row, or even for a few weeks in a row (you know how it is), don't get down on yourself. It is your disease. You understand that. It's frustrating, I know, but what can you do? Just eat right and like you did previously, just do the hand weights while sitting. Like my mom always says, "it beats a blank!"

Bless you!

thanks! I didn't know that wls could actually make the lupus better. God that would be amazing! I left today going damn! It's all coming crashing down. I just want to cry, but at least I know what it is and we aren't in the guessing game phase. It took me over 5yrs for it to be diagnosed. That entire time I suffered and listened to people just tell me I was lazy and looking for excuses or not doing xyz correctly and that's why I'm in such a shape. I forgot how bad it feels mentally and physically. I've had a good solid 9yrs in remission, but like I said, the only way to keep that up is to stay pregnant(for me some people get it worse, but my goes into remission)band my baby days are behind me now(7 is enough). It's good to know that on the other side maybe it won't hurt so much! ????