Exercising with a Muscle Disease

I don’t exercise. If God had wanted me to bend over, he would have put diamonds on the floor.
~ Joan Rivers

Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity.
~ John Fitzgerald Kennedy

If it weren’t for the fact that the TV set and the refrigerator are so far apart, some of us wouldn’t get any exercise at all.
~ Joey Adams

Lack of activity destroys the good condition of every human being, while movement and methodical physical exercise save it and preserve it.
~ Plato

I really don’t think I need buns of steel. I’d be happy with buns of cinnamon.
~ Ellen DeGeneres

Exercise: Love it. Hate it. Gotta do it.

In these articles, Quest looks at the many sides of exercise for people with muscle diseases:

• What does the research tell us?
• Which types of exercises are OK and which aren’t, and how can you tell the difference?
• What are other people doing — or not doing — and what are the results?
• And of course, the ultimate question: Is it worth it?

Please be sure to start with the warning information in "Warning: Read Me First." Much of the conventional wisdom about exercising isn’t true for people with muscle diseases, and doing it wrong may cause irreversible muscle damage.

As you read through the exercise articles in the magazine, one thing is clear: Each body is unique, and its owner knows it best. Please filter all this information through your own wisdom and experience, and please share it with your physicians, therapists and trainers.

And if you want to share your exercise experiences with others, please leave a comment. Because one thing is definitely true about exercise: It’s more fun when it’s shared!

This series also can be downloaded as a printable PDF.

In addition to the stories in this series listed below, be sure to check out "Weighing Your Options," a series of articles on weight loss and exercise, from Quest, July-August 2004.