Fibromyalgia and Exercise

Fibromyalgia is an often-misunderstood disease that can affect 1 in 20 people. Fibromyalgia is a long term condition that has no cure, has no known cause and causes the individual to feel pain all over their body. 

Treatment for Fibromyalgia is generally aimed at helping sufferers cope with their pain symptoms, without the use of opiates. 

The current opiate addiction crisis across the world means that people are trying non-medicinal or traditional means to help with their pain.

Exercise as Treatment

With a randomised trail conducted using 226 adults who have Fibromyalgia, exercise has been shown to be beneficial.

These adults took part in either an aerobics class or a Tai Chi class, with aerobic being designed to increase your heart rate and strengthen muscles and Tai Chi aimed at mental calmness through gentle repetitive motions.

This study allocated these adults to one of these fitness regimes for 12 to 24 weeks, once or twice a week. The result of this study showed improvement in all individuals, both aerobic and Tai Chi practisers. 

But the greatest improvement was those individuals practicing Tai Chi, showing much more improvement than those in the aerobics group. The best results came from those attending Tai Chi classes 2 times a week for 24 weeks or longer.

Why Tai Chi 

Tai Chi seems to be the best option for those suffering from Fibromyalgia, as this form of exercise it very rarely causes injury and can fit into any person’s level of fitness. 

Fibromyalgia can cause pain and fatigue, and Tai Chi easily adaptable levels of training fits in well with people suffering from this debilitating disease.

Tai Chi has also been used for those suffering from Osteoarthritis, as its gentle approach is more therapy then physical exertion. Life can become very narrow when simple movements are painful, so enjoying less physical activities like finding great betting sites in Australia and playing games online can be very enjoyable.

While any form of exercise can be beneficial to Fibromyalgia suffers (and all people in general) Tai Chis mind body approach results in a better improvement in symptoms than aerobic exercise of the same duration did. 

Additionally, the longer the person does Tai Chi, the better the results seem to be, so a period of 12 weeks is beneficial, but a long term consistent approach is the better option.

The Testing and Results

Though the testing was only done on a small subject group, the results of this trial were interesting and very informative. 

The data received from the trial was also collated by assessors who had no idea of the forms of exercises being taken, (aerobic vs Tai Chi) and the results were unbiased by them, and directly from questionnaires received by the participants.

In conclusion, there is still no cure for this debilitating disease that affects many people and can cause damage to their lives. 

The reason for the onset of this disease is also unknown, it could be genetic, and the onset could be caused by an emotional or physical event. 

This research shows that exercise is very beneficial to those with this disease, and further study is needed to ensure that the best care and guidance is offered to Fibromyalgia suffers across the world.
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