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Joints/tendons problems. What to eat?


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Hi folks. I'm 32 and started doing sports quite late - about 3 years ago. I've been going to the gym, running and some swimming. About 16 months ago I had my first serious injury - pulled ligaments on my right knee while running and had to rest for more than a month and never fully recovered (still hurts when the weather gets bad/rains). My joint feel inflamated too sometimes, again mostly when the weather is bad. I had some tests for arthritis, but I haven't been diagnosed with anything. I'm vegetarian, but only eat dairy products from time to time. I'm doing cleansing with only raw vegan food and water for two-three weeks each year and some shorter periods of raw vegan diet as prescribed by a well known local nutritionist, as I had some issues with cholesterol (yeah, vegetarians can have bad cholesterol too) and some other liver&bowel related issues (I was diagnosed with IBS).

Anyway. Just a couple of days ago I busted my other knee while I was stretching after a run. Tried to touch my toes and snap... pulled the same ligament. I remember a slight click followed by some pain when I squatted as I was putting something on the ground just a week ago, so I might have finished it off with that stretch. A friend of mine suggested I was putting too much pressure on my joints doing deadlifts and weighted squats at the gym and I tend to believe he's right - he has quite a bit of experience with sports. It might be due to me sitting too much at the computer (work related), as I have been told that my hamstrings are quite shortened and I'm lackong flexibility in that area. I also have some back related issues - that's one of the reasons I squatted that deep with weight in my hands the other day. The therapist I'm visiting said it might be related to me sitting on the chair too much.

So two really nasty problems and some potential ones (right shoulder hurts sometimes, wrists too).

I don't want to sound like a whiner here, but mostly want to get some advice.

I'm thinking some of my injuries might be diet related, as they both happened after a clense. I'm afraid that I'm loosing too much muscle mass in my legs during these periods and I might have to stop doing them.

 

So can you reccomend something that can help with restoring joint/ligament tissue, as gelatine based products migh be off limit for me. I'm currently using something called regenovex, but it has some animal products in it and I don't actually think it helps anyway - after all, the injury happened while I was taking it.

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Hi axlastro,

 

I've also several injuries to manage and work around, this is what I've done...

 

I use orthopedically friendly movements, as well as movements that suit my bodytype. I also limit the range of motion i use on my exercise's, lifting even moderately heavy weights through positions of disadvantaged leverage over time can cause a lot of unnecessary damage/wear and tear to the joints and connective tissues (check out Bill De Simone's work). Moreover, i use high intensity low volume workouts, this also helps greatly in reducing overall wear and tear (and is a superior stimulus for the body).

 

As for nutrition, i recently increased my EFA levels and eliminated all grains from my diet, i also reduced simple sugars as well, its had a very positive effect right off the bat, so much so that I've been able to half my pain killer dosage i take daily for low back pain. Another thing that i believe has also helped me is intermittent fasting, among the many health benefits that comes with I.F., it has a great anti inflammatory effect.

 

Hope this helps and best of luck

Rob

 

P.S an injury is like a pet, their not just for Christmas, their for life. There's no magic pill that will make them disappear, for the long term, its simple about training and eating smart:)

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Hi axlastro,

 

I use orthopedically friendly movements, as well as movements that suit my bodytype.

 

How do you know that? I can see that some movements are not good for me - e.g. leg press really kills my lower back, romanian deadlift too. I have been recommended only isometric excercises for my legs for now.

 

I also limit the range of motion i use on my exercise's, lifting even moderately heavy weights through positions of disadvantaged leverage over time can cause a lot of unnecessary damage/wear and tear to the joints and connective tissues (check out Bill De Simone's work). Moreover, i use high intensity low volume workouts, this also helps greatly in reducing overall wear and tear (and is a superior stimulus for the body).

 

Can you give an example?

 

 

As for nutrition, i recently increased my EFA levels and eliminated all grains from my diet, i also reduced simple sugars as well, its had a very positive effect right off the bat, so much so that I've been able to half my pain killer dosage i take daily for low back pain. Another thing that i believe has also helped me is intermittent fasting, among the many health benefits that comes with I.F., it has a great anti inflammatory effect.

 

Ok, so what do you use as substitute for grains? Did you eliminate only gluten containing grains or all grains - rece, quinoa - do you eat those? Buckwheat is technically not a grain - do you use it?

I did a 10 day fast - only raw food and about a week adaptation to normal food. It didn't help much. Maybe IF is a better idea - so you basically have a day or two each week when you don't eat anything but water?

 

Hope this helps and best of luck

Rob

 

P.S an injury is like a pet, their not just for Christmas, their for life. There's no magic pill that will make them disappear, for the long term, its simple about training and eating smart:)

 

 

 

I'm also taking a non vegan additive now - it's called flexcode and it has hyaluronic acid, MSM, glucosamine and hondroitine and I'm not quite sure if it's good or not. It's not vegan for sure.

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To answer your first question...bio mechanics...

 

By orthopedically friendly movements i mean movements that do not undo strain on the joints, bones or connective tissues...

 

Example: A parallel grip D-B or machine shoulder press puts a puts a lot less strain on the rotator cuffs than does a press behind the neck, another example would be what the free weight traditionalists call "the king of all exercises" ie barbell squats, i don't discount the fact that they are productive in terms of developing size and strength in the lower body and are overall metabolically taxing, but the fact is, they also put a tremendous amount of strain on the spine. Kettlebell squats, hip belt squats, and well designed leverage style leg presses (which put a great deal less strain on the lower back and knees than the incline sled style leg press machines), are all good alternatives.

 

Your second question...

Example: Incline D-B Flyes, if i had a penny for every time i witness someone over stretching/straining on this movement, i'd be a rich man, moreover if i had a penny for every time i hear the same people complain about their shoulder injuries, i'd be an even richer man lol. I also witness most people go so deep on leg presses their ass near comes of the seat, they over-extend on chins, preacher curls, leg extension's etc. This is a sure fire way to "snap your shit up", most people tend to take the term "full range of motion" too literal, what i'm saying here is, use a range of motion that doesn't involve over-extending on any movement.

 

With regards to HIT, one can sufficiently inroad / fatigue a muscle by preforming a single set to failure using a slow controlled cadence, rather than performing several sets of an arbitrary number of reps with the same weight. The latter causes sufficiently more wear and tear on the joints on connective tissues.

 

Your third question...

I've eliminated all grains from my diet, were intact grains are better than refined grains, their still not as good as more fruit and vegetables:)

Yes, i personally fast once or twice per week for 20-24 hours, or there is the leangains daily 16 hour fast/8 hour feeding window method.

 

Best

Rob

Edited by HIT Rob
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You will probably get your estrogen when you get your T checked, but in case it isn't included, make sure it is on the list. Excess estrogen can cause hardening of your collagen. One thing to consider is that we are surrounded by estrogen like substances in make plastics, chemicals, and some food manufacturing products.

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