Imuran and Jogging

[Garraty]

Hi,

I'm a 41 year old man who's had Crohn's since my mid 20's. Its not an aggressive case, but it is a persistent one, refusing to go into remission and stay there.

My Doctor recommended Imuran a few years ago and I've settled in with a dose of 175mg a day and all seems more or less okay. I still have some days that aren't so great, but most days I can function without even being aware of the cramps and pains.

Recently I started jogging and am curious about others that are working out, a lot, on Imuran. Does it pose any real problems to muscle healing or cramping or pain in the joints and muscles? For myself I have noticed muscle pain, but that is to be expected when it comes to jogging, and recovery seems to need to happen often enough because my joints and bones get very sore. Wondering if this is just normal run-of-the-mill issues related to jogging a lot of does some of it have to do with the strong medicine that I take daily?

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

Jeff

 

[lola99]

Jogging is very bad for your joints. I would recommend swimming or the elliptical machine. I was on imuran and had no issues with my joints. I was on a lower dose and eventually discontinued it because it didn't resolve my symptoms. I had joint pain during my flare. I'm now on humira and on a weight training regime and having no complications.

 

[Tesscorm]

My son was 16 when diagnosed. He has always been quite physically active. When he had his first flare, that certainly slowed him down and it took a little while to rebuild strength, muscle, endurance but, since then, he was able to go back to what was 'normal' for him pre-diagnosis.

He's not on imuran but started on remicade in Febuary. In July, he dislocated his shoulder - if anything, he actually healed much, much quicker than I would have expected (remicade or not!) - in his case, the medication didn't seem to effect his recovery at all. Other than the shoulder, which was not caused by sports, he also has not suffered any injuries at all from his sports activities (ie doesn't seem to be any more susceptible to injury due to remicade).

However, re jogging specifically - the only exercise that did cause my son any (abdomen) pain was long distance running. Not sure if it was the constant bouncing???

You may want to look into vitamin deficiencies as well... inflammation can cause malabsorption issues and you may be deficient in some vitamins or minerals (not sure which but it may be magnesium or zinc deficiencies that can cause muscle aches or cramps??). I'm going to tag David - he will probably have some info for you re vitamins/minerals and exercise.

Also, it seems many people do deal with joint inflammation when their crohns is flaring??? Is this possible for you?

Good luck!

 

[Justanothercp]

Garraty,
Jogging does aggravate me if I try to do long distances (over 4). I'm not on Humira, I'm on Remicade. (Also Budesinide and Lialda)

 

[Catherine]

My daughter also has problem with running, she takes 150mg aza per day. Her problem with running start before treatment with aza, so it Crohn's related and medication related.

She swim between 4- 6 to 2 hour sessions per week up to 5-6 km per session with no problems.

 

[David]

At 35 I get sore after a lot of running. If that soreness persists for more than a few days or is PAINFUL, then I'd definitely reevaluate. With Imuran, my main concern would be that you're protecting yourself from the sun. Have you been advised about that?

One thing you may want to get into is soaking with Epsom salts. Not only can that help the muscle and bone soreness, but the magnesium in Epsom salts is actually absorbed through the skin and magnesium is one of the big mineral deficiencies people with Crohn's often face.