The study, conducted by researchers from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, focused on determining whether participants could get thirty minutes of exercise completed most days of the week and generally remain more active throughout the day.  The eighty-four participants were separated into two groups: one which incorporated “lifestyle physical activity” into their days, including taking stairs, walking more, and parking further away from stores, and one which was a control group, which did not make the same lifestyle changes.  Those in the “lifestyle” group reported better physical movement and decreased pain at the end of the study.  They also increased the amount of exercise that they could complete in a given day or week.  The researchers understood that people have good and bad days with fibromyalgia and encouraged them to simply move as much as they could on a bad day and to not try to overcompensate on a good day.

To make these recommendations more practical for you, U.S. News and one of the researchers listed various “lifestyle” activities that you can try to begin exercising.  They suggest doing activities such as small arm circles or slowly lifting your legs while seated.  Additionally, you should invest in a pedometer to monitor how far you have walked every day.  Perhaps you could challenge yourself to get in a couple extra steps each day.  The researchers also suggest doing yard work, gardening, and doing housework.  Each of these activities needs to be tailored toward your specific needs and should be broken up into short bursts over a couple of days.  Finally, they suggest taking the stairs or engaging in a water activity.  Swimming and water aerobics are both low impact and great exercise, while taking the stairs is a relatively easy way to add in exercise every single day.  Most importantly, you should try to make the activity fun and look for your own creative ways to move that fibromyalgia pain right out of your life.

The researchers of the study examined data from forty studies on how anxiety and stress is affected by exercise. The study consisted of three thousand sedentary individuals who suffered from various chronic conditions. Although they were primarily sedentary, they did have the ability to exercise for thirty minutes doing an array of activities. The researchers found that those who exercised had a twenty percent reduction in anxiety symptoms. What is more is that the researchers found that exercise helped to ease this worry despite most types of conditions – including fibromyalgia and depression. The only illness that did not benefit from exercise was multiple sclerosis. The researchers found that even those individuals who were not very anxious naturally became calmer with frequent exercise. A reduction of anxiety may help these individuals to handle the symptoms of their conditions more effectively. In the long run, consistent exercise may even decrease the frequency of symptoms.

Although this study appears promising, if you suffer from fibromyalgia, exercising may seem like the last activity that you want to engage in due to the debilitating pain of the condition. Perhaps you could try taking a twenty minute walk outside or even swimming, which are both very low impact exercises that may help reduce anxiety while not contributing to any pain you feel as a result of fibromyalgia. Additionally, you can also lift light weights, which is a great way to get a workout in, while at the same time building muscle and reducing the stress on joints. Another important factor in being able to exercise is taking any prescribed medications regularly, as they may ease some pain, allowing you to get a requisite amount of exercise. Working out does not need to be strenuous or even take place in a gym. Taking your dog for a walk, planting some new flowers, taking a dance class, and even housework can count toward your exercise quota.