I have the same issues caroline. I honestly believe it is a combination. What do you do for your fibromyalgia? I am getting ready to change doctors just because I feel like my doctor is overwhelmed with her new practice and I need more help than she can give me.

I dont do much for the fibro.I have had heart issues and high blood pressure issues and get very short of breath when I walk.The doctors tell me I will feel better when I lose weight and to excersise.Easy for them to say when they dont have fibro.I am super sensitive to medications so I just tough it out.I am wondering if I will really feel less fatigued if I do lose the weight.

Absolutely you'll feel better after losing weight. Imagine yourself lighter and you have to carry 30 pounds on your body every where you go and exert that much more on your muscles to get out of a chair or climb stairs. You can join weight watchers which is excellent or do it online without going to the meetings. The only way to keep it off permanently is to change your eating habits forever and weight watchers makes it so you can still cheat a bit and lose weight. I'm sorry you have fibromyalgia. My sister was treated for 20 years only to find our her thyroid levels were off as the dr. was using outdated levels data. Once she was on the thyroid meds she felt so good that she dropped meds for the fibro. started walking and watching what she eats and now she's a size 14 which is fine for a 65 year old 5.7 woman. You may want to get a good reading of your levels, normal for thryoid is now 1 to 3, anything above that number means you need treatment. Sluggish thyroid is often mistaken for fibromyalgia.Good luck, you can do it as you're a smart woman.

I have fibro and tough it out with out meds. I was told exercise really helps fibro patients but it's hard for them to get started due to discomfort. I'm not much help because I was a runner back before I got fibro. My suggestion is to work yourself up with baby steps. I walk my dogs 3 and 1/2 miles a day and do two miles on the treadmill which keeps my weight I want it to be and helps with the fibro. You need to be consistent. I never miss a day. Start off slow, walk to the end of the block and then increase it every day by small increments. Try and walk as fast as possible, maybe not too far at first but work your way up to where you want to be. Since I was a runner, it came pretty easy to get to a 4.2 miles a hour, but whatever is good for you.

Absolutely! As Yayagal said, your body won't be carrying around that extra weight all the time. How could you not feel better?

I, too, am sensitive to meds, and although exercise is supposed to be good for fibromyalgia, I could never tolerate much of it. So I lost my weight without exercise (low-carb eating, which I still follow, though much less strictly). The weight loss lowered my blood pressure dramatically, and the low carbs took my dangerous triglyceride levels back to the normal range.

I won't say losing weight will eliminate your FMS (I continued to have flares, even at my lowest weight), but it'll make you healthier. And that's certainly worth your effort.

I don't have fibromyalgia but after losing over 70 pounds I can tell you I feel 100x better. I can walk up several flights of steps without feeling like I'm going to die. I no longer have high blood pressure so no more bp meds. When I worked before I lost the weight I would get so tired in the afternoon and probably could have taken a nap. That doesn't happen anymore.

I also noticed that my asthma doesn't flare up as much as it used to.

I think it does make a difference in how you feel. My legs, feet and back don't hurt like they used to after working. My back used to hurt just sleeping at night when I was overweight!

I don't have fibromyalgia either. I started exercising on a more regular basis last summer and I feel better for it. I've only lost a little over ten pounds, but it has made a difference in how I feel and I do have a lot more energy.

Diabetes runs in my family because of genetics. Now that I have learned that, I have been making an effort to go towards a lower starch and healthier carbs type diet. I have not totally cut out starches, but am trying to go by my doctor's suggestion that a portion of starches is the size of the back of my fist. In my case, cutting the starches has also made a difference in how I feel. I tend to overeat less because I eat foods that stick with me better.

I have a variety of exercises that I have been doing. I have a little dog that needs to be walked so he helps me to go outside whether I want to or not. In decent weather, I may walk him 2-4 times for 0.5-1 mile each walk. In really pretty weather, we do more distance. Last summer, I swam at the neighborhood pool with my kids several times a week. We also bought bikes for the entire family and rode a few miles at a time. Right now, I go to the gym two nights a week and get 30-45 minutes of cardio and 10 minutes of weights. I also found a good Zumba class that I do once a week. My class is specifically for out of shape and/or older people. I'm uncoordinated so I love the excercise without the pressure.

I don't consistantly do all of these excercises every week, but I have worked myself up to where I am getting 3-4 days of a decent excercise. It really makes a difference in how I feel. I miss it when I have other responsibilities and don't get my workout.

I would encourage you to start out with whatever type of excercise you feel comfortable with and build up to harder and longer workouts.

Good luck! Enjoy whatever type of excercise you choose. I think you will find a benefit in a rather short amount of time.

My sister lost about 60lbs on weight watchers. She is in love with the mirror....:0) She suddenly likes shopping for clothes in a size 9! She felt like people looked down on her becasue of her size at her job, she's a nurse.
No more.

I took up running 20 years ago when my right thigh went numb because of my spinal stenosis. They/docs said I needed a monthly shot of steroids in my thight or it would atrophy. NOT! It's fine....and still numb.....but it works on 5-9 mile runs just fine! :0)

Exercise and weight loss isn't a cure....your condition would still exist....but remember that if you can run 9 miles...you can certainly not be tired after standing 10 hours on a construction job site....I do THAT also. :0) I have an amazing amount of energy...due to exercising!

I had serious chronic fatique years ago after some health problems and too much bed rest for a high risk pregnancy. It took me years to come out of it. I don't know if your fatique is considered chronic fatique or simply a fatique that runs with fibro. I can tell you that exercise made me sick. And that weight loss and/or gain made no difference in my fatique levels.

With that being said, you still do probably need to loose weight for other reasons. If you are already unhealthy, so to say, I believe serious aliments will hit you harder, etc. Loosing weight will also probably help with your mind set which can help a lot with health issues in general.

Here are some tips I have for getting your weight down if you find normal exercising sends you into chronic fatique flares.

Stretching: (See if you qualify for some physical therapy -bad knees, etc they should be able to give you streches to do which may not seem like much but may help you loose weight)

Beginning Yoga: (Find a DVD --do only the amount you feel comfortable)

Walking in Water: (yes, this is how I started, just walking, after a while I progressed to swimming while holding a board)

Regular Walking: For some reason it took me while to build into doing this even in small amounts. It did seem to drain me a lot some days. If it's not too much for you, I think they key may be finding a friend to walk with so that you don't get into the "I'll do it later/tomorrow" routine.

And, here's a funny one: Belly dancing. It works your core/center part of the body. If you have a lot of aches and pains elsewhere, this may work for you. It really helped me. I had a great instructor but there are decent beginning DVDs out there.

And, do try to adjust your diet. Cut out sodas, as many sweets as you can, fast food, etc... It takes a little time, but once you start eating healthier your body really will start craving good foods and you will be repulsed by junk.

There are so many really great tasting healthy foods out there; set your mind to trying something new (that's really healthy) everytime you go to the store. I think you'll be amazed at how good things are that you've never even tried. And, try making a effort to shop mainly the perimeter of the grocery store. Junk is often in the middle isles -try to only skim those or go into only if really needed.

Good luck; you can do it!