Jbigler

Hi Billy & Gabrielle —
I’m interested to hear how you view my journey and how you choose to go forward.

These past 2 months, I’ve been lazy. I’ve continued my yoga practice — now only about 4 times a week — and have skipped the boring machines, the forearm planks and the pilates. Yoga has been a mix of Bikram and vinyasa style classes, mostly Bikram, and I’ve been doing some Zumba and some digging in the yard with a pick, etc.

I haven’t met with Elli — perhaps I’m embarrassed by my lack of diligence.

Two months ago, I was concerned that the hernia area seemed squishy and weak, and I believed that I’d wasted my time delaying surgery… I suspected at that time that I’d probably eventually get the mesh surgery. I had no real pain, but occasionally, with a full digestive tract, I could sense the weakness.

Now, after the 2 months, I realize that I’ve almost completely forgotten that I have a hernia! The area seems stronger, without even an occasional bulging, and I don’t have a sensation of weakness. When I probe with finger pressure, I can sense that the area is only slightly weaker than the opposite side!

So, this is quite the turnaround!

My current thinking is that the cause of my hernia was the trumpet playing, not the yoga practice. I haven’t modified any of my yoga practice except for one thing — when I transition in and out of headstand, I don’t hold a pike (straight leg) position anymore. I miss the trumpet playing, but my neighbors are much happier.

Billy, please keep me posted regarding your decision and progress. I’ll be anxious to learn what the surgery is like and how the recovery time affects your activities. Is the surgery as trivial as the doctors say it is?

John

Yes, Gabrielle, I should schedule a meeting with Elli to tell her my progress/plateau. Perhaps she will tell me whether she considers my present condition a “cure” and whether she believes that I can make further progress. It has been several weeks since I have spoken to her.

Perhaps I’m accepting an outcome that is short of what can be achieved. As of now, I’m believing the standard medical conclusion that a hernia is a tearing of tissue that can’t be healed by exercise — apparently, I’ve strengthened the adjacent muscles but the tear is still present.

I’ll meet with Elli and post a report.

John

Hi Gabrielle —

It’s been another month, and perhaps I’ve reached a plateau…

I’ve discontinued the machine exercises and the forearm plank, and the pilates classes — not because they don’t help, but because they’re boring and because I’m getting lazy. I prefer my mix of yoga classes.

My conclusion is that I have not actually cured my inquinal hernia. Although there is no swelling or bulge in my abdomen, there is a weakness that I can feel when I press that area. And, sometimes when my bladder (and occasionally my intestines) are stretched to full capacity, I can feel a very slight discomfort in the herniated area — but it’s not painful or at all bothersome.

So, I’m pleased with the result. There may be a time when I will wish that I had gone ahead with the mesh surgery, but, as of now, I’m happy with my choice to try to strengthen my abdominal muscles and put off any surgery. And, my neighbors are happy that I have stopped playing trumpet late at night.

I’ll let you know if I change my mind and decide to get the surgery.

Namaste —
John

Hi, again —
Only 4 days since my last post… that was reporting my first Bikram class in over 6 months, and today was my second —

Today, I did an exercise class and a zumba class, and then a 30-minute sauna, all at the Wellness Center… and, feeling good, with a BP reading of 112/55, and a repeat BP reading of 98/60, with heart rates of 68 and 67 bpm, both at my usual pharmacy BP machine, I decided to try another Bikram class (in spite of the sauna)… eating lunch and trying to re-hydrate, first…

This was my FIRST time going topless!!! (not so easy for a guy who’s nearly 68)… and I wore lightweight nylon shorts over wicking-poly briefs… previously, I had always worn cotton gym shorts over cotton briefs, and a cotton tanktop, so I hoped that this would save me from the heat/humidity problems.

I performed well in the 4:30pm class — good balance, strength, flexibility and stamina — but I flagged a little in the floor series, apparently due to the loss of fluid during the sauna and my drinking of 2 liters of water/coconut water during the class (feeling a little “full” and slightly nauseous)…

The surprise was that going topless and wearing a skimpy wicking costume seemed to make very little difference!!! I was still dripping sweat during the opening breathing sequence, and I was absolutely pouring sweat during the rest of the class — much more than anyone else. The room was nearly full (30 people) and was perhaps slightly warmer, but not much different from 4 days ago.

Another surprise was that no one mentioned that I was topless! No one seemed to notice… all the other (younger) men were topless, of course… I know the instructors well and even they didn’t seem to notice it. Of course, I DID notice it — it was not nearly as much fun to look at the mirror! I believe that I’ve decided to revert to my previous costume…

As for the BP, I stopped at the same pharmacy on the way home and had a BP reading of 100/72 with a heart rate of 78 bpm.

Any thoughts?

John

Hi Gabrielle —

Bikram, again!!! Yes, after a little more than 6 months without hot yoga, I finally went to a Bikram class this afternoon… and it went rather well…

As before, I’m frustrated by the variability of today’s BP readings — 139/65 (after breakfast), then 126/61, 117/70, 122/76, and 104/64 (after a Zumba class)… all today on the same automatic machine at the local pharmacy… then, after Bikram, 127/60 and 125/56… then, after a big dinner, 131/58, 95/70 (error?) and 107/63… all with pulse rates ranging from 63 to 78 (after dinner).

Obviously, I need a better way of measuring BP. The physical doctor’s office is not convenient… and the Red Cross reads my BP only every 56 days, when I donate blood.

You may say that the readings are just fine, even with today’s Bikram class, but my BP readings were nearly all under 110/x a year or two ago… and I’d like to get them back down. I’m thinking that I over-indulged the sauna (45 minutes/day) at the Wellness Center (without electrolytes) and that I need to give that a rest to see how my BP changes.

I felt good during today’s class and performed about as well as before — good balance, strength, flexibility and stamina — except for my knees… they were still sore/inflamed from the Zumba classes and my toe stand and fixed-firm pose suffered some.

I believe that my excessive sweating is unhealthy — I’m dripping sweat halfway through half-moon pose and pouring sweat through the rest of the class — considering that I’m nearly 68. Next time, I’ll try some wicking briefs/shorts and go topless, to see if that helps… but, I’m not optimistic. I had hoped that my daily 45 minutes in the sauna would have helped prepare me more…

So, I’ll wait at least a couple more days and give it another try. I’d like to go to hot yoga twice a week, mixed in with other yoga/pilates classes, but I’m afraid that the local Bikram studio is a little too hot for me!

Any more suggestions? Thanks —

John

Gabrielle —

You asked earlier about any other possible causes of the BP issue. And, it just occurred to me that there is something that I could mention…

For several years, I’ve noticed symptoms that might suggest a reduction in circulation to my fingers and feet. When I’m in over-cooled A/C in the summer, my fingers may become somewhat numb. And, when I first go to bed in the winter, my feet take a very long time to warm up. And, there are perhaps some other similar symptoms when I’m in cold rooms or sleeping with my limbs in cramped positions, etc.

I’ve mentioned this to my physical doctor, but he hasn’t been much concerned… so I didn’t mention it to you earlier. Could this be related to my BP issue?

Thanks —
John

Hi Gabrielle —

Only one more week of my 8-week regimen — one week from today, I’ll meet with the laproscopic surgeon to evaluate the need for surgery.

I’ve been continuing the machine exercises, as instructed by Elli, on alternate days… with the squat and lateral leg raise machines added to the original 7 exercises… two sets of each, with an extra set of forearm plank and sit-ups using the inflated ball… and some stretching.

And, I’ve been doing a water exercise class in the pool, or pilates mat or yoga classes on the alternate days… recently moving into more hardcore yoga (bird-of-paradise, revolved triangle, revolved half moon, flying crow, inversions, twists, wheel, etc.) without trying hot Bikram classes, yet.

Things are going well — my abs feel much stronger and with more control… still no pain… a little swelling occurs occasionally (perhaps every couple days) but generally isn’t noticed, and it disappears when I contract my abs a little.

Perhaps I’ve reached a plateau — if I keep away from playing high notes on my trumpet and live with an occasional superficial small raised area, I could avoid surgery? I don’t expect much change between now and next week — I’m anxious to learn what the surgeon will say —

John

I had my 3rd session with Elli on Monday… it’s now Sunday, and I’ll have my 4th session with Elli tomorrow.

We met at the training room of a Wellness Center. Elli put me on the elliptical machine for a warmup, about 10 minutes, then she led me through some stretching with a rope and rubber tube before she started me on a series of 7 exercises that I’m to do 2-3 sets of 3 days a week, on alternate days.

These are the 7 exercises —
1- Sit-ups while reclined on a large, inflated exercise ball, with pelvis tucked, 15-25 times, with a series of crunches at the end… focusing on keeping my abdominals pulled in.
2- Forearm plank with forearms on the exercise ball… 10-15 breaths.
3- Chop-type side-to-side straight-arm motion pulling against a rubber tube, both sides… 50 times.
4- Straight-arm opening motion on the rowing machine with the cables crossed and arms at shoulder height… 10-15 times.
5- Wide-arm assisted pull-ups on machine… 10-15 times.
6- Pulling with straight arms, from shoulder-height in front, downward to outward-at-my-side, on a machine giving cabled resistance, the cables crossed… 10-15 times.
7- Rowing motion on the rowing machine, sitting in fixed position, pulling from straight arms in front to bent-elbows behind me… 10-15 times.

On Alternate days, I was instructed to do exercise classes in the swimming pool, swim, or do a pilates mat class… or maybe a modified yoga class.

That was on Monday. Tuesday, I observed a water class. Wednesday, I did the above-prescribed routine doing the 7 exercises, the sequence 2 times. Thursday, I went to Aqua Action — a water class using foam dumbbells and foam noodles. Friday, I did the full routine with the 7 exercises, the sequence 3 times. Yesterday, I went to Aqua Action again. Today, I may try another water class.

The water classes are attended by over-weight 70-year old women… quite a change from the 20’s and 30’s of my old yoga classes!

I believe that there’s been some improvement! My metabolism and digestion seem to be more like they used to be — I hope to lose some of the 10 pounds of non-muscle that I added since I stopped my yoga practice. And, it seems less frequent that the hernia swelling is noticeable — certainly, it hasn’t become worse… and there’s still no pain.

So, I’m encouraged… not sure what Elli’s instruction will be when I meet with her tomorrow.

Do any of you have comments or suggestions?

Thanks, Gabrielle, for your comments —

Elli put me through some new abdominal exercises today, but she refused to give them to me as homework! Disappointing — another week of forearm plank… with only something called pendulum added today. She thinks there are so many breathing and form issues for me to get corrected that I shouldn’t try to work on the new abdominal exercises just by myself… not yet.

Over my 9+ years of yoga practice, I’ve trained myself to do wonderful slow deep breathing through my nose, and Elli wants me to exercise with shallow chest breathing with exhales through my mouth, much like blowing out a candle… keeping my stomach and lower ribs pulled in. She thinks that pilates might be a good idea, temporarily, since pilates breathing is closer to that than yoga breathing.

I want to identify the cause of the hernia so that I can omit/modify only that activity and continue with the other activities that I enjoy. If the cause is my trumpet playing, I may be able omit that and return to my vigorous yoga practice… AFTER I strengthen my abdominal muscles enough to stabilize the internal organs. There seems to be a well-known connection between trumpet playing and hernia issues.

John

It is now one week after my first session with my “holistic coach” Elli. I’ll meet with her this afternoon for more instruction. Yoga practice without back-bending and hip-opening postures wasn’t much fun, so I’ve skipped yoga classes and done only the forearm planks during the past week.

My stomach muscles seem to be getting stronger (and there’s some muscle soreness after the planks), but my body is getting soft (and out of muscle balance) and I’m concerned about potential weight gain due to the change in my metabolism. I expect that Elli will instruct me to do new exercises when I meet with her today… those exercises should help.

When I talk to people about this, the response is always the same — “you CAN’T cure a hernia through exercise”. If I’m successful with this exercise approach, I’ll be the first! I’m giving it 8 weeks, during that time I’ll try my best… but, I’ve already scheduled a consultation appointment with a surgeon immediately after that, as a Plan B.

In fairness to everyone here, I want you to know that I’m no longer convinced that my (nearly 10 years) yoga practice caused the hernia! Instead, I believe that my recent and diligent efforts to play trumpet (after nearly 50 years’ hiatus) may be the problem — too much straining to play those high notes!

If you have any suggestions, please let me hear from you!

Thanks, Gabrielle —

Perhaps you are correct, that I will have no alternative and will have to have surgery and a mesh stitched across the weak/broken muscles. I’m certain that many in this Forum have resorted to similar surgery, and I hope that they will tell of their efforts to avoid the surgery and of any complications.

I expect that many here will be able to suggest which postures and which transitions are likely to aggravate the hernia and cause it to progress. Yes, I will study the Forum threads discussing hot yoga after hernia repair surgery to see if there’s any help there.

I am still hoping that someone here will be able to report that they were able to strengthen the abdominal muscles and avoid surgery, even if that meant a significant modification of their yoga practice. And, I hope that someone will be able to advise whether the stretchy athletic underwear is helpful.

Tomorrow, I will meet with Elli, the “holistic coach”. I advised her of the problem and she suggested a 1-hour appointment. I know her and don’t believe that she would suggest the appointment unless she thought that she could help — perhaps she has helped others with similar problems in the past. I’m hopeful!

Please let me hear from others in this Forum!

John