If you have a collagen vascular disease, more often called connective tissue disease today, you may have a difficult time exercising. Such maladies -- which include systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, polyarteritis nodosa and ankylosing spondylitis -- are autoimmune diseases that often affect the muscles or joints. These disorders can cause pain, inflammation and joint deformities that may worsen with exercise. If you have a collagen vascular disease, talk to your doctor about what types of exercise would benefit you most.
Exercise Benefits
Even if you have a collagen vascular disease, exercise can benefit you. Exercise can prevent or treat diabetes, heart disease and obesity. Obesity can put extra strain on your joints, so losing weight can benefit joints directly. Exercise can also help lift depression, reduce fatigue, help you sleep better, and improve physical strength and stamina. In addition, exercise can help your damaged muscles and joints by strengthening them, keeping them flexible and reducing stiffness and swelling. Try to do some form of exercise every day if your doctor allows it, even if it's just gentle range of motion on each joint.
Types of Exercise
If you have damaged joints, you may not do well at activities that put strain and stress on your muscles and joints. Swimming and water therapy have merit as exercises for those with collagen vascular disease because they don't put strain on your joints and muscles. You don't get the weight-bearing benefits that can help build strong bones and prevent osteoporosis from water exercise, however. Gentle range-of-motion exercises can help prevent stiffness. Some types of aerobic exercise, which raises your heart rate, may reduce inflammation in your joints.
Exercising Cautions
If you have collagen vascular disease, exercise has the same benefits as it has for anyone else, but you must take your physical limitations under consideration. System lupus erythematosus, for example, can damage your lungs, heart or joints; damage to these areas may limit the types of exercise your doctor wants you to do. Rheumatoid arthritis and scleroderma can also affect your lungs. While you may be able to exercise, you need to always consider the limitations of your disease in determining what exercises you can do. Start slowly and gradually increase your efforts.
Warning Signs
If you experience a worsening of joint or muscle pain that lasts for more than one hour, you may be overdoing exercise or may be doing exercises that are too hard on your joints and muscles. If you take corticosteroids to treat collagen vascular disease, you may have an increased risk of bone fractures or tendon or ligament rupture. If you develop increased pain, chest pain or difficulty breathing, stop what you're doing and see your doctor.
