| Abstract: |
This article encourages readers with kidney disease to think of exercise as a treatment for health, just as they might consider a drug therapy. Exercise is touted as providing a patient with more energy, improved moods, a way to fight depression, a way to lower blood pressure and reduce risk of heart attack, and a way to build stronger muscles and bones. The author cautions that physical fitness decreases continuously with chronic kidney disease (CKD), resulting in decreased flexibility, decreased muscle strength, coordination disturbances, and decreased endurance. Readers are advised to check with their physician before starting an exercise program and then incorporate exercise and physical activity into their daily plan. The author reviews the three types of exercise: endurance or aerobic, strength and balance, and flexibility. Exercising with a partner or buddy can help keep motivation levels up. Readers are referred to the American Association of Kidney Patients (AAKP) website for more information (www.aakp.org). 3 figures. |