Stopping Karate?

[Kante]

I went to my doctor because of my joints pain (legs,back and a little bit in the fingers) and well, it wasn't the first time, i've been there alot of times and he told me i just need to eat better and get more iron because my body cannot sustain such pressure without me eating well.

Well, i did as he told me for about two months and ate like i never did before (no fast food ofcourse) and i started taking multivitamins and iron tablets.

So i come back two months later (thats today) and he tells me to stop karate for a few weeks (up to 4) and gave me papers for joint tests and stuff.

Am 15 years old by the way, and i think that asking me to quit karate for that long is useless and no matter what the problem is it's not going to help me.

He says that hes about %100 sure that i have no joint problems and it's just the pressure i put on my body (come on am not the only one in the world who practices karate).

So what do you all think? Am thinking of not stopping karate and just taking these tests, because it's hard as hell for me to quit karate for that long, i find it crazy, i go mad if i am ever forced to skip a karate class, let alone 16.

Did anyone ever have to quit Karate for a while? How did it make you feel?

And that's not just it, i just can't imagine my self spending 4 weeks without any kind of training, and i was just going to start with this weight lifting schedule that includes cardio and i can't wait to start it.

PS: One of the joints that hurt me is my knee's, and sometimes while walking, i lose control of it and it bends by its self, this whole knee thing started like 2 months ago.

Thanks for reading.

[DisgruntledGirl]

Have no real advice for you here but as you can see from my first post (Titled "Injuries") Me and you seem to be in a similar boat.

The difference being that, your joint problems seem to have been causing you enough grief for enough time that you actually went to a doctor because of them... I have not gone to a doc yet (though I probably should too) so I pretend to be living in blissfull ignorance that "oh my problems cant be all that bad".

I will say this... a break might do you some good. Even if you dont stop for the full 4 weeks. Try 2 weeks and see if your joint are feeling any better... sometimes the rest itself might help (I know that because of a long holiday weekend I wont have gone to class for a full week as of this coming wednesday, and my knees are doing remarkably better).

Listen to your doc as much as you can. They sometimes do know what they are talking about ( forget that I havent been myself ) even if you dont do the full extendt of what he recommends.

Then again... Ive only been doing karate myself for a lil under 3 months.. so what do I know?

[blackxpress]

Is your doctor a rheumatologist or a general practitioner? The reason I ask is that I had a similar problem about 10 yrs. ago. I went to a couple of different doctors with terrible joint pain and they couldn't figure out what was causing it. The second one referred me to the rheumatology clinic and Vanderbilt University and they diagnosed it as Rieter's Syndrome, a form of reactive arthritis similar to rheumatoid. It took a while but I eventually got back to normal (pretty much anyway). I was 39 at the time. I'm 49 now and train very hard with no adverse effects on my joints. At your age, I would suspect your problem is caused by something other than karate training. A normal healthy 15 year old should be able to train wide open and off the hook with no ill effects. My advice? Find a good rheumatologist.

[DisgruntledGirl]

I 100% agree with blackxpress.

If the doc you went to was just a General Practitioner and not a Rheumatologist I'd go see a Rheumatologist If I were you before I did anything drastic.

[Kante]

I 100% agree with blackxpress.

If the doc you went to was just a General Practitioner and not a Rheumatologist I'd go see a Rheumatologist If I were you before I did anything drastic.

Nope, hes not a General Practitioner, hes a bone doctor (that's not what hes called but it's his specialty)

[lordtariel]

If you're really concerned, go get a second opinion. You might just have a doctor that thinks Karate=injuries. Maybe see a sports phys. My thought is to take it easy though, best not to permanently injure yourself, especially at 15.

[TigerDude]

Maybe you should take a look at what you're doing that's hurting your joints.

Any doctor is going to say, "are you doing something that might be hurting you? If so, you should stop to see if it is the cause."

[bushido_man96]

I think that you should listen to your doctor. It is only for 4 weeks. What is 4 weeks now, if you won't be able to train 4 years from now?

Listen to your doctor. They are there to help. Do the tests, stay away from Karate for now, and see if you can get things figured out.

Best of luck to you.

[blackxpress]

I'm not saying you shouldn't listen to your doctor, I'm just wondering if you should get a second opinion. You say your doctor is a "bone doctor". Do you mean he's an orthopedist? If so, he still may not be the right doctor for your particular problem. Some types of rheumatoid like arthritic conditions are difficult to diagnose. The fact that you're having pain in your fingers makes me suspect the problem may be something other than karate.

[James Bullock]

I agree with Brian...4 weeks or 4 years...maybe the rest of your life...