i’m a sculptor and a craftsperson; i’m always working on something highly detailed or repetitive with my hands. i’m also an old lady by reddit standards clocking in at 51. i have had ever worsening arthritis in lots of different parts of my body, but especially in the joints in my fingers. daily pain in my hands has been an ever present part of my life for at least the last three years, probably longer. i’ve tried so many things to ease the pain only to have them barely work or not work at all. i even had to resort to crafting brace rings to immobilize many of the topmost joints on my fingers to provide some relief.
imagine my surprise earlier this week when i realized that my fingers didn’t hurt. at all. i even started a new project (crochet) that would have had me in agony in just a few hours and NOTHING. no pain, no stiffness. it was like the clock wound back five years.
i started IF for the health benefits primarily and to lose weight secondarily. and even though i’d read all about the benefits of autophagy, i never dreamed that this would happen.
in the nearly 3 months that i’ve been doing IF (mostly on a 20/4 omad plan) i can tell i’ve lost some weight and some inches and see a big difference in the way my clothes fit. but this sudden realization that something magic is going on inside and taking away some pretty significant long term pain…i am beyond thrilled. i can’t wait to see what else happens and what other gifts this is going to bring me!
OMG, you’re right…
I have a lot of small detail hobbies (I crochet too!) And I was pretty much always in some sort of low grade pain (mostly hands, but also neck, back, and shoulders), with occasional flare-ups of more intense pain.
And I just realized that’s pretty much gone. It was always a dull ache, so I was so used to just living with it, and I guess it went away so gradually that I didn’t notice until someone pointed it out!
I also spin (yarn), and there’s this publication I love called Ply Magazine; every issue has an article by Carson Demers (he’s a physical therapist professionally, but also a knitter and spinner) - he includes some anatomy and a stretch for that anatomy and the articles are always related to the kinds of muscles and postures we use in sedentary hobbies (like spinning, knitting, crochet, gaming, etc.) Very helpful stuff. He’s also written a book that I’d love to get my hands on.