Hey barbell medicine crew, I was curious on your thoughts on this topic. I’m a 30 year old male who has been diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency through a venous ultrasound. I usually have tired, achey legs because of this and an occasional venous ulcer. I was told this was most likely due to obesity and my job as a truck driver which requires sitting for long hours. It’s been recommended to not lift heavy weights or do very strenuous exercise because that can spike venous pressure and make things worse. I don’t want to be restricted to “light activity” because of this but I also don’t want to worsen my CVI. A vascular surgeon told me there are no surgical interventions to do because the valves in my veins are intact they just aren’t working properly because of the high venous pressure. I’m working towards losing weight and using other strategies to manage CVI but I’m curious what you guys think about the activity recommendation. The only other health issues other than obesity are high blood pressure managed through amlodapine/valsartan 5mg/160mg and GERD which I take 40 mg of omeprazol daily for. Thanks for your time
Hi there,
Sorry to hear about this. It can be a challenging issue especially if you have little options for movement with your occupation. If it were me, I would not let this be a barrier to engaging in something that has so many other benefits like strength training, however.
I would suggest discussing with your doctor whether you could adjust your blood pressure medicines, specifically to NOT take amlodipine (the valsartan or any other medicine in that class is fine). Amlodipine does not directly worsen venous insufficiency, but can cause leg swelling that makes things generally less comfortable, especially if you are stuck sitting a lot.
I would also find and wear medical-grade compression stockings as much as possible.
I agree with aggressive weight management, and potentially discussing with your doctor whether you are a candidate for GLP-1 treatment to help with this as well. As part of this strategy, I would continue strength training and cardiorespiratory/aerobic exercise to benefit your weight and blood pressure.