Hello,
I had posted some old hs-CRP results some time ago trying to decipher if there was any link to my pain sensitivity issues, and possibly to try and mitigate possible future health concerns.
Long story short, 10 years or so ago I was tested for RA and hs-CRP was in there (flagged at 8.2mg/L, wasn’t sick and no acute injury). Doctor at the time said it was probably just from having worked out less than 24h prior (I don’t believe this is correct, but I could be wrong). Since then I eliminated dairy (which seemed to mostly prevent random eczema flare-ups), and wheat.
Was re-tested a few months ago – no acute viral infection, no particular injury – results attached. hs-CRP is >2.0mg/L, and I’m not sure how much of a risk factor this truly is for chronic illness independent of other factors. I’m not really concerned about apo-B as even when I was eating an ill-informed higher-sat fat diet with coconut oil and the like (about 23% of daily cal), my apo-B was only at 87, so it’s likely safe to assume it’s dropped significantly since changing that to <10%/day.
My main concern is trying to deal with pain symptoms. It’s not the obvious debilitating chronic pain or obvious inflammation people with severe arthritis experience, but it’s a constant and frustrating process of evaluating many activities participated in alongside potential for pain, whether having to do a short period of chainsaw work alongside workouts (after a back re-injury two years prior), or trying to play instruments for an hour while having to do some menial PC work. If I had to describe it it would seem like a poor ability to recover and a subpar resilience. It’s not constant and always present, but when it arises it seems to linger for longer than normal periods of time.
As an example, I had to sand down quite a few doors in the cold for a reno with a friend, and while I’m in significantly better overall health than he is, I ended up with what feels like tendonitis in my hands that has persisted on and off for months, reducing my ability to play piano or guitar to very short amounts of time and usually not days in a row. His hands were sore for a short period, but with zero lasting effects despite continuing to work with his hands (I also work with my hands 4 days a week doing similar work).
My lifts have frequently been disappointing given my training age, and training to reasonable RPEs is frequently mitigated by considerations for a weak link of some sort (i.e. my lower back for deadlifts, knee for squats, etc), even under the direction of superior (to myself) strength coaches in the past. I’ve also generally find it difficult to lose abdominal fat, though not sure if that’s related. I lost 10 lbs (going from 203 to 193) but lost a mere half inch on my waist, despite my protein being around 0.8g/lb bodyweight and continuing lifting and biking. Could be genetics.
Sorry for the long post, but I don’t know what route to investigate here and am starting to feel somewhat desperate. I should note I’m in Canada and it’s not only difficult to find a doctor, but also to get one to follow up and take non-catastrophic flags seriously.
Some info:
Age: 33
Weight: 192
Waist: 35.5"
BF estimate (Navy): 19%
Diet: Lean protein (quite a bit of red meat, mostly due to cost and availability, but lean overall), 5-7 servings F/V, no dairy/oats/wheat (due to sensitivity suspicions), processed food is mainly wholegrain rice cereal, 30-35g fiber/day, carbs from basmatic rice or potatoes.
Workouts: Stuck on beginner prescription phase 1 until I can get my knee stable enough to try and progress more rapidly
I should note I’ve had these issues on a variety of workout programs, on a variety of diets, at lower BF %s, and it’s been the overall “rule” for as long as I can remember. Any tips would be greatly appreciated. Not sure if inflammatory markers are related to this experience, but 2.5mg/L is considered “moderately elevated” or sufficient for “chronic” by almost any standard I can find online.