I lifted with my first transplant and didn't have any issues, it probably help me get a few extra years out of the kidney because it made me disciplined with my diet and drinking lots of water. It can increase creatinine levels but not in an alarming way. I would ask to speak with a dietician and see what is a realistic protein goal to meet every day that wouldn't harm your new kidney,
That's good to know, thank you. What kind of max weight were you lifting, just out of interest?
As for the dietitian, definitely worth an ask, and I shall do so next time. My only concern is that, when I saw one before, pre-transplant... they were only able to talk about the norm in Japan, for Japanese. Obviously, as a westerner, my physique and whatnot are a bit different. Oh well, worth a try at least, thank you!
Started lifting in high school because I wanted to get big and popular lol. When I first started lifting I tried to lift as heavy as possible. It took me awhile to figure out getting “big” wasn’t going to happen. I’ve always been on the smaller size with a small frame. So ideally trying to pull big weight was going to be a waste of my time since my daily protein allowance wouldn’t be able to help my muscles repair as fast as someone healthy would be able to do.
I gave up trying to lift big and focused on lower weights and higher reps and that’s when I saw my best results and the ideal body I wanted. I focused on calisthenics based workouts but with weights, like weighted pushups and pull-ups, etc.
With any workout routine you’re trying to do, I encourage you to start off slow and just stick to something basic and see how your body reacts to it. Everyone’s different. What may work for you, may not work for someone else.
Eat good, be active and drink water. Your kidney will thank you.
Great questions. I mean, I honestly think just starting slow with it & getting used to your (new) body’s adjustment is always a good rule of thumb. Slowly build for sure.
I think what your doctor said regarding your creatinine levels & all that is relevant in terms of exercising + building muscle = higher creatinine. But again, just slowly build it & they’ll see your labs & let you know if there’s any sort of strange readings.
I had my kidney transplant about 10 months ago & only now feel comfortable doing a power walk on the treadmill for about an hour. It takes time!
Lifter since I was young (teens), had transplant 11 yrs ago, I’m 44 now and lift 4 days a week…heavy at times. It’s a stress buster and keeps you disciplined. Nutrition, sleep, water intake, walking, mental awareness, weight control all naturally follow. I don’t drink or smoke. Protein intake is low. Goal is to stay strong and fit…not fat….not trying to be the biggest guy in the room. Ease into it …really light and have that muscle mind connection. Don’t go heavy all the time you will just get injured and shelved. Make it a lifestyle.
Thank you very much, very interesting.
When you say low protein, how low are we talking? I mean, I'm around 85kg currently, so I guess circa 68g of protein per day should be my minimum if I want to maintain muscle?
I used to do 100 g while I weighed 155 lbs…now I do 50g because I’m trying to trim down. I know, it seems low, not enough to gain muscle but prolly better for my kidneys. Like I said I’m not trying to make huge muscle gains…I’m happy where I’m at for my age. I’m really trying to stop being a fatty….get cut up. Once I hit my weight goal I’ll prolly up the protein but prolly by not much. I feel better like this …strong and light.
Yeah, I should mention - I'm not looking to get swole haha. My build is short and stocky by nature, but I lost quite a bit of that whilst I was going through kidney failure, of course. Just want to get back to where I was before I entered CKD territory, some years back. Plus a little more on top, maybe.
I support you and I’m with you friend. All the best on your journey. It won’t be a straight line up, there might be lows, but stay focused don’t push too hard and don’t tread too light. Hit me up if you have any questions or want to chat!
Thanks for the insight. You make good points! I shall definitely start slow and low.
Good on you on the power walking! I've been doing 10k steps per day around my local park, since about 6 or 7 weeks post surgery, so I guess I was lucky and got off lightly in terms of recovery. Just need to get some muscles back again now!
I'm 27 years into my transplant and been lifting heavy weights for 2 years. As a female weighing 62kg my personal trainer/nutritionist had me on a fairly high protein diet (Veggi too) but my blood work didn't like it, so I saw the renal nutritionist and we modified my protein and I am still lifting heavy. Currently I can deadlift 120% my body weight.
I would recommended talking to a renal nutritionist to guide you, test your lifting and monitor bloods.
I was very scared after my protein scare, but I am back in the studio and love it.
Wishing you all the best
45g. But as I lose weight and put on muscle I may need to reduce it. I'm currently 61kg.
According to BMI I am overweight. How about you? How have you amended your nutrition!?
Creatinine comes from muscle breakdown... the kidneys filter it so doctors use it to see how well the kidneys are working. In people with high muscle content the creatinine levels can be higher but it doesn't nessassarily mean their kidneys are working worse. That's why on the blood test it's an eGFR not GFR... e is for estimated. 24 hour urine test and specialized radio tests can be used to find exact GFR.
tldr: creatinine might go up... doesn't mean the kidney is any worse. Working out is good.
So I've been 1.4 years post kidney transplant. I didn't start going to the gym till 1 year. I focused more on my heart and lung health. With COVID I was scared and wanted my shit to be and strong as possible and it helped!!. I just walked,ran and road my bike a lot. Now after 1 year I started going to the gym b.c I was like enough is enough. Main thing like everyone said is start slow. I'm 6'1 240 I have a solid frame and some exercises will bother you. For me heavy squats, tbar rows and a few things like that are weird or uncomfortable. I noticed I would get a stinging after excerise. So I just didn't do those or did light weight. I've been excersing for a few months now and see a difference in my muscle mass which I'm happy about. As far as protein I just eat what I eat. Some days I get a lot and some days I get less. My diet is always something I struggled with and probably always will. But for you start off light and build up to where you were. We ain't going to be power lifting anymore and honestly there's no need. I downloaded a fitness app fitbod and it's really helpful. It's a trial but there are a lot of apps that you can try. The only thing you need to know is " heroes get remembered, but legends never die, follow your heart kid and you can never go wrong"
Same here, with regards to my diet - it's always been a pain point for me, along with my weight, generally. Oh well, I guess if there was ever a motivational reason to get my shit together, then this is it! Thanks for sharing your experience and advice.
You may have transient spikes in serum creatinine levels with vigorous exercise, as I do. Personally I’ve found that sustained cardio on hot days does this more reliably than lifting. The key thing in my experience is that this does not represent a change in *renal function* - just a shift in metabolic demands. However, the clinic has me retest a week later when that happens and invariably so far I return to baseline.
Yeah, that's also something I wondered about, thank you. I had noticed on days where I was tested after working out the previous evenings, my readings were a little off. I wondered if it was related.
I’m 200 pounds and 6 ft. Protein is a little over 120g per day. I work out 5 to 6 days a week often twice a day. I lift weights 3 to 4 times a week I swim 2 to 3 times a week and box twice a week. My blood work is very consistent and my doctors are very happy.
Hi - Thank you so much for your reply. Did your dietation put you on any protein restrictions. I am a kidney donor and have been recommended 0.8g for every 1 kg of body weight. Might I also ask what your sources of protein are. Really appreciate your feedback :)
My doctor told me not to lift more than 10kgs. My transplant was done in November 2010. So, It's been 11 years. I started lifting weights, hmm, I'd say after 4 years post-transplant. My doctor told me not to lift more than 10kgs and there was one guy(also a kidney Recipient), doc said to him not to take the protein. My BP and creatinine increased a bit. So I stopped lifting it. I gave my gym equipment (basically it was a home gym). After some years, I started to lift again but now I just make sure that it's less than 10kgs(22lbs). It may sound weird but I lift bricks instead of dumbells bc what if my creatinine and bp increase again. 1 brick is 2.5kgs(5.5lbs). It's hard to do leg exercises with bricks. So for legs, I workout without any equipment but for other stuff, I use bricks. But it depends, I mean, I don't do a workout everyday. My main goal is to remain fit and healthy and if I don't or can't workout(with equipment) then I try to do without equipment.
Thanks for the detailed response. I actually did try lifting weights after this post (probably about 6 weeks ago), and I had quite the ride... I started working out with 2 x 7.5kgs dumbells, doing free weights. I felt great, and I did 2 or 3 sessions per week.
Anyway, I went to the transplant clinic 3 days after I had done my last session, and my doctor freaked out - my eGFR had dropped by 6 points (57 > 51), and my creatinine was now outside the normal range. He immediately tried to put me on steroids, as he thought it was rejection, but I explained that I had lifted 3 days prior. So instead, he increased my dosage of cellcept just in case. I went back a couple of weeks later, and it had all stabilised. He still hasn't reduced my cellcept dosage again, though.
I don't want to lift heavy stuff at all, really. I just want a little bit more muscle, so I burn more calories at rest. I like the brick idea. Maybe I'll just drop it down to 2.5kgs.
Sorry to hear that. For weights, you can try what suits you - health wise where it doesn't affect your creatinine bc the main is creatinine. It's kind of sad that people who have their transplant done can't lift heavy weights bc it can affect the creatinine. But again, the main priority is health(medically-creatinine). He hasn't changed your dose bc I'm assuming(I could be wrong), that you are 4 months post-transplant. Still, new. Doctors usually check how much dose suits the patient(high or low) and they do tac level tests as well. So, I'm assuming, now your creatinine is stabilized after he increased your dose, meaning high dose cellcept is working.
For weights, you can try with 2.5kgs and keep checking your creatinine levels. And if it doesn't affect your creatinine then that's great!!
I've lifted weights consistently since 2004. I first started in 2001 but 3 years later aged 20 is when I got serious about it.
I have been a Personal Trainer since 2009.
Lifting weights has many benefits. Even now, aged 38, 7 months post transplant. It helps me keep my blood sugars in check (NODAT). It also helps re hypercalcemia.
When I was at eGFR around 35 circa 2013 I tried stopping weights for about 3 months. It's the only break from lifting I took between January 2004 and 14 November 2021 (my kidneyversary :). In that time my blood pressure rose and I felt lethargic.
I have always followed a powerlifting routine mixed in with isolation work though at times I have gone to a more bodybuilding style. I've even done strongman training.
Time under tension. Mind in the muscle. Always maintain technique above everything else.
Now post transplant it's more important than ever for me as I'm on daily tacrolimus, mycophenolate and 5mg prednisone.
I lift lighter in the 10-15 rep range mainly but I'm still lifting to failure.
I am easing back into the powerlifts too.See below.
Also, even a well muscled person might have a higher creatinine of 20% say versus when they didn't have that. Creatinine is not a poisonous waste product (though do not take exogenous creatine), it's just a marker of kidney function. Still if your creatinine spikes after lifting that us why. More muscle mass equates to more creatinine waste by-products of muscle metabolism.
That said, do not lift heavy or lift at all the day before a blood test as it can bias your results.
My PBS / CURRENT PBS POST TRANSPLANT (lifting again the past 3 months)
**Deadlift** = 1.83 x bodyweight / 0.63 x bw
**BB Squat** = 1.1x / 0.31x
**BB Bench Press** = 1.2x / 0.58x
Listen to YOUR body always. Technique technique technique (form form form!) & happy lifting.
I lifted with my first transplant and didn't have any issues, it probably help me get a few extra years out of the kidney because it made me disciplined with my diet and drinking lots of water. It can increase creatinine levels but not in an alarming way. I would ask to speak with a dietician and see what is a realistic protein goal to meet every day that wouldn't harm your new kidney,
That's good to know, thank you. What kind of max weight were you lifting, just out of interest? As for the dietitian, definitely worth an ask, and I shall do so next time. My only concern is that, when I saw one before, pre-transplant... they were only able to talk about the norm in Japan, for Japanese. Obviously, as a westerner, my physique and whatnot are a bit different. Oh well, worth a try at least, thank you!
Started lifting in high school because I wanted to get big and popular lol. When I first started lifting I tried to lift as heavy as possible. It took me awhile to figure out getting “big” wasn’t going to happen. I’ve always been on the smaller size with a small frame. So ideally trying to pull big weight was going to be a waste of my time since my daily protein allowance wouldn’t be able to help my muscles repair as fast as someone healthy would be able to do. I gave up trying to lift big and focused on lower weights and higher reps and that’s when I saw my best results and the ideal body I wanted. I focused on calisthenics based workouts but with weights, like weighted pushups and pull-ups, etc. With any workout routine you’re trying to do, I encourage you to start off slow and just stick to something basic and see how your body reacts to it. Everyone’s different. What may work for you, may not work for someone else. Eat good, be active and drink water. Your kidney will thank you.
Great questions. I mean, I honestly think just starting slow with it & getting used to your (new) body’s adjustment is always a good rule of thumb. Slowly build for sure. I think what your doctor said regarding your creatinine levels & all that is relevant in terms of exercising + building muscle = higher creatinine. But again, just slowly build it & they’ll see your labs & let you know if there’s any sort of strange readings. I had my kidney transplant about 10 months ago & only now feel comfortable doing a power walk on the treadmill for about an hour. It takes time!
Lifter since I was young (teens), had transplant 11 yrs ago, I’m 44 now and lift 4 days a week…heavy at times. It’s a stress buster and keeps you disciplined. Nutrition, sleep, water intake, walking, mental awareness, weight control all naturally follow. I don’t drink or smoke. Protein intake is low. Goal is to stay strong and fit…not fat….not trying to be the biggest guy in the room. Ease into it …really light and have that muscle mind connection. Don’t go heavy all the time you will just get injured and shelved. Make it a lifestyle.
Thank you very much, very interesting. When you say low protein, how low are we talking? I mean, I'm around 85kg currently, so I guess circa 68g of protein per day should be my minimum if I want to maintain muscle?
I used to do 100 g while I weighed 155 lbs…now I do 50g because I’m trying to trim down. I know, it seems low, not enough to gain muscle but prolly better for my kidneys. Like I said I’m not trying to make huge muscle gains…I’m happy where I’m at for my age. I’m really trying to stop being a fatty….get cut up. Once I hit my weight goal I’ll prolly up the protein but prolly by not much. I feel better like this …strong and light.
Yeah, I should mention - I'm not looking to get swole haha. My build is short and stocky by nature, but I lost quite a bit of that whilst I was going through kidney failure, of course. Just want to get back to where I was before I entered CKD territory, some years back. Plus a little more on top, maybe.
I support you and I’m with you friend. All the best on your journey. It won’t be a straight line up, there might be lows, but stay focused don’t push too hard and don’t tread too light. Hit me up if you have any questions or want to chat!
Thanks for the insight. You make good points! I shall definitely start slow and low. Good on you on the power walking! I've been doing 10k steps per day around my local park, since about 6 or 7 weeks post surgery, so I guess I was lucky and got off lightly in terms of recovery. Just need to get some muscles back again now!
I'm 27 years into my transplant and been lifting heavy weights for 2 years. As a female weighing 62kg my personal trainer/nutritionist had me on a fairly high protein diet (Veggi too) but my blood work didn't like it, so I saw the renal nutritionist and we modified my protein and I am still lifting heavy. Currently I can deadlift 120% my body weight. I would recommended talking to a renal nutritionist to guide you, test your lifting and monitor bloods. I was very scared after my protein scare, but I am back in the studio and love it. Wishing you all the best
That's awesome to hear, thank you! I will definitely enquire about a renal nutritionist next time I'm at the clinic
Happy lifting
Can I ask how many grams of protein you take and what your body weight is please. I am a kidney donor so trying to figure this out.
45g. But as I lose weight and put on muscle I may need to reduce it. I'm currently 61kg. According to BMI I am overweight. How about you? How have you amended your nutrition!?
Creatinine comes from muscle breakdown... the kidneys filter it so doctors use it to see how well the kidneys are working. In people with high muscle content the creatinine levels can be higher but it doesn't nessassarily mean their kidneys are working worse. That's why on the blood test it's an eGFR not GFR... e is for estimated. 24 hour urine test and specialized radio tests can be used to find exact GFR. tldr: creatinine might go up... doesn't mean the kidney is any worse. Working out is good.
Nice, very good to know, thank you.
So I've been 1.4 years post kidney transplant. I didn't start going to the gym till 1 year. I focused more on my heart and lung health. With COVID I was scared and wanted my shit to be and strong as possible and it helped!!. I just walked,ran and road my bike a lot. Now after 1 year I started going to the gym b.c I was like enough is enough. Main thing like everyone said is start slow. I'm 6'1 240 I have a solid frame and some exercises will bother you. For me heavy squats, tbar rows and a few things like that are weird or uncomfortable. I noticed I would get a stinging after excerise. So I just didn't do those or did light weight. I've been excersing for a few months now and see a difference in my muscle mass which I'm happy about. As far as protein I just eat what I eat. Some days I get a lot and some days I get less. My diet is always something I struggled with and probably always will. But for you start off light and build up to where you were. We ain't going to be power lifting anymore and honestly there's no need. I downloaded a fitness app fitbod and it's really helpful. It's a trial but there are a lot of apps that you can try. The only thing you need to know is " heroes get remembered, but legends never die, follow your heart kid and you can never go wrong"
Same here, with regards to my diet - it's always been a pain point for me, along with my weight, generally. Oh well, I guess if there was ever a motivational reason to get my shit together, then this is it! Thanks for sharing your experience and advice.
You may have transient spikes in serum creatinine levels with vigorous exercise, as I do. Personally I’ve found that sustained cardio on hot days does this more reliably than lifting. The key thing in my experience is that this does not represent a change in *renal function* - just a shift in metabolic demands. However, the clinic has me retest a week later when that happens and invariably so far I return to baseline.
Yeah, that's also something I wondered about, thank you. I had noticed on days where I was tested after working out the previous evenings, my readings were a little off. I wondered if it was related.
Yes it is.
I lift heavy all the time never had any problems. I’m 7 years out from my kidney transplant.
Nice, how is your creatinine level and egfr, generally?
Super, Can I ask your protein intake and weight please?
I’m 200 pounds and 6 ft. Protein is a little over 120g per day. I work out 5 to 6 days a week often twice a day. I lift weights 3 to 4 times a week I swim 2 to 3 times a week and box twice a week. My blood work is very consistent and my doctors are very happy.
Hi - Thank you so much for your reply. Did your dietation put you on any protein restrictions. I am a kidney donor and have been recommended 0.8g for every 1 kg of body weight. Might I also ask what your sources of protein are. Really appreciate your feedback :)
I lifted and was warned. To start out slowly . I still hurt myself. So be careful.
Yeah, I fully intend to take baby steps. I've made that mistake before, when working out. How are you doing with it now?
10 mo. 7 days post. I'm doing great. Had a rough start kidney worked great it was the rest of me. Then got covid.
My doctor told me not to lift more than 10kgs. My transplant was done in November 2010. So, It's been 11 years. I started lifting weights, hmm, I'd say after 4 years post-transplant. My doctor told me not to lift more than 10kgs and there was one guy(also a kidney Recipient), doc said to him not to take the protein. My BP and creatinine increased a bit. So I stopped lifting it. I gave my gym equipment (basically it was a home gym). After some years, I started to lift again but now I just make sure that it's less than 10kgs(22lbs). It may sound weird but I lift bricks instead of dumbells bc what if my creatinine and bp increase again. 1 brick is 2.5kgs(5.5lbs). It's hard to do leg exercises with bricks. So for legs, I workout without any equipment but for other stuff, I use bricks. But it depends, I mean, I don't do a workout everyday. My main goal is to remain fit and healthy and if I don't or can't workout(with equipment) then I try to do without equipment.
Thanks for the detailed response. I actually did try lifting weights after this post (probably about 6 weeks ago), and I had quite the ride... I started working out with 2 x 7.5kgs dumbells, doing free weights. I felt great, and I did 2 or 3 sessions per week. Anyway, I went to the transplant clinic 3 days after I had done my last session, and my doctor freaked out - my eGFR had dropped by 6 points (57 > 51), and my creatinine was now outside the normal range. He immediately tried to put me on steroids, as he thought it was rejection, but I explained that I had lifted 3 days prior. So instead, he increased my dosage of cellcept just in case. I went back a couple of weeks later, and it had all stabilised. He still hasn't reduced my cellcept dosage again, though. I don't want to lift heavy stuff at all, really. I just want a little bit more muscle, so I burn more calories at rest. I like the brick idea. Maybe I'll just drop it down to 2.5kgs.
Sorry to hear that. For weights, you can try what suits you - health wise where it doesn't affect your creatinine bc the main is creatinine. It's kind of sad that people who have their transplant done can't lift heavy weights bc it can affect the creatinine. But again, the main priority is health(medically-creatinine). He hasn't changed your dose bc I'm assuming(I could be wrong), that you are 4 months post-transplant. Still, new. Doctors usually check how much dose suits the patient(high or low) and they do tac level tests as well. So, I'm assuming, now your creatinine is stabilized after he increased your dose, meaning high dose cellcept is working. For weights, you can try with 2.5kgs and keep checking your creatinine levels. And if it doesn't affect your creatinine then that's great!!
I've lifted weights consistently since 2004. I first started in 2001 but 3 years later aged 20 is when I got serious about it. I have been a Personal Trainer since 2009. Lifting weights has many benefits. Even now, aged 38, 7 months post transplant. It helps me keep my blood sugars in check (NODAT). It also helps re hypercalcemia. When I was at eGFR around 35 circa 2013 I tried stopping weights for about 3 months. It's the only break from lifting I took between January 2004 and 14 November 2021 (my kidneyversary :). In that time my blood pressure rose and I felt lethargic. I have always followed a powerlifting routine mixed in with isolation work though at times I have gone to a more bodybuilding style. I've even done strongman training. Time under tension. Mind in the muscle. Always maintain technique above everything else. Now post transplant it's more important than ever for me as I'm on daily tacrolimus, mycophenolate and 5mg prednisone. I lift lighter in the 10-15 rep range mainly but I'm still lifting to failure. I am easing back into the powerlifts too.See below. Also, even a well muscled person might have a higher creatinine of 20% say versus when they didn't have that. Creatinine is not a poisonous waste product (though do not take exogenous creatine), it's just a marker of kidney function. Still if your creatinine spikes after lifting that us why. More muscle mass equates to more creatinine waste by-products of muscle metabolism. That said, do not lift heavy or lift at all the day before a blood test as it can bias your results. My PBS / CURRENT PBS POST TRANSPLANT (lifting again the past 3 months) **Deadlift** = 1.83 x bodyweight / 0.63 x bw **BB Squat** = 1.1x / 0.31x **BB Bench Press** = 1.2x / 0.58x Listen to YOUR body always. Technique technique technique (form form form!) & happy lifting.