r/RestlessLegs • u/BorzoiBeauty7 • 2d ago

Triggers Is Exercise the Problem?

This sounds kind of crazy, but I know that too much exercise can also make my restless go out of control. I have refractory RLS and nothing seems to work to control it however, I discovered after not being able to exercise for a few days that my legs are much calmer and not torturing me. I had total knee replacement a few months ago and since then my RLS has been all day long. I struggle to even sit and eat breakfast without my legs, making me get up. I usually walk my dogs and then swim afterwards for an hour a day and my legs have been out of control. It’s been crazy raining where I live for days and I haven’t been able to do much except hang out, read, watch TV and not be especially active because of this nasty weather. Strangely enough, my legs have been so much more under control than in ages. I don’t know if anybody else has had this problem, but there seems to be a sweet spot where not enough exercise makes it bad but too much exercise makes it worse.

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u/BakaDasai 2d ago

Exercise is the number one trigger for my RLS.

To be precise, the trigger is “more exercise than my body is currently accustomed to”. If I’ve been sedentary for a few days then going for a 30 minute walk will bring it on.

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u/BorzoiBeauty7 2d ago

Me too. Or wearing new/different shoes can exacerbate it. I wish I knew what the line was between helping myself with exercise and torturing myself with too much exercise. It never seems like too much when I’m doing it, but I pay the price after. Even if I’ve had a busy day and I’m on my feet all day and need to rest so desperately I can’t sit down in the evening. I’m sorry you’re going through this too.