Aches and Ailments of the Morbidly Obese

Knees

My knees seem to be what I'd suffered with the most up until about 6 months ago. I know that having so much extra weight to carry around has really done them no good at all, and to have had to do that for as long as they have, I'm surprised that my knees haven't given out already. I can feel when they're starting to get bad, and I've always managed to avoid getting bad pain with them, though I used to get it a lot worse when I was in high school (probably due to still growing).

I find them to be more sore when I've had to sit on the floor or kneel for extended periods of time, mostly due to the fact that I can't rest on my bottom when I'm kneeling on the floor, or when I'm doing something like running or using the elliptical trainer, or walking up/down stairs. There is just too much "stuff" on the backs of my legs for me to sit down comfortably on my knees. I would love to just sit there like I see others do, with a flat lap for children to sit on (rather than the slide I end up with). And when it comes to the workouts/climbing action, I don't know why the smaller range of motion is so vulnerable or susceptible to causing the pain, but I have always tried to be careful when doing these activities.

Always Out of Breath or Sweaty

I hate being late. It is one of the things that I try to avoid at all costs, even to the extreme that I've arrived 1-2 hours early for events, just to make sure I don't end up stuck somewhere. For this reason, I've never really had to rush anywhere, which means I can arrive and have time to either calm my breathing if I need to, or to relax and cool down so I'm not dripping with sweat from moving more vigorously than I normally would have.

Working out at the gym and running have helped to change this. I know I still get out of breath and sweaty (usually just at the gym now), but it takes longer now for me to reach these extremes because I've been doing so more regularly and building up my cardiovascular fitness. I still get out of breath and sweaty (give me a break, I've still got almost an entire person's worth of weight to lose) but it's not as severe, nor for as long a duration.

Back Pain?

I think I am very lucky in that I've never really suffered from back pain. I sometimes will wake up from an uncomfortable sleep with a stiff back, but nothing ever really bothered my back from carrying around all of these spare tyres. I feel very lucky that I don't have more issues. Now, the main issues I'm feeling with regards to my back are the pains I get when trying to lay down to do exercises like leg raises. I need to brace myself with my hands under my bottom in order for me to even do them. I see this as an okay ache!

Oh My Flying Spaghetti Monster, MY HEEL!

I think this is the one part of me that seems to have been caused the most pain due to my size. My right heel seems to be in excruciating pain most days when I wake up, to the point that some days I find it difficult to walk on my right foot. I know that I need to get insoles for my shoes to help alleviate the pain, and I need to get some more supportive shoes to wear for work and for every-day wear. I know that this answers a lot of my problems, and I really should see a doctor about it. Some doctors just never seem to take people seriously...