Hey all you med heads out there, I take cholesterol medication daily, a moderate dose to lower the evil stuff, and inevitibly when I get to putting in the distance miles, I have recurring soreness and muscle cramps beyond the normal tiredness. I have tried to go off the stuff but my numbers rise no matter how much exercise and “proper dieting” I do. Does anyone have a sugestion to deal with this I’m curious to know…
There are many different brands and generics on the market.
If you need to stay on them (I do), work with your caretaker on testing different brands or composition.
The derivations may different enough to help.
Disclaimer: Ask your Doctor for accurate information, only he or she can make the proper diagnoses and recommendation, blah, blah, blah …
Thanks, I have been pointed to previous threads on this subject and they have also been helpful.
I agree with previous poster that different brands can have different effects. I had muscle pains with one brand, so I switched to a different brand and haven’t had a problem since. Also experimented with different dosage and was able to get acceptable results with a lower dose, so that may have also been a factor.
The statin group of cholesterol lowering agents gets a bad rap with regard to cramps although sometimes they can be the culprit. Many of us, including you and me, are likely on these agents for life so getting it right can be important.
Since they clear the blood stream fairly rapidly, one first measure might be to discuss it with your doc and then take a 7-10 day drug holiday (no pills) and see if there’s a dramatic change in your cramping. If not, then there may be another explanation…or, sadly, no explanation at all. If this trial is effective, a drug substitution is in order and you’d be good to go.
The other suggestion offered by a previous author was to get by on the least amount of the medicine you can to achieve a serum cholesterol below 200. You can do this by either breaking the pills in half with a razor blade or taking them on alternate days with subsequent blood checks. It would be just like you do in training swimming 500m for time every 4-6 weeks to monitor your level of fitness. It’s just a different level. Good luck.
Thank you for the advice. I am currently on the “holiday” and I have noticed a remarkable drop in the leg cramps after a week. Maybe a change is in order.
I have been on statins for the last 3 years after receiving a life savings 5way heart by-pass surgery just before the 2005 Ironman CdA. I initially used Lipitor with moderate problems with muscle fatigue which was hard to discern since i was training so much and was tired all the time.
For the last year I have been taking Vytorin 10/80 with no muscle fatigue and a lower LDL number to boot! Talk to your doctor but muscle cramps are very common side effect for Lipitor so talk to your Dr about changing your dosage or medication?
Yes, I was on Lipitor also when experiencing the muscle pains. I took a break from the meds and the pains went away. But LDL went up, so the Doc ordered me back on. This time I’m on Crestor, 20mg, and with no muscle pains to speak of (yet?)
Pravachol and Crestor may have less muscle pains because they are less fat soluble, so less of it transfers through the lipid bilayer in the muscle cell membrane, where it causes the muscle pain. That may be why Crestor has been better for you. It has been common practice to switch people with myalgias to Pravachol - initially Crestor had some safety questions that turned out to be BS.
Did the 5 way by pass help your run time any ?
Yes - the surgery helped my running with improved blood flow and endurance. I had 75% blockage in my heart with only 21% EF so basically borderline candidate for heart transplant at age 35. My heart rate is limited by my cardiologist to only 160 which makes it hard to get decent speed workout but I’m patience since I’m still alive and lucky to get to race triathlons.