Progressive training plan for Hashimoto’s, chronic fatigue and lower back pain (looking for personalized guidance)

[Voltor]

Hi DAREBEE community!

I’m a 33-year-old man. I live with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, well-controlled diabetes, and moderate overweight (98 kg, 1.72 m). I’m currently under medical treatment (levothyroxine, losartan, linagliptin, vitamin D, omega-3, etc.). My thyroid hormone levels are stable, but I still experience morning fatigue, non-restorative sleep, and mild lower-back (Sacro lumbar) pain during certain activities.

My goals:

• Strengthen my core and lower back safely.
• Improve my energy levels and sleep quality.
• Progress gradually to functional-strength and maintenance phases.

Limitations:

• Mild Sacro lumbar pain with twisting or lifting.
• Need to avoid high-impact or heavy-load movements.
• Due to my job, I spent a lot of time in the office and driving, except for the days I work from home and Saturdays. Sundays I have to work in a liquor store.

Questions for the community:

1. Which DAREBEE programs or combinations would you recommend to start my reconditioning, and after that move to a functional strength safely training?
2. Has anyone with Hashimoto’s or chronic fatigue found improvement with specific programs?
3. Would you recommend adding light daily cardio (walking, cycling) or should I focus on controlled strength first?

Any guidance, personal experience or suggestions would be deeply appreciated

 

[AceofSwords]

I think I can help. I've been where you are for some of what you've mentioned.

I've had Hashimoto's thyroiditis diagnosed when I was 19 and I'm in my 50s now. The good news is that you're already taking levothyroxine. If you're getting regular blood checks with your doctor, you've got a good idea how stable your thyroid levels are. Mine was all over the map until my late 30s, due to also having severe anemia. I was just losing too much blood each month and needed iron pills. Since you also have diabetes, you're probably under the care of an endocrinologist - this is good news.

I've had morning fatigue, but when I lost my day job and got a second shift job, that cleared up. I'm just a natural night shifter. Who knew! The world often thinks waking up with the sun is laziness. It isn't. I'm also very much dependant on getting my vitamin D from the sun rather than supplements. Perhaps this will resolve with getting better sleep, or making sure you're not anemic, or maybe you're like me and not a morning person. I spent much of my youth working jobs that forced me out of bed at 4 or 5 am.

Re lower back pain and non-restorative sleep: If you haven't replaced your mattress in over a decade, you might want to look into that. Also, since your job involves a lot of sitting, how ergonomic is your chair? If you can afford a mattress and a frame that allows you to adjust head and leg level, get it. I did and it helped with my sleep issues. I used to have sciatica regularly and now it's extremely rare. For the record, my mattress was more than 15 years old. And during the pandemic my company sent us all home and my indoor office seating was less than ideal. Yup, lots of back pain. Good chairs and a new mattress did wonders.

Also, the more active you are, the better sleep you're going to get. You'll also find that you've got more energy.

So, I'm going to suggest that you start with stretching workouts to find out where you are with flexibility. It's also a good idea to protect your back as well as other joints. There are a lot of gentle stretching workouts. Use the filter and try a few.

I love Darebee programs. If you're not sure where to start, start with either Foundation Light or Foundation. I'd also encourage you to include add-on programs that work your abs. Filter on these and pick something that looks like something you can do. If you're not feeling well or you're super busy, it's OK to treat a program day as casual training, which is to do a set when you can fit it in. Aim for level 3, but if you can do level 1 and that's it, that's fine. If you need to stick to the lighter programs and workouts, that's good, too. The high impact workouts and programs are all grouped at difficulty 4 and 5. You might work yourself up to those, but there are a lot of workouts and programs that are lower impact. Start there, and see where it takes you.

Your job seems to involve a lot of sitting. See if you can get up and walk around every hour or so. Too much sitting is not good for anybody.

As for light cardio, yes! Absolutely! If you have the time and energy for it, do it. Even if it's a quick walk around the block, or biking around that same block, it's something. There are also a lot of light and easy cardio workouts that you can do also. The monthly challenges are another very good choice for additional activity.

Wow, I wrote a novel! I hope something here is helpful, and good luck!

 

[Voltor]

I think I can help. I've been where you are for some of what you've mentioned.

I've had Hashimoto's thyroiditis diagnosed when I was 19 and I'm in my 50s now. The good news is that you're already taking levothyroxine. If you're getting regular blood checks with your doctor, you've got a good idea how stable your thyroid levels are. Mine was all over the map until my late 30s, due to also having severe anemia. I was just losing too much blood each month and needed iron pills. Since you also have diabetes, you're probably under the care of an endocrinologist - this is good news.

I've had morning fatigue, but when I lost my day job and got a second shift job, that cleared up. I'm just a natural night shifter. Who knew! The world often thinks waking up with the sun is laziness. It isn't. I'm also very much dependant on getting my vitamin D from the sun rather than supplements. Perhaps this will resolve with getting better sleep, or making sure you're not anemic, or maybe you're like me and not a morning person. I spent much of my youth working jobs that forced me out of bed at 4 or 5 am.

Re lower back pain and non-restorative sleep: If you haven't replaced your mattress in over a decade, you might want to look into that. Also, since your job involves a lot of sitting, how ergonomic is your chair? If you can afford a mattress and a frame that allows you to adjust head and leg level, get it. I did and it helped with my sleep issues. I used to have sciatica regularly and now it's extremely rare. For the record, my mattress was more than 15 years old. And during the pandemic my company sent us all home and my indoor office seating was less than ideal. Yup, lots of back pain. Good chairs and a new mattress did wonders.

Also, the more active you are, the better sleep you're going to get. You'll also find that you've got more energy.

So, I'm going to suggest that you start with stretching workouts to find out where you are with flexibility. It's also a good idea to protect your back as well as other joints. There are a lot of gentle stretching workouts. Use the filter and try a few.

I love Darebee programs. If you're not sure where to start, start with either Foundation Light or Foundation. I'd also encourage you to include add-on programs that work your abs. Filter on these and pick something that looks like something you can do. If you're not feeling well or you're super busy, it's OK to treat a program day as casual training, which is to do a set when you can fit it in. Aim for level 3, but if you can do level 1 and that's it, that's fine. If you need to stick to the lighter programs and workouts, that's good, too. The high impact workouts and programs are all grouped at difficulty 4 and 5. You might work yourself up to those, but there are a lot of workouts and programs that are lower impact. Start there, and see where it takes you.

Your job seems to involve a lot of sitting. See if you can get up and walk around every hour or so. Too much sitting is not good for anybody.

As for light cardio, yes! Absolutely! If you have the time and energy for it, do it. Even if it's a quick walk around the block, or biking around that same block, it's something. There are also a lot of light and easy cardio workouts that you can do also. The monthly challenges are another very good choice for additional activity.

Wow, I wrote a novel! I hope something here is helpful, and good luck!

Wow, thank you so much!

Your message really meant a lot to me — it’s incredibly helpful to hear from someone who’s been through Hashimoto’s for so many years and found ways to live better with it. I truly appreciate how detailed your advice was (especially about the mattress, ergonomics, and flexibility work — those are things I hadn’t thought about enough).

I’ll definitely start exploring Foundation Light and some stretching routines as you suggested, and I’ll also check my sleep setup again.

Thank you for taking the time to write all that — your post felt like a mix of wisdom and kindness. I hope to update you soon on my progress!