Ask an Expert Archive

Ask an Expert!

Jeff Kallberg
Physical Therapist and hemophilia A patient

Including exercise in your daily routine doesn't need to be complicated or expensive. While access to a health club or gym expands your options, it isn't necessary. Jeff Kallberg, a physical therapist with hemophilia A, is available this month to answer your questions about exercising with hemophilia A while on a budget.

Stay Active Despite the Economy
Having lived through four decades of life with hemophilia, I've seen and experienced a positive change in philosophy about exercise and hemophilia. Exercise and physical activity were once controversial for those with hemophilia, and now it is encouraged. In fact, physical activity has become a common recommendation for people who have hemophilia. The National Hemophilia Foundation (NHF) now includes "Exercise and maintain a healthy weight to protect your joints" in their National Prevention Program "Do The 5" campaign1.

Incorporating exercise into your daily routine doesn't need to be complicated or expensive. While access to a health club or gym expands your options, it isn't necessary. You can perform surprisingly intense and effective exercises at home without any special equipment. For example, go out and shoot hoops in the driveway on a warm evening, or take a long, brisk walk.

As a physical therapist, I often see how my clients benefit from participating in appropriate exercise programs and sports. However, I also see the consequences from bad choices, including improper exercises or sports that are too aggressive for an individual. If done appropriately, exercise, including sports, can be a great thing for all of us, whether you have hemophilia or not.

There are always questions of how much exercise is safe, what types of exercises are safe, and what sports are safe. The answers to these questions really depend on individual skills, talents, preferences, physical condition, history of bleeding episodes, joint damage, response to treatment, support from your doctor's office, and more. Before my clients begin any physical activity, I often ask them to consider these key questions:

• Are you getting repeat injuries?
• Do you have pain during or after activity?
• Can you compete on an equal level with the competition?
• Can you participate consistently without injury/pain/bleeding?

Have you checked with your healthcare provider? The choice to begin exercise, sport or physical activity cannot be answered by a simple yes or no question. Neither can the answer be that one sport or activity is safe while another is not safe. It all depends on the individual, but physical activity can be incorporated into anyone's lifestyle despite hemophilia or limited resources.

About Jeff
Jeff is a unique individual with severe hemophilia. Despite his bleeding disorder and because of it, he decided to become a physical therapist. Jeff is now in private practice at his own facility in Savage, Minnesota called ACCUA. Since becoming a physical therapist, he has also undergone a personal transformation. He once thought of himself as weak, out of shape and limited by his joint disease, but he now considers himself quite the opposite.

Submit your question on fitness to Jeff.