New Bicycle happiness and Sleep Apnea question

So, I got a new bicycle today and rode it around for a brief time.  I gotta say I wasn't too confident but I was able to successfully maneuver around my neighborhood successfully (i.e., I didn't wipe out).  There are a couple of slight, short hills and man...I am way out of shape!  I want to jog and do yoga for my exercise but due to body issues (bad feet and a torn ligament in my rotator cuff) I can no longer do these long term...sux!  Either way, so now I am looking forward to biking around and looking like a pro!

On a different note...I had severe Sleep Apnea prior to surgery in august.  I have dropped about 113 lbs (and planning to lose about 20 more).  I am setting my goal loss to be in relation to not having sleep apnea.  I have tried to do my own trial and error when it comes to changing the settings on my CPAP.  I have gotten it down from like a 16 to a 6.  You have to understand I have had the CPAP for almost 20 years so I am very familiar with my body and can do these adjustments up to a certain point safely although I won't provide the hows and whys and what to do because I don't trust that you can teach this (just in case someone wants to ask me how to figure this out for themselves).  But my abilities and knowledge itself only goes to a certain point.  I am of course going to do a sleep study but didn't want to have a billion sleep studies as I lost weight but I want to be off this dang machine!  What has been others experience in relation to the amount of weight loss and being able to discontinue the use of a cpap.  I am calling next week to get a sleep study scheduled for July (it can be backed up quite a bit and also, I will have lost most of what I want to lose definitely by that point).  I am going to be VERY disappointed if they come back saying that I am stuck with the Cpap when my weight will only be around 145 lbs on a 5'2 frame!  I know currently that I am smaller than I was when I was first diagnosed with sleep apnea and am considering that I probably had it even while at this weight 20 + years ago as I was diagnosed with it when I was about 20 lbs. heavier than I am now (20 years ago)...if that just made sense?  Basically, when at this weight over 20 years ago I could have been experiencing some sleep apnea but not diagnosed with it til I gained another 20 lbs or so...so that makes me think that if I lose another 20 lbs. I really should be done with the need of a Cpap...that will be so liberating for me!  Any thoughts???

Are you sure your sleep apnea is weight related?  It might not be!

Yes...mainly it is that and that I have a broad, thick tongue but it is obstructive and due to weight.

Didn't have sleep apnea, and don't know anything about it, but I am a lifelong biking enthusiast. Congrats on trying biking. It sounds like your new to it, or haven't done it in a while. I learned to ride without training wheels when I was 3 YO (no joke) and haven't stopped since. I lived in a small town growing up and lived on my bike. I still bike at 37 and hope to continue until I am unable to. I do it for fun and for commuting when the weather is nice.

Being a great form of exercise is just a bonus! :)

I also sleep apnea, I myself have sleep apnea for about 20 years now jus like you. I lost close to 400 pounds and I still have sleep apnea, most of it went away once the weight went down, but still have some of the sleep apnea left in me. One thing I found out why I still have sleep apnea is that I have Chiari Malformation Type 1, one of the side effects of the Chiari Malformation Type 1 is sleep apnea, the list of side effects of the Chiari seems a mile long. I had Chiari Decompression surgery a month ago, I do have a sleep study on 04/14/2014, hopefully the sleep study will say that I no longer have sleep apnea. I hope the surgery worked for me. I might have to have another sleep study 2 to 3 months after I have my sleep study on 04/14/2014 to back up on my upcoming sleep study test. I'm not saying that you have Chiari, but you can talk your doctor about the Chiari to see if you have it or not in why you still have sleep apnea or it could be something else that might say why you still have sleep apnea. Talk to your doctor about why you still have sleep apnea and what is still causing you still have it. I hope I made sense of all this.

I'm glad they figured out this diagnosis for you.  I looked it up.  No, that doesn't fit me.  Mine has been do to a short neck, a thick tongue, and lots of weight!  It is much better now and I am psychologically hooked on it but I can work on that.  I don't snore when not using the cpap and I have slept for four hours without it since losing the weight but I got it down too low at one point and was having the extreme sleepiness if sitting still for more than 30 min. so...of course that has been a couple of months ago too...I'm really hoping that 20 lbs. lighter will be the 'score'!  Thank you for the info...

Thank you. Okay. I thought I would mention it. I'm glad that your doctor figured it out for you. Glad to hear it's doing better for you. Same here with me on the snore (that I know of) when I don't use my BiPAP and can sleep without it since I lost the weight, but I do have insomnia on the low side (not that bad) and at time I do fall asleep in my recliner once in a while. I wish you luck in losing the 20 pounds, good luck. I know you can do it. You're welcome.

I started at 246. Just had repeat sleep study last night at 200 pounds and was told i still have apnea. My husband says I don't snore anymore. I'm sleeping just fine. I'm on and have been on the lowest setting if 4 on my Cpap. I'm so disappointed because of this.

I'm not sure of what weight you want to get to but I think that if you already dropped a significant number on the Cpap with just 46 lb. loss then you will probably be off the Cpap altogether if you drop even just 46 more lbs. (or less).  That's why I wanted to wait before doing a sleep study...I want to lose a significant amount before I check on the apnea.  I think you will be off the cpap with just a bit more weight loss....Good Luck and congrats!

I have sleep apnea.  I think I was diagnosed 18 years ago, and have been using the CPAP regularly since.  I used to snore and stop breathing if I fell asleep without the CPAP, and I'd wake up with a headache.  But now I no longer snore, and I wake up feeling fine so I don't think I have apnea any more.  My doctor will order a sleep study when I see him for my one year checkup next month, but I am going on a cruise in Greece  before that appointment, and I'm thinking I would like to leave the CPAP home. 

I tried two nights without the CPAP and no snoring and no headache.  Do you think this is a bad decision?  I'd like to avoid the weight of the CPAP and the inconvenience of finding distilled water while traveling, etc.  Any thoughts?

thanks

Carol