Middle Aged Weekend Warriors and Osteo Arthritis
December 9, 2009 by admin
Filed under Types of Arthritis and related diseases
Repetetive movement may lead to osreoarthritis
Too much exercise in mid life may lead to Osteoarthritis
If you’re a middle-age person who is a die-hard on the weekends, or likes to pound the pavements running on the weekend you may be at risk for osteoarthritis. It can also affect people who are doing low impact activities such as swimming, cycling and low impact aerobics.
You may feel like the fittest person in the world, without weight issues, take all of your vitamins and eat well then go home and take a pain killer, relax until the pain eases off and put it down to a little aging.But as we age the extra stress on the joints and especially the knees could lead to osteoarthritis. Small crack appear which are not too noticeably painful, but as time goes on we the cracks get bigger then the next thing is we are looking at a possible knee surgery or two to correct the problem.
The repetitive movement seems to be a large contribution and even if it is a low impact activity such as swimming, cycling or low impact activity, it is the constant rubbing of the joints and wearing away the fluid that lubricates the joints that causes the pain.
It is suggested that exercise be taken on a more regular basis. It is too much for the body to do little all week and then go crazy having fun on the weekend. Try to vary the types of activity and be aware of the level of activity and intensity and rest up in between. Exercise is extremely important though and it is important to find a fit for you.
Don’t work it to the old 80’s saying “No Pain, No, Gain”, in fact it do absolutely the opposite, if it hurts it is hurting for a reason, so please listen to your body.
Weight training is excellent, we need that for bodily support and overall health, this will help us fight of such diseases as arthritis in various forms or at least help should we have to face arthritis later in life, plus it is the natural anti aging drug.
Find a gym that meets your needs and a trainer that will listen if you have a back or knee injury. Red flag them if they tell you to work through the pain, that is not how it works, and I am certainly not saying don’t be there for an easy ride but where there is pain visit the physician and take some time to modify your activity, so you can keep having a vibrant and fun life.
Wow! This information really strikes a chord. So often we are being told what is good for us, but the reality is that “good” things can actually cause what we want to prevent–if we are not careful. Now I do admit that I could work out more, but one thing I have been cautious about is injuring my knees. I know too many people that later in life decided to pound the pavement or cycle and then came down with knee injuries. Then there was the poor woman, who valiantly went to the gym for the first time in her life to lose weight–she worked with an unskilled trainer who had her doing leg lifts beyond her level—now her knees are in very bad shape. All this to say that listening to pain, getting expert guidance, varying activities, being active on a regular basis, and being careful, even with low impact activities, makes so much sense!