Exercise & Arthritis
 

anyone else dealing with arthritis? i have osteo-arthritis in my right hip i'm 40 & according to my dr. have the right hip of a 75 year old ~sigh~ keeping my weight down of course helps a lot & i am active walking 4 - 6 times a week, ethnic dancing including bellydancing & bollywood as well as strength training. i often get sharp shooting 10/10 pain in my right hip. it does go away right away, & not linger thank goodness. right now what is bothersome is my I.T. Band which is my bodies way compensating for my hip.

anyone else dealing with arthritis & finding it painful at times when working out?

wow i was sore yesterday evening again right down my I.T. Band. I need to do better making sure I'm stretched & using the pool noodle to roll it out. hope i'm not to sore tonight.

I have pre-arthritis in my right knee and shoulder. Well the shoulder is really more like a bone spur but it causes nerve pain through my shoulder and neck, pain is pain as far as I'm concerned. Do you medicate for the IT band? My doctor put me on a dose of flexeril. I take it at night and when I get up in the morning I feel pretty good and rested, as the muscles were able to relax for a period of time. Before I started taking the med I would wake up feeling tight and exhausted. The knee only bothers me when there is a high pressure system, and I just grit my teeth and bare it.

i totally agree pain is pain...lol. for my IT Band i do have anti-inflammatories that i take when my IT Band is really bothering me. I do find that stretching & massaging out the IT Band works just as well. this week though my IT Band is feeling much better.

I have AS, which is a really bad form of arthritis. It is very hard for me to excersize, and even walking can cause back and other joint pain. I've just started taking Humira, and that seems to be helping quite a bit. I'm not near as sore, but can still get some bad pain after too much physical exercise. I just try to keep moving, even if it is at a slow pace. I just took my first bike ride of the year yesterday with my daughter. The weather in Michigan is starting to get better so there should be more rides in the near future. I'm also planning on taking a water aerobics class this summer since that is very easy on the joints. I've been told by my rheumatologist that as long as I keep moving, it doesn't have to be anything strenuous or hard on the joints to be beneficial.

Good luck with your journeys!

marie ~ you are so correct the key for us with arthritis is to keep moving & keep as much range of motion as we can & to manage the pain as best we can.

FOam rolling might help the IT band it wont feel good doing it but it will after. Foamrolling is also called SMR or self myofascial release, spelling is wrong I think, so you can google it and look it up. I hae used it alot with my self and clients. I hope that helps pain sucks no matter what. as for arthritis you seem to have the right approach just keep moving.

I have it very bad in the back, hips, knees, neck... well heck if there is a bone, I got it. I'm 52.

Your workout [and toss in Yoga for good measure] would have me in extreme pain. What works for me is weights. As long as I lift, I'm fine. Which is saying something for someone that in Aug 2009 was headed for pain management. I was reading on the net that weights would do one of two things for arthritis, cure it or make it worse. I was a lifter when I was young. When the other half went to the Silver Sneaker's class I went in and did a pathetic 10 lb ab crunch for 5 times. The pain in the back vanished. Yes I still took my mobic. But the back pain vanished instantly. Haven't looked back. My crunches are now 110. If I don't lift? Pain comes back.

I do get pains. For example either hip can decide to hurt while I am doing AB/AD Thigh machine lifts. I lift about 90 pounds. I go to the Chiropractor. Gary pushes and shoves. Next time no pain.

Gary keeps me lifting and lifting keeps me from hurting. It works. In fact I was able to reduce my mobic to a "normal dose" This week for the first time in 3 years.

Might not hurt to have your system checked by a chiropractor if you haven't. I swear by mine. And do remember like regular doctors they are NOT all the same. Gary and I work well together.

After 16 years in the Canadian Forces, I was medically released with osteo-arthritis in both knees.

My weight had shot up from a fighting fit and trim 155 pounds to 198 pounds at my heaviest.

I have found that by training the muscles around my knees, strengthing them, that I now have less knee pain and can exercise more and more.

Like others above have said, pain is pain, and I also just 'grin and bear it'.

Good luck to everyone in reaching their goals and remember that you are not alone!

northernpt ~ foam rolling doesn't feel good doing it hurts a lot...lol. that's probably why i don't do it as much as i should. i do find it does help some.

pjh139psu ~ my chiropractor & massage therapist work very well together they keep me moving. i agree that a chiropractor is important. my workout leaves me in pain too, but if i don't move then it's worse...lol

Im going to be really nice and tell you the truth. I have the same problem and have been fighting it for almost 10 years. It ruined my fighting carrier. I spent thousands of dollars on chiropractors, and PT s. Started with foam roller and now I have to use a $10 rolling pin from walmart because my IT band has gotten use to it. Started with a tennis ball and now I have to use a baseball, for the exact same reason. Tried everything. Pills, exercises, stretches, etc EVERYTHING!

Did a MRI yesterday and just got back from X-ray.

I guess what I'm trying to tell you is, if you have arthritis like I do, nothing is going to FIX it. Its all temporary relief and the arthritis just keeps getting worse. Now the very thing I swore I wouldn't do, seems like the best option. Surgery.
I've been doing a lot of research on hip resurfacing, and realized if i did it 10 years ago, I would have been able to follow through with my dream.
So now better late then ever, I will be going for my first consultation. This BS stops NOW! :)

For some good info: Surface Hippy a Patient to Patient Guide To Hip Resurfacing

Arthritis causes stiffness in the joints. It mostly affects older adults. One can take Soma pills which can lessen muscle stiffness and less pain.