Grumpy Old Man

Studies have shown that exercising helps people with arthritis in many ways. Exercise reduces joint pain and stiffness and increases flexibility, muscle strength, cardiac fitness, and endurance.

A very important point to remember when starting an exercise program is to build up your workouts slowly, start by using small weights in a controled fashion working the muscle on both sides of the joint. I know that starting a program of exercises seems a daunting task but by starting off slowly and trying to make it fun you will soon reap the benefits and help reduce arthritis pain.

Take into consideration recreational exercise. Activities like swimming, walking, t’ai chi and dancing can be a good start. Talk to friends and family and find out what facilities are available in your area. Exercising at your local swimming pool or going on bike rides are great ideas. Exercise in water is a lot easier and beneficial due to the soothing qualities of water plus the added support you gain from buoyancy.

Walking is one of the easiest to do and is an extremely efficient exercise. Even slow walking is beneficial because it will help the mechanisms in your body, put you in a better mood, help with any anxiety and give you more self-esteem.

Regular exercise can make an enormous contribution towards the self-management of Arthritis. It can help you keep in a healthy weight range, improve your posture, and reduce your chance of developing osteoporosis.

Weight-bearing exercises are most effective for osteoporosis while walking, running and a gentle resistance program including hand weights provide the best results. Weight and resistance training are just two examples designed to help accomplish these goals. These exercises should only be practised on alternate days and your therapist will help create a beneficial workout for you.

There are some very good arthritis exercise Video and dvd’s available which are a real help in controlling the pain of arthritis through improvements in joint flexibility. Arthritis exercise is one part of a comprehensive arthritis pain treatment plan. Anyone suffering with arthritis may be less fit, weaker, and less flexible and have more pain than necessary.

So do your utmost to help yourself with a few gentle exercises. Start by creating an exercise program to suit you and ease the pain of arthritis, but please make sure you consult your Doctor or therapist before undertaking any exercise to help with arthritis pain. Always better to be safe than sorry.

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