Arthritis and Exercise Tips

Living with the pain of arthritis is something as estimated 1 in 3 adults live with this chronic daily pain. The length of time it affects everyone is different, but it can last for many hours at different periods of the day.

As an adult, this pain of arthritis has continued and since I have lived with this for so long, I know just about how much I can do without enduring much pain. Therefore, I am going to share some of my tips on how I deal with arthritis, and how I keep more flexible despite having arthritis for almost 35 years that I know of.

Arthritis and exercise used to be thought of something that should not happen. Recent studies have shown that exercise does help with the stiffness and pain that we feel.

The trick so say the experts is to start with simple exercising and work our way up. Playing a round of golf, and taking a walk on a warm day are too of the best exercises to start with.

Exercising with arthritis is very important but knowing your limits is equally as important. I know I can walk a mile in 40-degree weather and be fine, but if I am out there for more then an hour, the pain later will make me hurt big time. I am eating medicine as if they are candy and under a blanket. Arthritis is a deep pain is very hard to get rid of, so the best way to deal with it is to prevent it as much as you can.

On warm days, I will walk two or three miles. The trick here is to walk on even ground, to eliminate trips or sudden jarring of stiff bones. Yes, the arthritis makes us stiff in the morning but for too many of us arthritis suffers we are stiff more then just the morning. Stretching your leg muscles in a safe way such as walking will keep you more pain free.

If you work at a desk or sit often during your job, make sure you get up if possible and stretch every hour or so. When we do not stretch our bodies for extended periods, it seizes up and makes us stiff.

If you cannot get up hourly and stretch, you can still do some exercises right in your chair to keep the stiffness away. While sitting stretch your feet, toes on floor, lift the heel off the floor as high as it will go. Hold for a few seconds and do it again repeat with both feet for 2 or 3 minutes. If you feel the stretch up to the calf, you are doing it correctly. This not only stretches the muscles there it also gets the blood circulating in the lower part of our legs.

Chair dancing is also another good thing to do for your body to keep the stiffness out as you work. Too many of us with desk jobs sit for extended times and this does nothing but make us stiff unless we can add some movement. Put on headphones, and some great music that you can sway or tap your foot too.

Arthritis may make us stiff but there are ways we can combat this stiffness and limit the pain we feel from it.

Sources:

http://www.arthritis.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juvenile_idiopathic_arthritis

http://www.arthritis.org/exercise-intro.php