May is National Arthritis Awareness Month. The month is an opportunity to educate the public about the growing prevalence of arthritis and encourage lifestyle choices that can help prevent it. During Arthritis Awareness Month, people learn about the different types of arthritis, their causes, symptoms, and treatments. They also share resources and information with their patients and community members.
Exercise is crucial for people with arthritis. It increases strength and flexibility, reduces joint pain, and helps combat fatigue. Of course, when stiff and painful joints are already bogging you down, the thought of walking around the block or swimming a few laps might seem overwhelming. But you don’t need to run a marathon or swim as fast as an Olympic competitor to help reduce arthritis symptoms. According to the Mayo Clinic, even moderate exercise can ease your pain and help you maintain a healthy weight. When arthritis threatens to immobilize you, exercise keeps you moving.
If you have arthritis pain, exercising might be the last thing on your mind—but regular exercise can not only improve your symptoms, it can also help prevent future pain from occurring. That’s because pain and lack of movement work in a cycle—one can cause the other. Exercise is vital because it can help you improve your health and fitness without hurting your joints. With your current treatment program, exercise can:
- Strengthen the muscles around your joints
- Help you maintain bone strength
- Give you more energy to get through the day
- Make it easier to get a good night’s sleep
- Help you control your weight
- Enhance your quality of life
- Improve your balance
Though you might think exercise will aggravate your joint pain and stiffness, that’s not the case. Lack of exercise actually can make your joints even more painful and stiff. That’s because keeping your muscles and surrounding tissue strong is crucial to maintaining support for your bones. Not exercising weakens those supporting muscles, creating more stress on your joints.
According to Health magazine, these six types of exercise are the best for people with Arthritis:
Swimming
For the gold standard in low-impact exercise, medical experts suggest swimming or water aerobics. It’s joint- and cardio-friendly at the same time, plus has some other arthritis benefits. “In a pool that’s between 70 to 85 degrees, swimming is a non-weight bearing exercise [that also gives you] aerobic activity, plus the warmth of water helps with circulation as well,” explains John Gallucci Jr., DPT, a Doctor of Physical Therapy and CEO of JAG-ONE Physical Therapy. Improving circulation can also improve joint health, carrying important oxygen and nutrients to joint tissue, according to the Arthritis Foundation.
Light Aerobic Exercise
Any kind of exercise that gets your heart pumping is good for your cardiovascular system, which has the added benefit of helping you manage your weight. That’s not all, though: Dr. Gallucci says aerobic exercise also lubricates your joints, emphasizing that our bodies are “locomotive tools” that are meant to be used (the phrase “use it or lose it” applies here). Still, you want to be mindful of the type of aerobic exercise you choose. A Zumba class or outdoor run may be too high-impact for you, but taking a daily walk around your neighborhood, riding your bike or taking a spinning class, or speed-walking on a treadmill are great ways to engage your cardio health without damaging your joints.
Yoga and Pilates
Whether at-home or in-person, a yoga or Pilates class can go a long way toward increasing your balance, range of motion, and flexibility. These activities are low impact but utilize many parts of your body and can give you a moderate cardio workout, as well, in some cases. Plus, yoga and Pilates often have benefits for your mental health as well: you may notice you are more relaxed, less anxious, sleep better, and have overall better mood and energy levels when you incorporate these exercises into your routine. Keep in mind that less stress and more rest means less overall tension and strain on your muscles and joints.
Stretching
It might seem basic, but sometimes simple is best. Especially if you’re new to working out, stretching is a great way to utilize your joints and muscles without injuring yourself. You can do full body stretches or isolate individual body parts if you have pain specific to your hands, fingers, knees, or neck. Either way, static stretching (where you hold a stretch for 30 to 60 seconds at a time before releasing) can prevent and manage arthritis pain.
Strength Training
According to the Arthritis Foundation, strong muscles can support and protect affected joints, so strength training is a smart addition to your exercise routine. One 2001 study published in the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism looked at the effects of strength training on people with RA over two years, and found that patients who performed strength training as little as once or twice per week experienced an improvement in physical strength, joint function, and disease activity. Dr. Gallucci suggests using a variety of equipment to do strength training, including resistance bands, hand weights, and dumbbells, and emphasizing lightweight high-repetition movements (versus fewer repetitions with heavier weights) so as to avoid putting stress on joints.
Range of Motion Exercises
Range of motion refers to how fully a joint can move within its parameters. For example, your knee is designed to flex up to 135 degrees at its healthiest range of motion; once you fall below about 105 degrees, your ability to perform basic tasks will suffer. “Most arthritic knee patients can’t get past 90 degrees range of motion,” says Dr. Gallucci, “which inhibits their daily life, like their ability to sit comfortably on the couch or even use the toilet without pain.”
Consistently using arthritis-affected joints for range of motion exercises (such as bending and flexing, stretching your limbs out to their full length, rotating your head, and rolling your shoulders) will, over time, increase your joints’ range of motion. Unlike some other exercises that should be done in moderation, these movements can usually be done every day.
Remember to Exercise Smart
- Start small and slow. If you’ve never had much of an exercise routine before, it’s important to build up your body’s tolerance. Do what you comfortably can until it becomes a little easier, and then slowly start to add on from there. Make sure you also allow yourself plenty of time to rest after exercising; the Arthritis Foundation has a list of gentle movements you can do on “rest days” to keep your joints loose.
- Don’t ignore pain. Some people might be able to “push through the pain” without any side effects, but this isn’t good advice for people with arthritis. Some mild discomfort may be normal if this is a new-to-you activity, but you shouldn’t power through moderate pain. Instead, take a break or modify your activity until it’s more comfortable to you.
- Try not to be deterred. Like anything else, exercise takes some practice. You may also have good days and bad days, but a bad day doesn’t mean you have to stop exercising altogether; do what you can, as often as you can.
- Talk to your doctor. It’s always a good idea to check with your doctor and/or physical therapist before incorporating exercise into your treatment plan. What types of exercises are best for you depends on your type of arthritis and which joints are involved. Your doctor or a physical therapist can work with you to find the exercise plan that gives you the most benefit with the least aggravation of your joint pain.
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