running with arthritis

ka97

Has anyone out there been diagnosed with arthritis and continued to run successfully? I had ankle surgery in February and have also been diagnosed with arthritis in that ankle. Recovery has been slow but I'm doing pretty well now. I have some lingering issues (range of motion, pain/stiffness especially after long runs) which the doctor says is likely the arthritis and may not improve much. I'd love to hear any tips or strategies that anyone has found helpful to keep running.

ka97

anyone?

Abakan

I have arthritis in my right knee which swells and becomes stiff when I'v been running on the roads so I try to stick to trail running which is much easier on the joints. After long runs I usually put an ice pack on my knee and use an anti inflamatory gel on it. I don't have any pain whilst running and have asked my doctors advice which was to keep running as long as I had no knee pain whilst running.

CodeMonkey78

ka97 wrote: »

Has anyone out there been diagnosed with arthritis and continued to run successfully? I had ankle surgery in February and have also been diagnosed with arthritis in that ankle. Recovery has been slow but I'm doing pretty well now. I have some lingering issues (range of motion, pain/stiffness especially after long runs) which the doctor says is likely the arthritis and may not improve much. I'd love to hear any tips or strategies that anyone has found helpful to keep running.

I have Psoriatic Arthritis, Osteoarthritis, AS, and DDD. I have arthritis issues in my knees, back, ankles, and hands.

I usually run between 50-70 miles per week depending on where I am at in my training cycle.

Is your arthritis only in your ankle?

Based on your description, the best tips that I can give are:
- ALWAYS warm up with walking or agility drills before running to get everything "moving".
- ALWAYS cool down after running to help prevent stiffness. It will not always be successful, but it helps.
- OTC or Rx NSAIDs if needed (I take rx Mobic).
- The right shoes for you and your gait are a MUST. Good shoes are not cheap.
- On the ankles, alternate heat and ice. HOT Epsom salt soaks work wonders.
- I'm fond of either BioFreeze or Tiger Balm. It helps take the edge off.
- When I have flare ups that don't ever seem to subside (even after resting for some time), I have to get corisone injections into the joint to reduce inflammation.

HTH!

ka97

CodeMonkey78 wrote: »

ka97 wrote: »

Has anyone out there been diagnosed with arthritis and continued to run successfully? I had ankle surgery in February and have also been diagnosed with arthritis in that ankle. Recovery has been slow but I'm doing pretty well now. I have some lingering issues (range of motion, pain/stiffness especially after long runs) which the doctor says is likely the arthritis and may not improve much. I'd love to hear any tips or strategies that anyone has found helpful to keep running.

I have Psoriatic Arthritis, Osteoarthritis, AS, and DDD. I have arthritis issues in my knees, back, ankles, and hands.

I usually run between 50-70 miles per week depending on where I am at in my training cycle.

Is your arthritis only in your ankle?

Based on your description, the best tips that I can give are:
- ALWAYS warm up with walking or agility drills before running to get everything "moving".
- ALWAYS cool down after running to help prevent stiffness. It will not always be successful, but it helps.
- OTC or Rx NSAIDs if needed (I take rx Mobic).
- The right shoes for you and your gait are a MUST. Good shoes are not cheap.
- On the ankles, alternate heat and ice. HOT Epsom salt soaks work wonders.
- I'm fond of either BioFreeze or Tiger Balm. It helps take the edge off.
- When I have flare ups that don't ever seem to subside (even after resting for some time), I have to get corisone injections into the joint to reduce inflammation.

HTH!

Thanks for the tips! I'm so impressed that you are able to maintain such high weekly mileage. It gives me hope!
Yes, it's just my ankle. I must admit I'm not great about the warm up and cool down, but I will work on being more consistent about it. I do find that as soon as I start walking, it tightens up immediately.
Thanks!!!