Working out with Arthritis and knee pain

4005MiMi

I have just found out I have Arthritis and knee pain what are some safe workout I can do to be active and not hurt myself

AnnPT77

It matters exactly what's wrong. I understand that you have an arthritis diagnosis, but it may matter where it is in the knee, and how advanced it is. Also, if there are other sources of pain in the knee, have they been diagnosed?

What is safe and most comfortable depends on exactly what's wrong. If you can get your doctor to refer you to a physical therapist, that would be ideal.

I have arthritis in both knees, and a torn meniscus in at least one (I suspect both). My orthopedist was hesitant to refer me for physical therapy (PT), because PT can't solve the actual underlying conditions. When I told him that I wanted PT help to learn how to walk and (especially) climb stairs in ways that would reduce stress on my knees, he was willing to refer me. (I think he would've referred me to learn about safe exercise, too.) PT helped me quite a bit, especially with stairs.

I have a close friend who has knee arthritis, too. Here's the thing: Based on details, the very same orthopedist prescribed very different treatments for each of us, and our physical therapy was very different because of other differences in our strength and movement patterns!

For many people, strengthening the leg muscles helps reduce knee pain. I already had good leg strength, needed to increase flexibility in my hips, and was given exercises for that.

If you can't access physical therapy, you could consider looking at the "Bob & Brad" channel on YouTube, where they have a bunch of videos about knee pain. They're actual professional physical therapists with many years of experience, generally well regarded. Personalized treatment would be better, if possible, though.

Are you in the process of losing weight now? I found that weight loss made a huge improvement in my knee pain and discomfort. It's much more infrequent, and less severe now that I'm at a healthy weight.

Beyond that, I experimented cautiously and learned that for me, exercises that used my knees in a straight hinging motion were less of a problem (like rowing and cycling), but things that involved impact and torque were not a good idea for me (like running/walking, aerobic dancing, fast-break games such as basketball or tennis, etc.). Many people find that swimming pool exercise is good, if you have access to a pool, because weight is supported by the water. Some places even have specific pool exercise classes for arthritis.

Some people will suggest Tai Chi, but I'm more hesitant. Some types will be OK for some people, and some types are more aimed at arthritic people. (My late husband was a Tai Chi teacher, and I practiced myself for a long time. I have trouble with the parts that involve turning on a weighted leg. YMMV.)

Best wishes for finding something that helps you!

susanalsaword

Have you thought of chair exercise, Donovan green on YouTube is fantastic and has helped me a lot,

kshama2001

I agree with Ann that getting your doctor to refer you to a physical therapist would be ideal.

I've had knee issues since 2010 and also need to experiment cautiously.

I get Classical Stretch DVDs from my library (there are a few available on youtube, but much, much more in my library system.) I had no problems when I did this a few times a week but when the heat wave kept me from my outdoor cardio and I was doing Classical Stretch every day, that did cause problems, and with both knees, not just my usual bad one. Miranda is barefoot during her videos but I think it is better for my knees to wear good shoes.

I'm a veteran and take Tai Chi classes for free through https://app.ompractice.com/veteransaffairs

My favorite Tai Chi teacher also has short videos here:



In that playlist is also "Tai Chi for Arthritis" by Dr. Paul Lam, her teacher.

Regular walking (outdoors on dirt trails in good shoes) does not bother my knees but a Leslie Sansone youtube walking video did.

I can do yoga lunges and squats as part of the moon/sun salutation series but not something like sets of 10 PT lunges.

I incorporated my knee exercises from my PT into my yoga warmups and so still do them regularly.

kshama2001

Here's a Classical Stretch/Essentrics video by Miranda's daughter Sahra that I find really gentle:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qnaxj4ejDdM&list=PLUXvX9BaxgqG9yO5XWB3gA_QshvrrcjVr&index=12

And one by Miranda herself:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbWgGgRLp94&list=PLUXvX9BaxgqG9yO5XWB3gA_QshvrrcjVr&index=13&t=6s

406MamaBear

Great question and even better responses! Kudos!!!

westrich20940

Yes, is the arthritis specifically in your knee? If that's what's causing your knee pain, I'll defer to others more knowledgeable about arthritis...but I'm plenty knowledgeable about knee pain. Trouble is that you definitely need to know what is causing the knee pain in order to fix it.