Dieting & Exercising- Joints are killing me!

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So basically the title simplifies it. I have been dieting and exercising for the past few months and it seems like each week I have a new problem joint! I have always had issues with my left knee due to an old injury from soccer in high school, but now my right knee is beginning to bother me. Also, both elbows & left wrist are starting to hurt. I stretch after every workout and ice my sore joints about every night.

I do kickboxing Mon & Weds for 1 hour, followed by about 30 mins on the elliptical
Muscle Cuts (light weight lifting) Tues, Thurs, & Saturdays, followed by 30 mins on the elliptical
Fridays I walk/ Jog 2 miles on the track
(I am trying to achieve the ability to do a few pull ups right now so I do a few negatives and up & holds at night)

The instructors in these classes are really good about watching form and correcting ppl's form if needed. I wear a wrap on both knees and about to result to maybe some for my elbow if I have to. I am 22, 5'5", 165lbs and have always been active and never had this problem.

Vitamins I take daily:
- 2000 mg Glucosamine
- 333 mg Calcium
- 133 mg Magnesium
- 5 mg Zinc
- 2000 I.U. D3
- 1210 mg Chonodroitin Sulfate Complex
- 100 mg Aflapin
- 10000 mcg Biotin

Please, any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated!
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Replies

  • Mathguy1
    Mathguy1 Posts: 207 Member
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    I'm no doctor or trainer so please take my advice with a grain of salt...

    Seeing as you are hurting, I feel that you are over training. First, how many weeks have you trained w/out taking a week off? Most trainers recommend taking 1 week off after every 5,6, etc up to 10 weeks of training (I take a week off after 10).

    My first advice would be that if you've been training for 5-10 straight weeks, start by taking a week off from exercising.

    Second, after you return, seeing as your knees and elbows are hurting, I would drop the kickboxing and track running until you feel better. Then, after you feel better, add one of those back. If, after a few weeks, you dont hurt, add the other. If you resume hurting, stop doing that one.

    I would drop the kickboxing as that is probably contributing more to the injured knees than the track running. Then again, I'm not a trainer or doctor so the running may be doing more damage to your knees than kickboxing. I'm not qualified to state which is potentially harder on your knees.

    Either way, take a week off from exercising and rest. Then, resume without either the track running or the kickboxing and see how you hold up (give it 2-3 weeks).
  • DanaDark
    DanaDark Posts: 2,187 Member
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    I second the idea of taking a week off. Given your robust work out schedule, there doesn't seem to be any time to allow your body to heal itself fully.
  • BigGuy47
    BigGuy47 Posts: 1,768 Member
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    it seems like each week I have a new problem joint!
    I agree that you may be overdoing it. Throttle it back a bit or even take a week off to see if the joint pain subsides. If the joint pain continues after taking a break from exercise you should consult a rheumatologist.
  • dym123
    dym123 Posts: 1,670 Member
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    As someone with knee problems, recent knee surgery, it was hard for me to take it easy. I agree with the others with taking some time off or stick with the elliptical for a while. You also should try a knee brace, I have an Ace, with metal rods on the sides, I couldn't workout without. Ice afterwards and add an Aleve or ibuprofen to ease inflamation. I'm not a doctor, these are things that my ortho doc recommended to me. I have severe arthritis in both knees and he knows telling me to quit my workouts was useless.
  • RikkiDominey
    RikkiDominey Posts: 134 Member
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    I haven't taken a large amount of time off like a week or more in about 2 or 3 months, I usually have just a rest day or a day or two where I don't do the extra 30 mins of the elliptical afterwards. I will try to take next week off and slowly build back up to my workouts. When you take a break do you normally do any kind of activity like walking or light jogging or just nothing at all?

    Thank you both for your advice!

    Hopefully I will see some positive results soon

    :)
  • starjumper12
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    do you have enough healthy fats in your diet? they're very important to keep your joints in working order...
  • RikkiDominey
    RikkiDominey Posts: 134 Member
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    do you have enough healthy fats in your diet? they're very important to keep your joints in working order...

    I actually was just prompted by someone else to start adding more fats into my diet, so I am going to start adding more little by little and see what change it can make.

    Thank y'all so much!
  • RikkiDominey
    RikkiDominey Posts: 134 Member
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    As someone with knee problems, recent knee surgery, it was hard for me to take it easy. I agree with the others with taking some time off or stick with the elliptical for a while. You also should try a knee brace, I have an Ace, with metal rods on the sides, I couldn't workout without. Ice afterwards and add an Aleve or ibuprofen to ease inflamation. I'm not a doctor, these are things that my ortho doc recommended to me. I have severe arthritis in both knees and he knows telling me to quit my workouts was useless.


    Did your knee brace ever seem to make it worse? I ask this bc there are some days when I wear my brace that it seems to feel super weak once I take it off when I get home.
  • gjulie
    gjulie Posts: 391
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    I definitely agree with taking a week off and resting,I would think about a doctors appointment also,I dont mean to alarm you but you might need to be checked for Arthritis,it wouldn't do any harm to rule it out,as others said you are most likely over training!best of luck!
  • RedHeadDevotchka
    RedHeadDevotchka Posts: 1,394 Member
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    Joint pain is exactly why I have given up lifting for a few weeks. That will some additional back pain and soreness lasting beyond 2-3 days. Sometimes our bodies just need a break!
  • moonpieto
    moonpieto Posts: 76 Member
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    You should see your doctor and talk to him about it. I have a bad knee that started burning, cracking and popping in my 20s and now sometimes it outright hurts like arthritis. Strep throat ect can cause arthritis. Mine hurts a tad now but could be alot worse. Somehow a bacterial infection can become an autoimmune problem. See your doctor, joints shouldn't hurt. I read somewhere once that pain is not ever a good sign.
  • EatClean_WashUrNuts
    EatClean_WashUrNuts Posts: 1,590 Member
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    Take from a guy who has had his share of injuries and surgeries.

    REST and increase your Glucosamine to 3000mcg.
    Not sure why you are taking all the other stuff. The majority of it is replenished through your diet, unless your body cannot assimilate.

    Take 2 weeks off. Ensure that you are stretching every day. After your workouts, ice baths ROCK, but most cant handle them...so keep the blood flowing with a hot bath or hottub.
  • Mathguy1
    Mathguy1 Posts: 207 Member
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    I haven't taken a large amount of time off like a week or more in about 2 or 3 months, I usually have just a rest day or a day or two where I don't do the extra 30 mins of the elliptical afterwards. I will try to take next week off and slowly build back up to my workouts. When you take a break do you normally do any kind of activity like walking or light jogging or just nothing at all?

    Thank you both for your advice!

    Hopefully I will see some positive results soon

    :)

    During my week off, I do no exercising whatsoever. Which means that I have to more closely watch what I eat as I dont get the benefit from eating some of the "Exercise calories". However, I would rather gain a pound and be able to resume my workouts fresh and rested (which will allow me to lose that weight) than to worry about gaining a little weight and "light exercise" to prevent it and not fully healing.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    do you have enough healthy fats in your diet? they're very important to keep your joints in working order...

    I actually was just prompted by someone else to start adding more fats into my diet, so I am going to start adding more little by little and see what change it can make.

    Thank y'all so much!

    Friend just commented on taking the omega3 supplements for other reasons, and was surprised by the joints not hurting anymore, and that was only change he made.
  • RikkiDominey
    RikkiDominey Posts: 134 Member
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    Joint pain is exactly why I have given up lifting for a few weeks. That will some additional back pain and soreness lasting beyond 2-3 days. Sometimes our bodies just need a break!

    Has rest helped you? Do you plan on lifting again?
  • JoeSzup
    JoeSzup Posts: 51 Member
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    I agree with the other posters regarding taking a week off. It may be hard to do, but it will give your body some rest time. Besides that, something that has really helped with my joint pain, is adding a weekly Sauna visit. 20 minutes in the Sauna, followed by a lukewarm shower, then slowly dropping the temp of the water until it's mostly cold.
  • sarahrbraun
    sarahrbraun Posts: 2,261 Member
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    So basically the title simplifies it. I have been dieting and exercising for the past few months and it seems like each week I have a new problem joint! I have always had issues with my left knee due to an old injury from soccer in high school, but now my right knee is beginning to bother me. Also, both elbows & left wrist are starting to hurt. I stretch after every workout and ice my sore joints about every night.

    I do kickboxing Mon & Weds for 1 hour, followed by about 30 mins on the elliptical
    Muscle Cuts (light weight lifting) Tues, Thurs, & Saturdays, followed by 30 mins on the elliptical
    Fridays I walk/ Jog 2 miles on the track
    (I am trying to achieve the ability to do a few pull ups right now so I do a few negatives and up & holds at night)

    The instructors in these classes are really good about watching form and correcting ppl's form if needed. I wear a wrap on both knees and about to result to maybe some for my elbow if I have to. I am 22, 5'5", 165lbs and have always been active and never had this problem.

    Vitamins I take daily:
    - 2000 mg Glucosamine
    - 333 mg Calcium
    - 133 mg Magnesium
    - 5 mg Zinc
    - 2000 I.U. D3
    - 1210 mg Chonodroitin Sulfate Complex
    - 100 mg Aflapin
    - 10000 mcg Biotin

    Please, any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

    I agree with other posters who say you may be overworking. When I first started back at the gym, I went 4 days a week. After about 2 weeks my legs hurt like hell, and all I was doing was treadmill. I finally bit the bullet and cut down to 3 days ( m-w-f) for several weeks, then went back to 4 days a week with no problems at all. I now warm up with 35 minutes on the treadmill, then do strength training for about 30 minutes. I've been using the machines, but I am slowly adding in things like leg presses and barbell squats from the free weight area.
  • RikkiDominey
    RikkiDominey Posts: 134 Member
    Options
    Take from a guy who has had his share of injuries and surgeries.

    REST and increase your Glucosamine to 3000mcg.
    Not sure why you are taking all the other stuff. The majority of it is replenished through your diet, unless your body cannot assimilate.

    Take 2 weeks off. Ensure that you are stretching every day. After your workouts, ice baths ROCK, but most cant handle them...so keep the blood flowing with a hot bath or hottub.


    It's a vitamin package that is supposed to help with joint and muscle recovery. (Biotin is just to for my hair and nails)
    I will increase my intake of the Glucosamine and work in a few ice baths after my workouts.
    I stretch after my warm ups and again after my workout is over.
  • waylandcool
    waylandcool Posts: 175 Member
    Options
    I haven't taken a large amount of time off like a week or more in about 2 or 3 months, I usually have just a rest day or a day or two where I don't do the extra 30 mins of the elliptical afterwards. I will try to take next week off and slowly build back up to my workouts. When you take a break do you normally do any kind of activity like walking or light jogging or just nothing at all?

    Thank you both for your advice!

    Hopefully I will see some positive results soon

    :)

    When I take a rest day, I usually just do about 30 minutes of walking, sometimes around the neighborhood or on a treadmill if the weather is bad.
  • RikkiDominey
    RikkiDominey Posts: 134 Member
    Options
    do you have enough healthy fats in your diet? they're very important to keep your joints in working order...

    I actually was just prompted by someone else to start adding more fats into my diet, so I am going to start adding more little by little and see what change it can make.

    Thank y'all so much!

    Friend just commented on taking the omega3 supplements for other reasons, and was surprised by the joints not hurting anymore, and that was only change he made.

    Any certain brand worth recommending? I'm going grocery shopping today so I will be sure to pick some up.