Severe arthritis in knee what exercise?

Lucyj75
Lucyj75 Posts: 10 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi can anyone advice me on any exercise I can do with severe arthritis in my knee, I know swimming is great but looking for something to do at home, any help appreciated.
:smile:

Replies

  • tmaree2
    tmaree2 Posts: 37 Member
    HI I have severe arthritis in both knees and bone-on-bone in the R knee and do a few things at home. I have the Jillian Michaels 30 day shred DVD and have just adapted a few moves so there is no impact otherwise its pretty good workout, oh and I don't do lunges. everything else is fair game.
    I have a x-trainer that I use regularly and I walk no more than 30 minutes. try getting a boxing bag and stand, that is a great cardio workout at home.
    these, plus water aerobics, have helped me shed 20kg's in 9 months. well worth the effort and a little bit of pain.

    oh, also drugs....lots of ibruprofen/paracetamol. :-)
  • Lucyj75
    Lucyj75 Posts: 10 Member
    Thank you for your input , I've had a go at some of Jessica Smith's low impact exercises. I think your right, you just have to adapt to what you can manage. My right knee is bone on bone and I always struggle more in the winter months.
  • JustAnotherCalorieCounter
    JustAnotherCalorieCounter Posts: 57
    I have arthritis too and I use a stationary bike most days.
  • icimani
    icimani Posts: 1,454 Member
    I feel for you - I had both knees replaced about 2 yr ago now due to arthritis.

    A PT once told me not to do anything for more than 20 minutes at any one time and that seemed to work for me. As long as it wasn't high impact, I could switch things up and do okay. Using a bicycle worked well to keep me flexible as long as I didn't overdo it. I did better walking on a treadmill than walking outside probably because it was more even, at a lower speed and raising the incline to get my heart rate up. The faster you walk the more impact on your knees.

    I also swim. The gym that I belong to is actually at a rehab hospital and the pool is a rehab pool so it's kept at 92 degrees. That warm water feels really good on my aching knees!

    One of the best things when I was rehab'ing my knees was the Wii Fit. I could go as slow as I needed to, pushing as much as I wanted to, and there's enough of a variety to keep me interesting. I still do the step programs with a 4" platform under the Wii Fit board - it keeps me moving and has done wonders for the lateral movement. Now that the WiiU is out, I bet you could find the system and the Wii Fit board for pretty cheap - I did a quick craigslist search and found several for under $100. Plus - it's just FUN!
  • pastorcaz
    pastorcaz Posts: 7 Member
    As a fitness instructor for extend uk. I would recommend getting an exercise resistant band; not expensive on internet, they come in different colours representing different strengths, yellow is low and recommended for the more frail, but I chose red as it's an in between strength. Put it under your foot and raise you knee to hip height, and hold the ends in your hand and push down towards the floor. This resistance will strengthen your knee. If you go on YouTube there are many exercises to help you. Hope this helps.
  • donnas1977
    donnas1977 Posts: 6 Member
    I have it in knee too. I tend to go to circuit classes,,abs. Also try and do Bootcamp occasionally but step out when needed. Oh and naproxen and painkillers are a blessing in disguise ????. Going to try boxer cise as well
  • trinity5703
    trinity5703 Posts: 78
    So glads someone posted about this as I was just getting ready to!
    I dont have any problems walking either on the treadmill or outside. I can do about 3 mile per hour, but any lunges, leg lifts etc at the gym just about kill me. Ibuprofen is my required after doing a lot of leg work. I swim and that helps a lot, but the strength training is somewhat lopsided. Hope to see more on this topic. Would love to know other methods of adjusting workouts for knee issues
  • rileamoyer
    rileamoyer Posts: 2,412 Member
    I find that squats help NO LUNGES.
  • LannyM74
    LannyM74 Posts: 25 Member
    For me the elliptical works. I've never had a diagnosis of arthritis but it certianly feels like it....both my knees are in pain regularly. There's always pain, but it's worse if I've been stationary for a while and then start to move, and often I wake in the night with pain and a feeling of my knees being 'locked'. I started using an elliptical several months ago and the pain went away completely. For the last four weeks I've been slacking off on the elliptical and suddenly the pain is back. Time for me to get back to it!
  • cafeaulait7
    cafeaulait7 Posts: 2,459 Member
    Yoga is great! There are lunges of a sort, but just don't go down much at all -- just enough to feel your thigh holding you up is great. The full, deep lunge poses might bother you, but most teachers don't use many of those, so just do something else for those seconds :) The moves are slow and static (in a Hatha class or similar), so you don't get the fast bone-on-bone that causes so much inflammation. And modifications are not frowned upon at all unless your teacher sucks ;)
  • Lucyj75
    Lucyj75 Posts: 10 Member
    Thanks all for your input, some good ideas for me to try out. :)

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