Pain, it can stop you in your tracks or it can nag at you for many years. I have very few people I work with that don’t deal with chronic arthritic pain. Sometimes I will tell them to avoid a particular exercise that day, especially when pain worsens as the exercise continues. Other days people can work through the pain, as long as it’s not getting worse.

If you have pain in one joint area, you can work harder on another area that day or week. The worst thing one can do is to stop being active because of pain. Being sedentary will make pain worse & movement more difficult. Sometimes the fear of pain can keep you from wanting to exercise. Research has shown that moderate activity can help prevent the progression of arthritis and improve overall function. Exercise is crucial if you have arthritis. But knowing just how much activity to do when you’re hurting can be tricky. Learn when to keep moving through pain during exercise and when to stop. You may have to choose different activities.

Mild pain or discomfort is typical when you first start to move, but after a few minutes you’ll usually start to feel better. Always start with a warm up that feels good, gets your joints moving & gets your heart rate up. Then move on to your workout. If you find you have moderate to severe pain in a specific joint area during your warm up, focus on a different area for a day or two. If your knees hurt, decrease the intensity & range of motions (make the movements smaller). If the pain becomes worse, then stop the lower body moves and work your upper body instead.

Most people with arthritis can work through mild pain safely, but if you’re experiencing a lot of pain during exercise, you are probably inflamed & need treatment, which simply may be rest.

If you consistently have joint pain (not muscle pain) after exercise, switch to a workout that puts less pressure on your joints. If you are having moderate to severe joint pain the day after you work out, cut back on the intensity. You may need a rest day in between. That doesn’t mean sitting on the couch every other day but rather doing less strenuous activities. If the pain persists, you may need to change what you do for exercise. Swimming, water aerobics and biking are all good options for people with joint pain. You may need to give up the elliptical machine along with the treadmill.

Practice makes Permanent
Move more to feel better
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