Tips for protecting our joints as we age
Our knees and hips have a demanding task: they bear the full weight of our body while simultaneously allowing for a wide range of motion. So, even if you’re completely healthy, daily activities such as bending or squatting can cause normal wear and tear. It’s important to take steps to safeguard your joints and the cartilage that supports them as you age, whether you are pain free, recovering from an injury, or managing chronic arthritis.
The more you weigh, the more strain you place on your joints. Research shows that for every pound gained, a person puts 4x more stress on their knees. This means that even if you just lose a few pounds, your knees and hips will bear a significantly lesser load. Combine healthy eating with regular, low-impact exercise to maintain a health weight. Eating a diet focused on vegetables, fruits, whole grains, healthy fats, and lean meats—all in moderation—will greatly improve your health. It’s important to ensure you are getting the right nutrients in your diet as well. There are certain foods that help decrease inflammation, ease pain, and promote joint comfort. Important nutrients for your joints are omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, vitamin D, and vitamin C which can be found in foods such as nuts and seeds, leafy greens, colorful fruits, olive oil, root vegetables, whole grains, fish, and beans.
In addition to consuming a healthy diet, regular exercise can help you maintain your weight. With your joints in mind, low impact exercise options are your best choice. Going for walks, biking, swimming, yoga, and pilates are all types of exercise you can easily integrate in your daily routine. It’s also important to stretch often and thoroughly to keep your muscles flexible, strong, and healthy resulting in greater range of motion in your joints.
If you are doing higher impact exercise, it is vital to warm up and cool down for at least 5 minutes. Perform warm up exercises that target the same muscles you will be using, but at a slower pace. This will increase the blood flow to muscles which reduces resistance and increases flexibility.
When lifting weights, stick to more reps with lower weights. Doing so will improve your muscle stamina and strength without putting too much stress on your joints. Also, if you are having any type of joint pain, you should refrain from doing high stress weight lifting exercises such as deadlifts, deep lunges, or deep squats. Instead, you can use machines like the leg press. Whether or not you are working with a personal trainer, you should always make sure to listen to your body. If an exercise is causing you pain, you should not continue to do it. Similarly, if after exercising you are feeling pain, it is a good idea to take a couple days rest until you are feeling better. If you are dealing with ongoing joint pain, that which still bothers you after two weeks, don’t be tempted to sit on the couch as this solution can make hip or knee problems worse by decreasing flexibility and weakening muscles that support and protect the joints. Instead you should schedule an appointment with your doctor to determine how to get you back to feeling good and exercising regularly. Your doctor may refer you to a physical therapist that can recommend specific stretches and exercises for joint problems. Powering through the pain is never a good idea, take time to rest and consult your doctor if needed.
If you have any questions about improving your diet or integrating exercise into your daily routine, please schedule an appointment.
In addition to establishing a healthier lifestyle, it is also important to take steps to protect your joints during your everyday life. Something we don’t always think about, with comfort not always topping fashion in regards to your clothing and footwear choices, is the importance of proper footwear in preventing joint overload. Your feet are your body’s first point of impact with the ground, no wonder they play such a big role in the amount of stress on your hips and knees. Women, listen up! Researchers have found that wearing high heels places 23% more pressure on your knees than if you were in your natural barefoot state.
Athletic or running shoes are going to be your best bet for footwear that lessens the strain on your hips and knees. Shoes designed for running and fitness often have motion control and stability features to control inward rotation of the foot, lower leg, and knee which helps keep your foot in the proper position while you are walking. Look for shoes that are well-cushioned to help lessen the impact of walking on hard floors and concrete sidewalks. You can also add inserts to your shoes to add cushioning. You may be able to find inserts on your own that making your shoes more comfortable, but it can be helpful to consult a podiatrist to have a custom made orthotic (molded insert) that will improve your gait and lessen the strain on your knees.
And last but definitely not least, your individual body mechanics are vitally important to your joint health. Anytime you move your body, you want it to be aligned in the healthiest possible way to manage which parts of your body are bearing different levels of pressure. We always hear people say “lift with your legs, not with your back!” They are right… We should be using our largest joints for lifting, pushing, pulling, and carrying. Whenever you are lifting a heavy object, bend both your hips and your knees—don’t just bend from your waist. Maintaining proper posture is a huge part of aligning our body correctly. When you are standing, your shoulder blades should be drawn back with your legs straight and the top of your head parallel to the ceiling. Try to straighten your back by pulling your pelvis forward using your abdominal muscles. When you are standing, your shoulder blades should be drawn back with your legs at 90 degrees and no lower than your hips. Your feet should be flush to the ground and your head should be aligned with your spine as if a string were pulling you up from your seat.
We hope that you will follow these guidelines to do what you can to protect your joints and prevent future pain—we need healthy joints to maintain an active life. Always seek medical advice for sever pain and feel welcome to schedule an appointment with Dr. Nussbaum at any time to discuss your joint health. Be well.