Can Exercise Help Arthtitis?

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by James Bartell

Its is difficult to perform certain exercises, such as walking or lifting weights, for someone with joint swelling from arthritis.

Usually when someone is diagnosed with arthritis, their doctor will provide them with a detailed treatment plan that includes various exercises as well as dietary restrictions and benefits. Red meats, dairy, processed foods, and food additives are all known to aggravate arthritis symptoms.

Yoga, tai chi, water aerobics, muscle strengthening, and weight training are the most popular arthritis exercises. Also included are range-of-motion exercises lik dance, and endurance exercises like cycling.

It's best to talk with your healthcare practitioner before starting an exercise program because it's unknown whether a certain exercise routine will aggravate your arthritis symptoms.

Nowadays, most of the major insurance companies provide their members with discounts to health clubs. Some even offer discounts on health products such as exercise videos and dietary supplements. Oftentimes policyholders are not aware of these discounts, so be certain to check with your insurance carrier to see if they offer these types of discounts.

Along with health products, many health clubs offer a 50% discount to different insurance members, and sometimes even offer private personal training sessions. Many personal trainers are well-versed in finding an ideal arthritic exercise program for their clients. Personal trainers are not normally covered by insurance, though, and must be paid by out-of-pocket expenses.

You can also check out the local YMCA or YWCA. These organizations usually offer water aerobics, wchich are gentle and great for decreasing arthritis pain. All it involves are gentle resistance exercises while sitting in a shallow pool.

Heat is very benficial to sore joints, so it should be applied to joints regardless of the type of exercise program. Heat will make joints more flexible and should be applied for 5 to 15 minutes at a time.

Before starting your routine and after you apply heat to your joints, you should perform gentle stretching exercises. Post-exercise, place cold packs on your sore joints to help reduce inflammation.

In order to make sure you stick with an exercise program, choose one that you enjoy and doesn't cause you intense pain.

Denise Smith shares information and resources on her website about Arthritis , and you can read more about Arthritis Exercises

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