Exercise as Effective Extra Treatments for Reducing Arthritis Pain?

Overwhelming majority of people said they exercised regularly because of arthritis, and the effort pays off. The chief benefits they got from exercise were increased flexibility of their affected joints and some measure of pain relief. Exercise also improved their general health, partici­pants said, lifted their spirits, and kept their weight down. A few even credited exercises with helping them fight stress, giving them more energy during the day, and helping them sleep better at night.

In general, activity is better than inactivity, but the wrong exer­cise can sometimes be as dangerous as the wrong medication. Getting and following expert exercise advice is a good way to help you avoid injury. But where do you go for suggestions?

You can expect the most helpful individual attention to come from a practitioner who knows about your medical history, about exercise in general, and about the particulars of exercise designed to preserve range of motion in joints threatened by arthritis. Here are a few of the best choices.

• Your doctor, especially if you're seeing a rheumatologist. Doctors who are not exercise experts can at least advise you on safe limits and refer you to someone who knows how to teach the specifics, such as a physiotherapist.

• Aphysiotherapist who has both interest and skill in helping people with arthritis. Sound exercise advice from these practi­tioners often led to long-term improvement for sufferers.

• The exercise instructor at your local fitness centre. If you enroll in a general exercise class, make sure to tell the instructor that you have arthritis and that you may need to do some exercises differently or not at all. Many exercise instructors, includingYoga teachers, have the ability to provide such indi­vidualized help.

• Some chiropractors are quite knowledgeable about exercise for arthritis, on the whole.

• Group classes specially designed for people with limited movement, such as aquatic exercise at a community pool.

In recent years, DVDs and videos that can be played at home have become popular substitutes for exercise classes.

There is no simple formula for determin­ing an optimum amount of exercise time, but there are rules for safe exercise that seem to apply to just about everyone, whether your routine involves moving your fingers in warm water or walking miles at a time.

• Don't overdo it. Know your limits, pace yourself. You may have to change your daily routine on bad days.

• Exercise regularly — every day if possible. A little bit daily, faithfully and regularly, is much more effective than more exercise done sporadically.

• Listen to your body. Don't push through pain, If you start to hurt, stop!'

• Start any new exercise program slowly, and increase gradually. Set your own goals and don't be influenced byjocks ornormal know-it-alls.

• Choose exercises that are easy on the joints. And never try to exercise or force a joint when it is swollen

• Learn to exercise properly, and follow the instructions you receive. Find a good person who is knowledgeable and can relate to your individual body problems.

• Get your doctor's OK before you embark on a new exercise regimen.

• Warm up before and cool down afterward. Always warm up. Cool-down is also important, and should contain some easy stretching, just like the warm-up.

• Don't give up. Exercise can get very discouraging when you are alone and have to do it. You seldom see immediate results, but sometimes you have to keep at it just to stay even. When you don't exercise, you tend to limit yourself more each day.