What exercise can I do with (hip) arthritis?

[gastropod]

So I'm mid-forties, in decent shape and recently diagnosed with arthritis of the hips. Quite severe on one side.

I've always been very active though not sporty as such. Dancing, walking, cycling... Not a big fan of the gym.

High impact exercise is off the cards for me now. Cycling I"ve been told is good, but low-resistance only. Annoyingly, I live in a very hilly city and struggling up hills definitely hurts.

I do Pilates once a week (have been doing it for 10 years) but find that, even when adapting the exercises, some of the moves are getting quite painful (and making the daily pain worse).

I've bought a static bike which I try and do most days but it's so boring!

I'm an OK swimmer but am awful at crawl.

What else can I do? It's so important to keep moving but it's hard to find things that don't make the pain even worse.

Any suggestions gratefully received.

Dh has a very arthritic hip. He enjoys swimming - but is a very good swimmer. Would breast stroke be an issue? I'm guessing it might be. How about investing in some lessons?

Yoga might be an idea and compliments Pilates nicely.

Could you book an appointment with a physio who specialises in arthritis or hips? It could make a big difference to be told and shown what you should or shouldn't be doing.

In the same boat but swimming and aqua aerobics(if you can find a younger age group one!) are pretty ok.

Snap! Both hips also here.

Posting for tips.

I did go to physio and got some suggested exercises to strengthen hips. It's just a leaflet off the arthritis UK website though I think. The heat/massage etc seemed to help a bit.

She did recommend using heat to relieve the pain at home

I asked about exercise and she said just don't exercise through pain. Embarrassingly I've forgotten the rest of her exercise advice.

Have a few lessons to improve your crawl?
Aquarobics?
Walking?
Yoga?
Have you been told to avoid exercise? I imagine very high impact such as running might be an issue but thought others might just need painkillers beforehand.

I live in a hilly city, too, and tend to walk down the hill (about 2km or so into town) then catch the bus back up the hill if I have stuff to carry or I'm feeling too sore to get back up, again.

Good, supportive, shock absorbing shoes are a must. I wear running trainers, rather than fashion trainers.

Hi, I have problems with hips and feet/ ankles. I booked 121 sessions of Pilates, then moved on to group lessons. This means I know what I can do and the teacher has an good idea of how much I can do. The increased flexibility in other areas is helping compensate for the arthritic areas.

Walking is also excellent, but too many hills can cause problems. Seaside and river walks are your friend.

Thanks all.

That's interesting about walking - I did see a specialist and was told to avoid too much walking which I was gutted about as I love to walk everywhere. He said it would wear out the joints even faster! :-(

Sadly I've not found any painkillers that make much difference.

Aquarobics is a possibility - there's a class near me that I could probably try.
They also have an underwater spinning thing that looks quite mad.

I have dodgy hips from running and yoga is great for that.

I have a close relative with OA hips; they are very active and do yoga and road cycling in a club.They built up gradually.

I know you're not look

I do spin class at a local gym. I've got dodgy knees and ankles but find the spin class good as long as I don't turn the resistance on to full - which is fine as you just work to your own ability - there's no competition and the sessions I go to are a very mixed age group.

My local pool has just started advertising aquarobics for people who aren't quite as mobile - so gentle exercise with the support of water. Maybe there is somethingsimilar within reach in your area.Give your local leisure centre a call, you never know. Good luck.

They're not cheap, but would an electric bike be an option?

Have wondered about an electric bike. Would be interested to hear if any fellow sufferers have tried that?