Osteoarthritis and exercise

[stillvicarinatutu]

Hi
I turned 50 last year and almost overnight my mobility was reduced - I'd moved house then had a 4 day city break where I walked a lot . Got home and leg knee and ankle swelled - was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in knees .
I did a really active job and had always run , cycled etc and suddenly I couldn't get in or out the bath , cope with stairs etc .

A year later and I'm no better, I've had steroid injections, naproxen, but my mobility is still an issue to the lint even getting up my own stairs is a challenge. I've put a stone and a half in and I'm also menopausal. I hate it !

I'm going to ask for another steroid injection and I'm back on naproxen despite it causing stomach problems, I've had physio and nothing has really helped .

Today in my lunch break I did 10 mins gentle walking on a treadmill and then 20 mins on an exercise bike . I'm suffering tonight but I need to get some weight off and apparently exercise does help with athritis.

Has anybody else managed to build back up to a decent degree of mobility and exercise? If so can you advise ?

I love my job but I'm desk bound which I find frustrating . I'm sick of the swelling and hobbling about- someone actually stopped me to ask if I was ok trying to do stairs at work the other day . I feel like I've aged 50 years overnight.

What's helped others please ? This is apparently early degenerative changed so if this is mild I'm dreading the future .

can you swim?

Not really .....despite being a Pisces I hate getting wet and the whole rigmarole of getting dry and hair and make up ....

I can only swim properly with a snorkel on !

I have moderate/severe arthritis in my left knee, moderate in my right. Left knee has full thickness loss of cartilage plus other issues including chronic tendinitis. I have had to stop running but continue with heavy weights, high intensity classes, skiing and hiking. I have occasional steroid injections and am looking at moving onto Hyaluronic acid. I have given up the naproxen as it stopped working. Take ibuprofen when I can’t sleep for the pain. I’ve had some relief with glucosamine and boswellia serrata supplements but you mustn’t take them at the same time as NSAIDS. It’s one or the other. I’m also on HRT.
The thing with arthritis is that the degre of severity isn’t related to the degree of pain - you can have mild arthritis with severe pain and vice versa.
You must manage your weight, experiment with pain relief and keep moving.

that's too bad, because swimming could be very supportive to worn joints. Excess weight itself is a risk factor for joint wear. Priority to get weight to healthy zone to protect joints. If you are ok with machines, then set them to lowest resistance, & consider a rowing machine.

My neighbour made it his NY Resolution to finally learn to swim. He was floundering around in pool the other day with scowl on his face ... but he was doing it.

He's nearly 70 & hadn't been in a pool in > 50 years.

I'm hugely pissed off with my weight gain - always been slim and now I feel like a whale .

The pain is really bad and I thought I was being a wuss and overreacting since the changes are early degeneration. Good to know on some level that it can still be painful and debilitating.
So is gentle walking and cycling ok do you think ?
I can do a rowing machine too . I am putting the weight gain down to be inactive. I used to run , dog walk , easily hit 10k steps a day and now I struggle getting halfway upstairs . It's so depressing!

Kissed
What weights do you do ? I used to do weights but not for a few years - we do have gyms at work for free so I could have another go - my physio said cycling or swimming so opted for cycling....

I don't know if this is my age , athritis or menopause but i ache everywhere. I know I've athritis in my knees - but my hips hurt , my toes hurt , my thumbs hurt , my ankles hurt and swell , is this just an age thing ? I've had X-rays in the ankles and no athritis but they bloody kill me , my joints all hurt - but I'm told this could be menopausal symptoms too ....

This sounds like my journey. I had a right knee replacement last year and need the other done in the next 18 months. Like you it seemed to happen overnight and coincided with menopause. I'm getting back to lots of walking with my dog which I was finding impossible and things are much better. I take Naproxen too. I always take it around an hour after taking omoprezole and food. I lost around 3 stone which really helped too. However you can't reverse osteoarthritis and may need to consider surgery x

I deadlift 100kg, squat 60kg onto the box (because knees), press 30-35kg. I train or do a class four days a week plus walking on the moor - steep uphill. My all over joint pains eased considerably once I got settled on hrt, but arthritis is what it is, it’s not going to get better. My approach to it is yes it’s painful, it’s not going to kill me, but inactivity might.

Vicar, speak to your GP about an hrt patch. Made me feel hugely better and I’m 58.

Yes I was going to ask about whether you were on HRT. Apparently it's v helpful for the joints

I am the same age and my joints are definitely more problematic. I have an issue with my big toe joint that is making all walking/running painful. I can now only wear trainers too.

Have you been to a physio? That has been a lifesaver for both me and dp. Dp has v severe osteoarthritis in his knee and the physio saw him for around 3-6 months. Dp, who never cries or makes a fuss about pain, was lying in bed in tears beforehand and now he has gone back to walking the dog etc. he is not pain free but he is so much more mobile. He went to see one attached to the hospital so it's worth seeking out one that usually works with whoever you see about your joints.

I have osteoarthritis in both knees. It got a bit bad in the summer - was finding walking difficult. My physio told me that building up strong core and glutes is essential as then the body works correctly and doesn’t put excessive pressure on the knees. I started doing a two minute plank and fifty squats every morning. This has been transformative for me and my knees are better than they’ve been for years. I also have a sports massage every couple of months which is agony, but I think really helpful to make sure my body is working properly. Any misalignment in the body leads to excess pressure on joints.

I think exercise is key. I’ve had signs of what I now think my be osteoarthritis since my late 30s (now late 40s), but it was a period of relatively little exercise for several months that brought on serious symptoms.

Weight is also key. I’m sure your weight gain is affected by the reduction in your activity level, but weight is much more related to food than exercise. I find intermittent fasting really helpful with weight management. I’m also trying to follow an anti-inflammatory diet - not sure if that is helping or not!

Any water based exercise will be good, aquafit, hydro therapy, swimming. Otherwise low impact, Pilates, yoga etc. My rheumatologist told me the bike is ok, cross trainer not so good on your knees. I’ve got RA & OA and find flexiseq gel very good.

I'm so glad I found this thread as I have suspected osteoarthritis in my left knee. I had an x-ray just before Christmas and have an appointment to discuss it with the GP next week.

I can't believer last year I was running half marathons and can now hardly walk. I've had to give up running and Pilates as I can't move my knee or put weight on it. I'm so depressed with it all. I've started swimming but it's not the same!

I don't want to rely on painkillers all the time but don't know what the options are apart from a knee replacement.

Have you seen a rheumatologist? If gp won’t refer I would go privately and find one that specialises in psa.

I haven't seen anyone yet. I'm hoping the GP will refer me somewhere but I'm worried they will say I just have to live it and take some painkillers.

@Tupperwarelid I would really recommend physio. Dp has gone from literally crying in bed at night from the pain and being terrified to move his leg to walking the dog again. It's made a massive difference. His MRI was such a horror show it took over a week for the report to be checked again because they couldn't believe how bad his knee was. But intensive physio with a specialist at the hospital has turned his life around.

The only thing that helps my arthritis is diet and exercise. I never have steroids due to the long term effects. Even 5 pounds weight gain causes massive problems.
I keep moving all the time.

time for a referral to a rheumy & specialist physio.

sadly for weight loss diet should be the main focus. look up on foods that reduce inflammation.

Pilates, swimming, physio and low inflammation diet. Alcohol probably won’t help.
Vit d, magnesium (bath soak and supplements). Tumeric the liquid or fresh is the best.
Definitely see a rheumatologist to rule out inflammatory types of arthritis etc.
Mine started in my 30’s in multiple joints, I have to exercise 2-4 times a week to stay on top of the stiffness and pain. It gets worse quickly if i don’t exercise.
sedentary job does not help.
also check HRT etc as others have suggested.

To save retyping …. some good advice here.

Great advice about choosing low inflammatory foods too.

You can’t fix osteoarthritis but you can lessen the symptoms and make it easier to live with. My GP was vary interested in how I went from needing a new knee to being able to manage, thanks to strength training. Yes it hurts to exercise, but functional fitness can make every day more manageable.

Try aquafit, yoga and pilates.

Naproxen didn't work for my OA but do try it with paracetamol if you are having a flare up. Ask GP for lanzaprole prescription to take with it and protect your stomach.

I'm in the midst of a flare up but have starting some long overdue swimming and gentle gym work and although it can be painful at the time I feel far better afterwards and can sleep.

HRT did wonders for my all over aches!

Ask for a physio referral and they can give you exercises and discuss the most suitable activities.

Vit D, Magnesium, HRT, water aerobics, pilates, and, sadly, reducing the amount I eat now that I do less exercise.