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Media Releases
May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month
Eight Steps to Safe, Rewarding and Enjoyable Exercise
Columbia, Mo. (May. 16, 2006) Exercise can be a difficult thing for anyone and it gets even harder for people with arthritis. How to stay motivated in face of stiffness and pain? How to make the fullest use of exercise without hurting the joints? Experts at the Missouri Arthritis Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (MARRTC) have some tips for you to establish a safe, rewarding and enjoyable exercise routine.
The health benefits of appropriate regular exercise have been recognized by many living with arthritis, yet they are still less likely to get recommended levels of exercise than the average American. Thirty-seven percent of those with arthritis report doing no exercise at all, according to a national survey published in American Journal of Preventive Medicine this May.
"A lot of them understand staying active is important and they want to do it, but they don't know how. Once the exercise begins, they start to worry if they do too much or if they do it the right way, so they quit," explains Marian Minor, physical therapist, Ph.D., who works extensively with people having osteoarthritis of the hip and the knee.
As MARRTC's co-principal investigator and chair of the Department of Physical Therapy in the School of Health Professions at the University of Missouri-Columbia, Minor has conducted various studies on exercise and osteoarthritis. Here are some steps she says individuals with osteoarthritis may take to succeed in their exercise program.
Join a class. If you're not sure how to start your exercise routine, it's ideal to join an exercise class. Starting with a professional trainer assures that you are in good hands, while working with peers provides both emotional and informational support.
Rally your family around. Minor finds from her exercise studies that family influence matters a lot to the success of an exercise program. Having your family and friends rally behind you or work out with you is one of the best motivations you can ever have.
Start off slowly. If you haven't been physically active for some time, you'd better start slowly. It's perfectly acceptable to begin your routine with just three to five minutes a day. Gradually increase the time you exercise, even if it's only by a minute a week, and work up to the recommended 30 minutes a day.
Keep the doses small. It's not necessary to finish your daily quota at one time. Divide total exercise time into small sessions. You may have ten minutes of walking in the morning, ten minutes of weight lifting in the afternoon and ten minutes of stretching in the evening.
Stick to your regimen. It's best to exercise three to four days a week, 30 minutes a day. If your condition makes it unlikely for you to reach 30 minutes a day, you may reduce the time, but try to keep the regularity. "The most important thing is to establish a habit and stick to it," says Minor, "a little bit everyday is better than nothing."
Set reasonable goals. The physical and psychological reward from achieving a goal could keep you in your exercise routine. However, too big a goal could dampen your enthusiasm. So make sure your nearest goal is attainable. It can be as small as tying shoelace by yourself or going up stairs foot over foot.
Do whatever works best for you. What helps one person may not work as well for another. "Keep experiment until you find what works best for you and what you really enjoy" is Minor's suggestion. Some exercise types you may start experimenting with include:
Gentle stretching - It helps you get a better range of motion and increase flexibility. Yoga, Tai Chi and Pilates are some examples of stretching.
Aerobic exercise - It helps with blood circulating and can reduce heart rate and improve endurance. Walking, cycling, swimming and dancing are some mild intensity aerobics you may consider.
Strength Training - It can improve endurance and strength, as well as your tolerance to pain. If your are not comfortable working with free weights or elastic bands, lifting your own body weight by getting up and down may do the trick.
Avoid overdoing it. Build up your exercise tolerance at a rate you can cope with. Sometimes, Minor says, people feel so much better after exercise that they decide to do more, which may eventually cause severe stress on the muscles and joints. In some cases, the aftermath could keep someone from exercise for the rest of their lives.
If you have further questions or if you are interested in learning more about the exercise research study Dr. Minor is conducting, please call 573-882-4012 or email pt_research@health.missouri.edu.
The Missouri Arthritis Research Rehabilitation and Training Center (MARRTC) was established in 1971 at the University of Missouri-Columbia Arthritis Center. MARRTC is funded by the U.S. Department of Education's National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (H133B031120) and is the only federally funded arthritis rehabilitation research and training center in the country.
As part of the MU Health Communication Research Center (HCRC), MARRTC's mission is to become a national leader in the areas of disability management and communication, improve the quality of life and promote independent living among people who have arthritis and arthritic conditions. MARRTC's core message is "Disability is everyone's issue."
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