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Rheumatoid Arthritis affects the joints and muscles of the body, the
pain and stiffness associated with the disease can make any type of
physical activity seem like a horrible nightmare. Unfortunately,
inactivity in people with Rheumatoid Arthritis can lead to serious
problems such as the degeneration of muscle tissue, lower flexibility,
lower muscle strength, and lower cardio stamina.
There are ways to
prevent these things from occurring; since Rheumatoid Arthritis is
marked by periods of flares and remission, it is possible to adopt an
exercise regimen that can be done during the times of remission that
won’t stress out the body or cause harm to the joints. To make sure
that you get the most benefit out of the regimen discuss it with a
personal trainer that is familiar with Rheumatoid Arthritis, your
physician/rheumatologist, or physical therapist so that it can be
matched best to your personal abilities.
The types of exercises that are recommended the most for people with
Rheumatoid Arthritis include stretching/range of motion, strength
building, and aerobic exercises. The benefits of each of these types of
exercises are meant to aid in your rehabilitation during your times of
remission and ease the pain that comes during a flare period. Exercises
you will want to avoid are anything that is considered high impact,
such as jogging on hard surfaces and heavy weight lifting. As with any
type of exercise you will want to start slowly, making sure not to over
exert yourself causing more harm to your joints.
Stretching is the easiest to start out with since it allows you to
stretch and tense the muscles and joints without any over exertion of
movement that would cause additional pain to the joints. Once you have
reached a level of endurance with the stretching you can move on to
strength building. Strength building of course helps to build the
strength of your muscles; this is done by utilizing two methods called
isotonic strength building and isometric strength building. When your
strength stamina has been built up you can then move on to aerobic
training which helps to build up the stamina of your body. In time,
when you feel that you have built enough stamina and when your body
feels good enough you can then move on to other methods of exercise
such as participating in Tai Chi and Yoga.
Rheumatoid Arthritis can be a debilitating disease, but if you
involve yourself in a regular exercise regimen, it doesn’t have to be.
There will be days that you are so stiff that you just can’t move and
then there are the days that you feel like a normal functioning person;
take advantage of those days. Exercise not only can help you reduce
your pain during flares, it can also help you live longer, maintain a
healthy weight which puts less stress on your joints, strengthen your
bones, increase and preserve your muscle strength, increase your
flexibility, and help you feel better about yourself in general because
you actually do feel better.
Remember to start slowly and build yourself up to more strenuous
exercises, even if you have exercised before but stopped. Wear clothing
that is comfortable and loose so that your movements do not get
restricted and wear flat shoes that support your feet. Always perform
some sort of warm up routine before getting into any real type of
exercise; the more blood flow there is to your muscles the less likely
you will be to sustain an exercise related injury. A good warm up
routine is one that raises your temperature slightly, low impact
stationary marching and swinging your arms from one side to the other
is a good way to get your body ready for your exercise regimen. This
warm up can also be done while sitting, simply lift one knee then the
other and swing your arms from side to side.
Don’t panic if after you’re done with your exercise regimen your
muscles are sore, this is just your muscles adjusting to the activity
level you are running them though. As time passes your muscles will
stop hurting as they get accustom to the exercises. However, if the
pain continues, it may be a sign that you are doing too much at once,
cut back on the amount or type of exercise you are doing and see if
that helps to relieve the pain. If you’ve cut back on your regimen and
still find that you continue to be sore, achy, tired, or experience
swelling, join pain, or loss of movement consult your physician or
Rheumatologist, trainer, or therapist immediately, it may signal a more
serious problem.
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