What Does Exercise Do to Arthritic Joints?

By: Rebecca Ferguson, PT, DPT

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What is arthritis? Before we talk about how exercise impacts arthritic joints, I would like to first explain what arthritis is.

Arthritis has many different names: degenerative joint disease, degenerative disc disease, and spondylosis, just to name a few. The use of these different names often depends on the location of arthritis. There are also many types of arthritis — the two most common are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). RA is an inflammatory joint condition that leads to degeneration. (See the picture for more information.)

Please speak with your doctor to determine which form of arthritis you may have. In this article, we will focus on Osteoarthritis.

As we age, the soft cartilage tissue in the joints loses some of its water content and becomes less plump and less cushioned. As the soft tissue thins, a small amount of movement is allowed to occur within the joint. In other words, the two bones wiggle a little more than they used to. This increased movement leads to further breakdown of the cartilage. Eventually, the cartilage becomes very thin, as you can see above in the picture. Bones then rub together causing the buildup of bone spurs, because bones respond to stress by building more bone. (This is called Wolff’s Law.)

Now, you may be thinking that this sounds like a terrible cycle that simply cannot be stopped. But the good news is that proper, safe exercise and physical therapy can help.

How Can Exercise Help With Arthritis?

Exercise can help prevent arthritis by strengthening the correct muscles in the right way, the excess joint movement mentioned above can be significantly reduced. Muscles within the joint, and muscles in surrounding joints, all need to be strengthened. For example, if you have knee arthritis you will need to strengthen knee, ankle, and hip muscles.

Physical therapists are experts in what we call “exercise prescription” or determining appropriate exercises for you. Not only can we help determine the most effective exercises for you, but we can also determine the appropriate frequency, intensity, and duration. In other words, we’ll set up the exercises and resistance for you and tell you how many of each exercise to perform.

So, if you feel lost when thinking of how to exercise safely, it would be a good idea to ask your doctor for a referral to physical therapy. Sheltering Arms can get you started on a program that is specifically tailored to you based on a detailed evaluation.

If you feel you are comfortable starting with some exercises on your own, watch this video for some movement to get you started. Remember to start slow, with light weights if applicable, and listen to your body.

To learn more about our fitness and wellness programs, both in-person and virtual, contact one of our exercise physiologists today.

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