Many people suffer from joint pain. The reason for this is often a lack of exercise. A little physical activity is enough to get rid of joint pain. Which sports are good for your joints and which mini-exercise helps immediately.
Dear readers, to be honest, I’m a bit fed up with the topic: Germany is not moving enough. While the statement comes across as rather worn out, our trainers still look suspiciously new and clean on the shelf. And yet the “trend of lack of exercise” continues to increase. Almost every second German is currently no longer getting enough exercise. And with that, we willingly open the door to obesity, chronic back pain and arthrosis.
Because while lazybones and excuse world champions try to send their pedometer app on vacation, avoid every meter and rust, the cartilage dries up and the display on our scales goes up. Too little exercise not only leads to more flab on the ribs. Every additional kilo puts a disproportionate load on our joints.
Small example? Just five kilos overweight already doubles the risk of knee arthrosis. And not only our comfortable mind, but also the highly dangerous belly fat, which we have already tackled in my previous column, feel right at home in the deceptive comfort zone.
Meike Diessner is the founder of the practice for integrative orthopedics in Bochum and specializes in conservative therapy methods. As a sports and nutritionist, the topic of healthy eating is particularly important to her. More information can be found on their website or their Instagram channel.
“Joints in Happiness” by Meike Diessner
You can’t say that about our musculature, on the contrary: with a permanent lack of exercise, the slack muscles are no longer able to ensure the necessary stability of our shell. At the same time, the joint capsules shrink, the joints become increasingly stiff and one day the cartilage says goodbye – and at some point it hurts. So the body shuts down on every level except the pain scale.
But don’t we all want an active life? No matter how we organize our everyday life, one thing definitely connects us: We want to feel good and our gears should run smoothly. According to the current state of research, not much is necessary: let’s keep moving, let’s feed our cartilage and oil our joints. If you live an active life, just take the stairs and not the elevator, or get on your bike for smaller errands, you will already keep your joints happy.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a minimum of 150 minutes of physical activity per week. That’s just 20 minutes a day that’s supposed to reduce our risk of dying by 10 percent. We are not moving towards immortality, but we are pushing an important factor that can have a positive effect on our quality of life and expectations. After all, this is about happy joints.
And quite profane: activity makes you happy. Physical activity releases happiness hormones and reduces stress hormones. As a result, the intensity of pain is also perceived less strongly. Because once pain restricts movement, it becomes difficult. Both acute and chronic pain are literal stressors. For the body, the soul, the affected regions, but also the neighboring structures that are overstrained by a protective posture or try to compensate for the imbalance of the stricken colleague.
We already know foods that quench chronic inflammation from my last post. Now let’s see what our cartilage needs as nourishment: This is primarily joint fluid (synovia), a yellowish viscous “goo” that contains, among other things, the body’s own hyaluronic acid. The synovial fluid essentially lubricates our gearbox and, like in a car, we have to change the oil.
Best of all, it happens automatically – provided we move and get off the couch. Then there is a positive pressure on our cartilage, which is squeezed out like sponges and freed from waste products. When the pressure eases, the cartilage expands again and soaks up the nutrient-rich synovial fluid. Oil changed, cartilage fed and ready to do its shock absorbing job again.
Of course, with my column I would like to continue to ensure that you, dear readers, do not have to come to my practice in Bochum in the first place. Even if we don’t get to know each other personally. But what is more important is that you are well and that your gearbox is well oiled. My goal is therefore to give you a sensitivity for your body feeling. Doesn’t it make absolutely no difference whether you walked 8865 steps today and 9005 yesterday? You don’t need to spend your money on expensive fitness trackers to know that.
Listen to your body’s signals. Observe how you feel after a ten-hour drive and after a walk with your four-legged friend. You will quickly notice that even small changes lead to big improvements and you will feel when you have moved enough.
More sensitivity to our well-being requires intelligent movement behavior. Let me quickly make one thing clear: no one should train “into the pain” or suppress complaints according to the motto “close your eyes and through”. On the other hand, overly cautious behavior is not the method of choice. Choose simple exercises like the following.
Have you been sitting in front of the computer for five hours again? Then it’s time to relieve your shoulders. To do this, we take a full bottle (1 to 1.5 liters) or a light dumbbell (1.5 kilograms) in our hands and swing back and forth quite easily while standing for three minutes. The downward pull allows your neck muscles, shoulders and tendons to relax – and yes, that counts as exercise!
So the best way to combat aching joints is with joint-gentle, consistent training and well-dosed exercise. Not with unfiltered activism. For better orientation, here is an overview of which sports you should avoid if you have joint pain and which are good for your joints.
your dr Meike Diessner
Our team of experts has compiled more than 1,700 excellent clinics for you, divided according to indications and regions.
