Osteoarthritis is a progressive form of arthritis that occurs when the cartilage in your joints wears down, eventually causing the bone ends to rub together. Cartilage is found throughout your body but is typically located in joints such as the knee to provide cushioning for your bones when you perform activities that place weight and impact on your knees. It may be difficult to exercise with severe osteoarthritis of the knees, but activity may help your condition.
Identification
During osteoarthritis, you have pain from less cartilage, which may occur during activity or progress to near-constant pain. You may develop osteoarthritis in your knees if you carry extra weight on your body, as this puts added pressure on the knees. Some people who have had previous knee injuries or surgery may develop osteoarthritis, as the cartilage in the knee is already compromised. You might be hesitant to exercise with severe osteoarthritis because it may seem to cause more pain, but the benefits of exercise can help to improve your overall symptoms.
Benefits
Exercise is important for osteoarthritis because inactivity can cause your joints to become stiffer. Exercising the muscles surrounding your knee will help to build strength to support your knee when walking or moving. Exercising with severe osteoarthritis in your knees can promote weight loss, which puts less pressure on your knees, improves your balance and may make the cartilage surrounding the knee more flexible.
Types
Several types of exercise strengthen the muscles of your leg to help manage severe osteoarthritis of the knee. Avoid high-impact activities that place a lot of pressure on the joint. Strengthening the quadriceps muscle, the large muscle in the front of the upper leg, can help to support your knee joint. Practice sitting in a chair with your feet flat on the floor. Lift one leg and straighten it, holding it for 10 seconds. Slowly lower your leg and repeat on the other side. For aerobic activity, walking or swimming for 30 minutes a day provides cardiovascular benefits and is low-impact for your knee joints.
Significance
If you are working with a physical therapist for exercise, he may add other therapies to help reduce pain for you to perform the work. For example, heat packs applied to the knee joint may help to relax your muscles before beginning exercise, while applying ice packs may help to reduce pain after exercising. Begin your exercise regimen with a warming up period to loosen your muscles, and end your routine with 5 to 10 minutes of cooling down and stretches to keep your muscles from tightening.
Considerations
If you do not normally exercise, talk with your doctor about starting an exercise program if you have severe osteoarthritis in your knees. If your joints become red or swollen, allow them to rest and recover before continuing activity. Some over the counter medications, such as acetaminophen, may decrease joint pain to enable you to exercise. If your pain suddenly changes or increases with activity, talk with your doctor about what exercises are best for your condition.
