Corporate Fitness and Active Aging

Arthritis is not a sign that you are aging; rather, it is a testament to the vibrant life you have led and all the incredible things your body has accomplished for you! Just imagine the tales your joints could share. Now, it is time to embrace a new narrative for this season of your life, embracing those little creaks. By making simple adjustments to your exercise and wellness regime, you can stay active, strong, mobile, and happy. Here is what you can do to keep your joints healthy as you age.  

Adjust your Workouts 

When choosing exercises, it is essential to consider activities that are gentle on the joints but still effective in building strength and flexibility. Here are five arthritis-friendly exercises:  

• Walking: A simple yet effective way to keep moving without putting too much strain on your joints. 

• Swimming: The buoyancy of water supports your body and reduces the impact on your joints while providing an excellent full-body workout. 

• Yoga and Tai Chi: These practices focus on gentle movements, balance, and flexibility, making them ideal for improving joint function and reducing stress. 

• Cycling: Whether stationary or on the road, cycling is a low-impact exercise that helps build muscle strength and improves cardiovascular health. 

Three Lifestyle Habits to Adopt 

• Staying well-hydrated ensures that joint cartilage remains lubricated, which minimizes friction. 

• Quality sleep allows your body to recover and rejuvenate. 

• Consuming nutrient-rich foods packed with minerals can help alleviate arthritis symptoms, such as flare-ups. 

Flare-ups may occur due to changes in temperature or barometric pressure, high-stress situations, alterations in medication, and even weight gain. Understanding what causes flareups can help you manage them better.  

Consider Supplements  

Research has shown that taking natural supplements can decrease your arthritis symptoms. According to the Harvard School of Medicine, supplements like Glucosamine, Boswellia, Turmeric and White Willow Bark have shown to have beneficial effects on joint pain. Like any medication, it is important to find out if there are any contraindication’s and consult with a trained professional researching any supplement, medication, or surgery alternatives.  

Movement is Medicine  

Remember, the key to managing arthritis through exercise is consistency. Even tiny amounts of daily activity can lead to significant improvements in joint health and overall quality of life. So, lace up those sneakers, take that first step, and embrace the benefits that movement can bring to your arthritis care plan.  

You wake up one day, and something feels "off." You helped your friend move into their new apartment yesterday, so you expect to be a little sore. As you take your first step out of bed, a jolt of electricity shoots up your leg, and your knee buckles. You stay down on your bad knee, staring at the ground in shock. It's happening.

I call this the "Awakening." Simply put, you are realizing that your body is feeling the wear and tear of life to this point. It’s that realization that at 40 years old, you shouldn't move through life like you're 20. The point at which an individual becomes self-aware of these aches and pains varies from person to person. Some people don’t have substantial damage to their body and can probably make it well past their 20s before being bothered. My experience, like a lot of other athletes I've talked to, is one where we start to feel the damage a bit earlier than expected. It's like a car that is supposed to be driven ten thousand miles a year but is instead driven twenty thousand. The good part of the awakening process is that it is your call to action!

Awareness is often the first step in meaningful change. If we can acknowledge that we aren’t getting any younger and that our bodies are going to break down as we age, we can start to put a plan together to at least slow down the process. I am a firm believer that movement is medicine, so in the rest of this post, I will address fitness regarding aging. Here are three key principles to help you combat the wear and tear on the body as you age through health and fitness:

1. Warmups and Mobility Work Are Your Best Friends
   Just as a newer car can heat up quickly, an older car might need a few minutes to warm up. The same applies to our bodies. If I went to play soccer without warming up like I was a teenager, I would need a stretcher back to my car. Be sure to include a solid dynamic warmup before any form of exercise. Mobility drills, especially for the shoulders and ankles, can also really help with injury prevention and aging gracefully.
2. Be Honest with Yourself
   You wake up and look in the mirror every day. For the most part, we all can at least generalize what fitness level we are at. If I had a scale of 1-5, with 5 being a professional athlete-caliber workout, why would I try those at level 1? Be real with yourself and scale the intensity and exercise selection to your current fitness level.
3. Consistency Is the End Goal
   From my experience working at a retirement community, the people who were in the best physical condition at seventy-plus years old were those who got their exercise in daily. Whether it was group fitness, individual time on the stationary bike, or walking the dog, they made sure to make it work for them. Consistency trumps all because it will allow the body to build strength and resiliency to combat the inevitable weakening that comes with time.

While becoming aware of one’s own limitations may seem discouraging, a slight shift in perspective can help. Imagine having the freedom to move through life without restriction. Ultimately, I believe we desire freedom. Our body is something we have control over, so take matters into your hands and liberate your future self today.

Arthritis is an increasingly common condition that refers to 100 different types of diseases, affects all age groups and affects 1 in 4 adults, equating to 80 million people in the United States. The most common form seen is osteoarthritis or degenerative joint disease and we see these conditions impacting the lives of residents in the senior living communities we serve every day. Studies have shown that half of adults living with this condition do not believe anything can be done, but in fact there are many strategies that can be employed in daily living and in exercise that can provide a better quality of life for those affected.

Everything starts with your feet so investing in shoes with adequate cushioning and stabilization should be a top priority. Sneakers with extra cushioning should be your choice for most athletic activities, New Balance are great for different width selection and are very durable. Hoka provides excellent cushioning and a ‘rocker’ shaped sole for easier propulsion. Some trial and error is required to find a brand and style that will work best for each individual. Ensuring you are at your healthiest weight will also relieve stress on the joints and associated pain. Speaking of pain, use the 2-hour rule which is if a joint is still hurting from an activity after that duration of time it is a sign that you are most likely overexerting yourself. Next, learn how to move with efficiency and purpose using the best posture and techniques possible. That means reducing range of motion on movements that cause sharp pain and avoid exercises with heavy heel strikes like running or stairs. Low impact is always better, exercising in water, exploring yoga and tai chi and choosing an elliptical vs a treadmill are all savvy decisions.

Another important factor to note is exercising with joint replacements which have general and specific guidelines depending on the joint that was replaced. A general rule is to decrease the range of motion and speed of movement for all replacements as well as avoiding contact sports. Total hip replacements should avoid flexion greater than 90 degrees or 70 degrees with a history of dislocation and crossing the midline of the body in the front or back. Total knees should look out for rotational stress and begin with closed chain work such as a bicycle before progressing to open chain exercises with heel and toe strikes such as pickleball. Total shoulder replacements should avoid contact sports like basketball, heavy, repetitive lifting and chopping motions.

A rest day in between every bout of exercise is recommended with 3 days a week being a great goal for most exercisers. Respecting pain and prioritizing recovery are essential for adherence as well as adapting extra rest days when your body is calling for a long, less active weekend.

Finally, rest and relaxation are essential to managing arthritis with flexibility done at the end of sessions to ensure adequate blood flow in the areas being stretched. In addition, meditation and guided imagery are helpful in focusing on areas that are tense and can be relaxed through isometric contraction and relaxation such as Jacobson’s progressive technique.

As you can see, there are numerous considerations to improving or maintaining joint health and our qualified fitness staff in senior living communities across the US are developing customized exercise plans helping residents move more with less pain.