Where to begin again (with arthritis)?

K

Kittyn

New Member
Years ago, I was a good 1 to 2 hour a day exerciser. Mostly toned, pretty fit and Loved my Cathe dvds. Move forward a few years, had a theft of all my workout dvds, stopped exercising (because I hate gyms and my dvds were the last thing to be replaced and they never got replaced:), had another baby, arthritis started acting up and here I am 30-something and unfit. Looking to replace my favorite dvds and wondering if perhaps I need to start much easier:) My arthritis pain is mostly in the knees and shoulders with some in the hips and I have been told that if the muscles get stronger the pain will be less. I saw the low impact series which seems perfect in some ways (I still walk and bike everyday - my bike and feet are my car:) Years ago I just loved my muscle workouts with Cathe - I think the ones I used were like the gym style and something to do with pyramids - haven't searched through the whole site yet. I know my form, I know the weights to use, but I wonder if my joints will protest this type of workout now. Is there anyone out there who suffers from joint pain of some kind and has comments or suggestions? I need to get fit again (my baby is now 2, my son runs 5km all the time and my daughters' idea of a good mom/daughter time is dancing to the games on the Kinect (or Wii) (well that or marathon shopping - at least I can take a break during dance games:). I should mention on bad days when I was exercising I would do a short low impact cardio and then work the muscle group of the day - usually with lower weights if the problem area was included - then the pain was in the fingers and knees mostly - so only lower body days and cardio had to be modified. Thanks for any and all suggestions.
 
Definitely, start with the new Low Impact Series. Don't forget the beginner's rotation. The workout older workout you are thinking of is 'Pyramids' That is one of my favorites. I'm so sorry that your DVDs were stolen. Thats just horrible!!

You might look into taking epsom salt baths at night. Also, you might look into using ginger capsules to help with the arthritis. My mom takes them for her arthritis and I have taken it in the past (my lump disappeared.) I'm not a doctor, but I know that it helped me.
 
I like the saying, "Motion is Lotion," when it comes to arthritis. Think about the Low Impact Series. So sorry about your DVDs. Good luck.
 
exercise-lover said:
I like the saying, "Motion is Lotion," when it comes to arthritis. Think about the Low Impact Series. So sorry about your DVDs. Good luck.
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I always try and stay in motion - walking and biking but still there are days when the pain makes this difficult. I learned to knit just to keep my fingers in motion. And it really does help - staying moving even through the pain and the next day it is easier. I am grateful that it isn't an everyday thing for me yet! I have pain most days but not PAIN. I'm thinking the Low Impact may be just what I need to regain some of that strength and endurance I have lost. Now just have to decide what to buy. I can see myself buying the whole store lol. The slide N glide thing looks fun. I can see the kids playing with it though. Loved my Cathe earlier because (at least years ago) her dvds didn't say such stupid things like Look at her abs, that is how yours will look when you do this workout all the time (my abs have never been flat even when I was young and thin:). Encouraging but not overly perky with great pointers, some I learned from her even though I had been training for years before discovering her! I think I had hundreds of workout dvds - people used to buy them for me for birthdays and everything else, but every week I would use the Cathe ones and many would be used once a month or once every few months.
 
Just thinking outside the box; Beachbody has a new program out called Tae Chang. It is Tae Chi with Dr. Chang. Before each flow, he does a neural –reboot. I think this program is worth the price just for these reboots. I have never done Tae Chi and use to dismiss it as something on the fringe. Of course I use to think about yoga that way until I tried it. I found yoga to be very challenging from a mental point of view. Tae Chi is the same way, just harder. I’m always surprised that I actually work up a mild sweat even though I don’t feel like I’m exerting that much effort. The program is supposed to bring balance to your body, release any tight muscles and increase range of motion. I notice it really helps my planter fasciitis. I use this program as a warm up to more challenging work outs.
 
I can't imagine chronic pain like you must have, Kittyn. I do have arthritis in my right knee because of a torn ACL. I know when I don't exercise, it really aches. I didn't exercise last week (life got in the way). The knee started talking to me. I pulled out "High Reps," and the very day after I was fine again! I think all the leg work wakes up the muscles that stabilize the knee. I cannot do high impact. I ice my knee after long hikes, then put heat on it later to keep the inflamation down.

I really like how you've done things to keep moving, like the knitting for your hands. I think you're doing all you can. Good for you!
 
What I decided so far...

I decided to go ahead and start the beginner routine and downloaded the videos. Today was Basic Step and Lower Body. The step work - considering I can't add an extra step without extra pain was easy (what a relief though because I thought everything would be impossible!) I think I could have repeated it twice more and felt worked out. The lower body work was more challenging - mostly because the pain that occurs in the knee and the hip - lack of working out has made all the muscles weak and all the movements involved are well painful (climbing stairs makes me feel old:) Now I don't have the nice burn I like to feel after working out the muscles, but I think I will gain some strength back without pushing the muscles too hard. I do feel like I could do more because I like that feeling of oh yeah I worked out to last more than a minute. Directly after workout I feel great. I remember the first time doing the Pyramid series and I needed a hot bath and a brisk walk to feel great - love that feeling though. Oh and I had some issues with my floor I am going to have to deal with - we have a different floor and it is slippery - both the step and if I'm not careful my shoes will slip - I have fantastic shoes and an anti-slip step, but this floor is the kind where kids put on their socks and go ice skating lol.
I think I'm going to stick with this routine for now even though it isn't as challenging as I would like. I also think on megapain days this is an ideal workout. I know I need more challenge especially with the cardio, so I'm still figuring it all out. I think perhaps adding in some of the cardio from the low impact series will help. I used to love kickboxing (low impact style) And in a bit adding in some more intense workout for those muscles. It is amazing how much strength I have lost!
Thanks for the suggestions - I'm going to keep some of the others in mind as I get stronger.
 
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