Experience Less Joint Pain During Workouts
Running and walking are the easiest,
cheapest and most immediate types of exercise we can do to preserve our
body, lose weight or stay in shape. Unfortunately, age, past injuries
and joint problems may cause this workout to feel painful and
unrewarding.
If you suffer joint pain during running or
walking, it doesn't mean you have to stop. You just have to know how to
do it the right way. That is why I'd like to give you a few tips to
avoid pain and physical damage while you work out.
1. Add low resistance training to your
schedule.
Running and walking are not the only activities you can do. It is
recommended to combine other styles of training that work on
cardiovascular endurance and do not apply strong pressure on the joints.
This can be elliptical training (on an elliptical machine), biking,
swimming, dancing, etc. These other activities will even improve your
skill at running. You can try to combine 3 running workouts with 2 low
resistance workouts instead of running to fill your week.
2. Eat less iodine
A diet that includes very little iodine can reduce the symptoms of
arthritis and other pains while allowing the body to better recover
after a workout.
A few foods you should avoid:
Dairy products
Egg yolk
Pastries
Soy products
Chocolate (excluding dark chocolate)
A few foods you should eat:
Fresh fruits and vegetables
Honey
Nuts
Egg white
Pasta
3. Get off the road and pavement
Running or walking on hard concrete treats your joints to regular, hard
shocks. Running or walking on softer land such as the beach, regular
earth or grass is much more forgiving for your joints and will inflict
less damage. Also, if you run or walk on a dirt road, each step you take
will be a little different, and so impact a different point in the
joint - a preferred result to applying that same pressure on the same
part of the joint over and over again.
4. Run the way you feel
Avoid running in a pre-determined rhythm, especially when you have to
fight for it and already feel like it's hard for you, as you risk
inflammation and pain. Run according to your feeling and be attentive to
your breathing. Choose the effort that's right for you according to
your level of fitness and the level of pain you are experiencing.
Light effort - You need to be able to talk while you run. If you can't,
you're working too hard.
Medium effort - One level harder, which you get to when you can already
hear your breathing very clearly, but still control it.
Hard effort - Your breathing should be labored and you are straining,
but still in control. If you don't feel as if you are in control of your
breathing, you've crossed the line between hard effort and an effort
that harms you.
5. Exercise regularly
Studies show that regular physical activity can help protect you from
health issues in both the short and long term future. You should always
be moving. Don't avoid running for long periods of time and then
suddenly return to a hard effort run, because that's a great way to hurt
yourselves. The more regular your exercise, the better for your joints.
6. Get a good warm-up
Running on 'cold muscles' can aggravate joint pain. Put time into
warming up to increase the flow of blood to the muscles you are about to
work with. A warm shower before and after the run may also help,
literally warming up the muscles. This method is especially effective
for those running in the cold hours of the morning.
7. Change your running shoes on time
First, invest in good running shoes that will take pressure off your
joints. Second, replace those shoes every 500-650 km (300-400 miles).
Why? Because no matter how good the shoes, they WILL lose the ability to
protect your joints from shocks after that amount of usage.
8. Reduce long-distance running or walking
There is no objective measure for what a long distance is. Long-distance
is any distance that FEELS long for you and your body. If you like
running for longer distances during the weekend, it is a good idea
letting your body heal. Instead of taking that long run every weekend,
do it every two weeks or even every three. You can still run on the
weekend, but try not to overload yourselves. Many people feel better
when they do the distances over a few workouts, especially as we get
older.
9. Try a combination of running and walking
Instead of applying pressure to the joints during your entire workout,
try to combine a 3-4 minute run with a 1-2 minute walk, alternating
between the two as you continue on your workout. You'll be able to feel
the difference from the very first workout, and your joints will thank
you for the little breaks, in the pressure you give them.