Well, with just over 6 weeks to go before I run the inaugural Safari Park Half Marathon on March 13, I'm finally having a solid week without illness, and thought I would talk a bit about training with Osteoarthritis.
Osteoarthritis is a painful condition in which the cartilage found in the joints begins to wear away. Cartilage helps to absorb friction between the ends of the bones in your joints. As the cartilage is damaged, bone rubs on bone, causing pain and stiffness. If you have osteoarthritis in your hips and/or knees, you may find everyday activities and sports such as running difficult. However, there are some steps you can take to help.
Get Your Condition Properly Diagnosed
Talk to your doctor to set up a X-ray or MRI in order to fully assess your situation. If your osteoarthritis (OA) is severe enough, you may need to stop running for a while. In some cases you may need to go through a period of physical therapy or even have surgery first to relieve your symptoms. Get your symptoms properly diagnosed to make sure that running will not make your arthritis worse.
For me, the degeneration of my hip joints has been a long slow process thanks to Joint Advance natural joint supplement. My doctor is all about safety, and so far he has been really happy with what my X-rays show. He urges me to keep running and taking Joint Advance.
General Tips
According to the Arthritis Foundation, there are some general guidelines to help you manage your osteoarthritis so you can get back to the activities you enjoy such as running. Talk with your doctor or physical therapist about using a brace. A proper brace can help to support your joints and take the pressure off so you can run. Losing any excess weight will also help to reduce the strain on your joints when you run. Taking anti-inflammatory medication and using heat and ice therapy may also help you to manage your symptoms.
Luckily my OA isn't yet bad enough that I've needed a brace, but I did lose some excess weight. Losing weight has had a HUGE impact on my ability to train and run. It just makes sense... less weight to support and carry.
Strength Train
The Arthritis Foundation states that the best non-drug treatment for osteoarthritis is exercise. Running can place a lot of strain on your joints. Strengthening the muscles surrounding your hips and knees will help relieve some of your osteoarthritis symptoms and may allow you to run. Exercises such as squats, lunges, leg extensions, leg presses and hamstring curls will all help. Make sure you also add in some side leg lifts to strengthen the inner and outer thighs as well.
I can't stress enough how important this point has been for my journey. By putting in an extra 15 minutes at the gym to do some leg work, I've seen a dramatic reduction in the amount of pain I feel after running. My recovery time after long runs has been cut in half!
Stretch
Stretching the muscles that surround your joints is just as important as strength training to help you manage your osteoarthritis while you run. When your muscles are tight they can pull on the joints and create more pain. In addition, having osteoarthritis can make your joints stiff. Make sure you stretch your hamstring muscles, quadriceps, periformis and calf muscles. The best time to stretch is right after you run and your muscles are warm. Also, light stretching before you run can help reduce your chance for injury.
Try a Different Surface
According to RunnersWorld.com, some surfaces are better than others to run on, especially if you are living with osteoarthritis. They place the following surfaces in order from best to run on to worst to run on: grass, wood chips, dirt, synthetic track, treadmill, asphalt, sand and then concrete, which they claim is about 10 times harder than asphalt.
In addition, you may want to cross train. Try deep water running during which you wear a special flotation device that keeps you upright and your feet off the bottom of the pool. You then mimic the motions of running with your arms and legs. You get a workout similar to running but without the stress on your joints.
Similarly, I'm training 5 days per week to be ready for this race in March, and the wear and tear caused by running everyday is just more than I could physically handle. I've found the lower impact of an eliptical trainer to be a lifesaver! I run on the eliptical 3 times per week (Mon, Tue and Thurs), hit the treadmill once a week (Fri), and do one long road run on the weekend (Sun).
I hope you enjoy my blog, and check back each week for more! As always, drop me a line or comment...
Health to YOU!!
Tommy
I control my OA! It doesn't control ME!
1 comment:
As an MR tech, i can tell you that regular scans are a must if you undergo activities such as running with Osteoarthritis. MRI scanners are very safe, and they give the clearest picture of the soft tissues.
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