Best Tips to Keep Moving!

We had a popular discussion recently on social media about arthritis – the swelling and tenderness in your joints. Lots of us have it in some form, in fact, about 25% of all adults do (and it’s not limited to older ages!). It can feel debilitating, and too painful to even exercise. 

So Cat Kom asked the Komrades Facebook group to provide tips on continuing to live an active lifestyle while managing arthritis symptoms. If this is something that’s slowing you down or causing you pain, let us tell you – no matter your age, you are NOT alone, and your peers have great ideas to support you. 

Top tips from your peers for managing arthritis symptoms:

1) Keep moving. This advice was fairly universal and doesn’t mean you need to do HIIT training every day. But it does mean you should incorporate some movement into each day. Try yoga or a LISS (low intensity) ride, or modify a traditional workout as you need to. On a rest day, you’ve still got to get up and about. Even a slow walk around the neighborhood will help with inflammation in your joints. 

2) Massage. Treating yourself to a spa day sounds lovely, but can sure be expensive. There are great DIY options to massage the soft tissue surrounding your joints. Cat shares that even she has a bit of arthritis in her mouse finger, so has tried massaging with a lacrosse ball, and she has even used a rolling pin as a substitute foam roller. 

3) Acupuncture. Many of your peers have shared that they’ve had success with acupuncture for the treatment of their arthritis. 

4) Supplements. This is one to discuss with your health care provider. Some Komrades have mentioned using magnesium and Vitamin D3 supplements.

5) Community support. It’s so important to have a supportive network to help with your lifestyle goals, and staying mobile is no different. If you’re struggling to get moving, be sure to seek out a group like the SSoD Komrades who can help keep you motivated even on flare-up days.

6) Never give up. You know that Cat loves to remind us all that, “Attitude is everything,” and isn’t that the truth! 

With these tips, no matter your age, you can hopefully find a way to manage and keep moving with arthritis. And if you want some great classes to keep you moving, check out Studio SWEAT onDemand! Download the app, or if you happen to live in southern California, visit us in our San Diego studio.