Joint Pain and the Unique Benefits of Pilates Exercise

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by Bob Hannum Oct 8, 2013

         Table of Contents

 – How Joints Work  – What Is Joint Pain  – More Energy  – Why Is Exercise So Important  – Strength Training Studies  – Best Exercise

 – References

Let’s get right to the point! Doctors now prescribe exercise over medication and surgery for most joint problems. How much is best, and why is Pilates a better exercise choice? Let’s find out!

A joint is defined as the point of contact between two or more bones. Together with cartilage, ligaments, muscles, and synovial membranes, these structures bear weight and permit movement, providing flexibility and range of motion. Joints are vulnerable to wear and tear which in turn causes pain. Joint pain, also known as arthralgia, is also caused by injuries and diseases, particularly age-related conditions such as arthritis, bursitis, and tendinitis.

What Is Joint Pain

Conditions such as arthritis slowly break down the cartilage which is a jelly-like substance that acts as a natural shock absorber for all our joints. When this break-down occurs, blood doesn’t circulate as freely and doesn’t deliver adequate nutrition to the cartilage. Exercise is critical because it boosts the circulation of our blood supply which, in turn, delivers more nutrients to our cartilage. In other words, if you give into your joint pain and do nothing – which is the natural tendency because it hurts! – the pain just gets worse.

Why Is Exercise So Important

Exercise helps alleviate joint pain in another way. The muscles which surround the joint become stronger which protects the joint from further damage by reducing the stressors on the joint itself. Exercise doesn’t reverse damage that’s already done. But a particular kind of exercise known as strength training preserves and strengthens muscle and thus helps prevent the damage and pain of arthritis and other joint ailments from getting worse. Thus you must include strength training at least 3 times a week as part of your exercise routine, because ONLY strength training restores muscle tissue that we lose all over the body once we reach our mid-thirties! We need 3 types of exercise to stay healthy and strength training is one of them – read more about these 3 essential exercises.

Strength Training Studies

Tufts University completed a strength-training study with older men and women with moderate to severe joint pain from osteoarthritis. This research showed that strength training:

  • decreased pain by 43%
  • increased muscle strength
  • improved physical performance
  • decreased signs and symptoms of the disease
  • decreased disability

The study also found that strength training reduced joint pain as effectively, if not better, than medication. Other studies have shown that strength training is similarly effective for those with rheumatoid arthritis, dispelling a long-held notion that joints affected by RA need rest rather than movement.

In the 12-week study conducted at the University of Wales in the United Kingdom, participants regularly performed typical weight training exercises such as the biceps curl, triceps pushdowns, chest press, seated row, leg press, leg extension, leg curl, and standing calf raise. “The novelty of the study was not in the kind of exercises used – because over the course of a long-term training program, the exercises performed must be changed regularly anyway – but rather in seeing the frequency and intensity at which people with RA could work,” says Samuele Marcora, PhD, who lead the study.

One can easily overdo typical strength training routines such as the machine and barbell exercises used in the above study. If one is not careful these exercises can be too intense and jarring which can aggravate joint problems. This does not happen in Pilates even at the most rigorous and intense levels as long as the brilliant Pilates principle of controlled and fluid motion is maintained.

Best Exercise For Joint Pain

So what is the best strength training exercise for joint pain? After trying many exercise methods Pilates is my choice because the slow, controlled, and fluid motion of each exercise does not add stress to the joint. At the same time Pilates applies the all-important movement and strength training needed to alleviate joint pain and stiffness. Also the emphasis in every Pilates exercise on proper alignment of the spine and limbs (my constant reminders to find your “long neck” and “natural stance”) reduces stress on all the joints.

Correcting your posture and strengthening your muscles creates more efficient and graceful movement which, in turn, decreases the pressure on the joints, reducing wear and tear and pain. Through Pilates, the body is re-educated to move in a more natural way promoting relaxation, release, and rebuilding of overworked muscles which eliminates habits that cause pain. Add to this the many other benefits of Pilates – more than any other exercise method – and you see why Pilates is my choice for not only the best joint exercise, but the best exercise – period!

References

For further reading about the studies cited in this article I recommend the following:

  • Strong Women and Men Beat Arthritis by Miriam E. Nelson
  • http://www.livestrong.com/article/120711-relieve-muscle-joint-pain
  • http://www.ehow.com/how_2308652_relieve-lower-back-pain-pilates.html
  • http://www.ehow.com/how_2304791_relieve-joint-pain.html
  • http://ezinearticles.com/?Using-Pilates-To-Relieve-Arthritis-Joint-Pain&id=509992
  • http://www.livestrong.com/article/305236-pilates-exercises-to-relieve-lower-back-pain
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