Can You Relieve Arthritis Pain With Diet And Exercise?
People suffering from arthritis often find it painful just to move. They don't realize that doing some types of exercise can relieve arthritis pain. Changing your diet can also help relieve pain. These two lifestyle changes can make a big difference, just as keeping a sleeping schedule and getting adequate sleep. Unlike many painkillers, whether OTC or prescription, there are no unwanted side effects. In fact, besides relieving pain, you'll have more energy and feel better.
Scientists have added to their information about the contributing factors for arthritis.
If you're exercising to relieve pain from arthritis, having a personal trainer can help. Use the appropriate exercise and don't push too hard. If you have physical limitations, a trainer can modify the exercise to avoid causing further damage. Some exercise can make arthritis more painful. Running, deep squats, climbing stairs, and prolonged standing exacerbate pain. Overhead weightlifting and any exercise that requires repetitive or high-impact movements, similar to the movements of jumping or tennis, can cause upper body arthritis to become more painful. Exercises that strengthen muscles supporting the joints help. Aerobic exercise and flexibility training can decrease inflammation and relieve stiffness. It boosts both blood and synovial fluid circulation.
Your diet makes a difference.
If your diet is high in food with added sugar, expect the pain to get worse. Sugar causes inflammation. Inflammation is one of the causes of arthritis. Eating anti-inflammatory food like cruciferous vegetables, which include Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage, reduces inflammation. Colorful fruits and vegetables also help. Plant phytonutrients that make blueberries blue or tart cherries red are anti-inflammatory. Increasing Omega-3 fatty acids and reducing omega-6 fatty acids also helps. Foods high in omega-3 fatty acids include walnuts, fatty fish, and flaxseed.
Drink plenty of fluid and herbal teas.
If you drink adequate fluid, it can help relieve pain. Even mild dehydration reduces the synovial fluid in the joints that soaks into the cartilage and helps joints move smoother. The extra fluids and increased blood supply bring nutrients that help build cartilage. If you choose herbal tea, consider turmeric or green tea. There are green tea options that also contain turmeric.
- Using a garlic supplement or including it in your cooking can help reduce pain. The diallyl disulfide provides the benefit. It helps reduce cartilage damage. Chop the garlic and let it rest for a few minutes to enhance the benefits.
- Losing weight can help reduce arthritis pain in the knees and hips. Exercising regularly and eating a healthy diet can help you do that. The excess weight puts extra pressure on the joints and exacerbates the pain.
- Start a program of safe sunning. Vitamin D deficiency can add to joint pain and may make it harder to lose weight. If you have an adequate intake of Vitamin D it can lower the risk of cartilage loss.
- Before you start any exercise program or change your diet, always check with your healthcare professional. Don't quit any medication unless you speak with your healthcare professional first.
For more information, contact us today at Habitat Health & Fitness
Many people want to have a flat stomach or washboard abs. I hear that goal all the time at Habitat Health and Fitness in Lakeland, FL. You don't have to want washboard abs to appreciate getting rid of belly---visceral---fat. Belly fat is one of the most dangerous types of fat. It crowds the internal organs. It also makes toxins called cytokines that cause inflammation. That inflammation can lead to heart disease, increase insulin resistance that leads to diabetes, and link to colon, pancreas, and esophagus cancer.
Learning how to eat simple is relatively easy. It's all about eating foods with only one or two ingredients. The fewer the ingredients you have, the simpler the food is. If you choose peanut butter, it should contain one ingredient or possibly two. The ingredients should be peanuts or peanuts and salt. You can use canned goods and frozen food, as long as nothing is added, like sugar.
Many people start diets with good intentions. They want to lose weight, look, and feel better. Unfortunately, they often make diet mistakes that doom the weight loss from the start. Identifying those mistakes can help you avoid them and be more successful at weight loss. One reason diets fail is that they're diets. Instead of learning to eat healthier, people set severe restrictions. They may have a diet that limits food intake to cabbage soup or grapefruit juice. That type of diet isn't sustainable or healthy.
There are many misconceptions about healthy eating. Some people think it's going gluten-free or switching from table sugar to honey. While we focus on exercise at Habitat Health and Fitness in Lakeland, FL, we encourage people to eat healthier. It doesn't mean you have to give up all the food you love. It means you make smarter choices when it comes to food. Have a piece of fresh fruit instead of grabbing a candy bar as a snack.
Circuit training isn't a specific exercise but a way of doing a group of exercises. Each exercise is a station that improves different aspects of fitness. They work different body parts or different types of fitness, such as cardio, flexibility, balance, or strength. People doing circuit training go from one station to another without much break between each set. When finished, they start the circuit again. It builds endurance and strength. It's excellent for weight loss.
Strong core muscles help you move with ease and maintain good posture and balance. When you include ab workouts, you're increasing the strength of the core. At Habitat Health and Fitness in Lakeland, FL, we include ab workouts. They help keep your stomach flat, improve your posture, and allow you to move freely. When your core muscles are strong, you can bend, twist, and stand erect with ease. Strengthening the abs reduces the effort of the back muscles to keep you erect. That relieves back, hip, and leg pain.
Running is a great exercise, but if that's all you're doing, it's not enough. You need four types of training to be fit. You need cardio, flexibility, balance, and strength training. All of them play a vital role in your health. People often overlook strength training because they think it causes big bulging muscles. The fact is you have to train specifically to do that. It's hard for men to do and almost impossible for women. It offers many benefits to people of all ages, including seniors.
People in Winter Haven, FL, often look for natural alternatives to harsh medications for arthritic pain relief. It's not that they don't believe in modern science, it's that they follow the less is more approach to pain relief for arthritis. If you can find a healthy alternative that reduces or eliminates the need for prescription or OTC drugs, why not use it? There are convincing studies that show diet and exercise can help and provide other benefits for the body.
There's no better time to start a goal than the first of the year. It's a chance to renew and dedicate yourself to your goals and dreams. For some people, it's a financial goal and for others, it's to make it the healthiest year ever. How do you achieve any goal? First, you have to write it down in terms that are concise, measurable, and realistic. Having a timeline can prevent procrastination. Start by ensuring your goal is realistic.