Relieve Knee Pain with the RIGHT Amount of Exercise?

When you suffer from osteoarthritis of the knee, the pain can be overwhelming. So naturally, you try to avoid anything that might make it worse.

That kind of fear can have you spending FAR MORE time in your easy chair than on your feet.

But that’s a problem. See, research consistently shows that exercise actually REDUCES arthritis pain.

So just how much (or little) should you get for effective pain relief?

Recently, researchers set out to determine the optimal dose of exercise to reduce arthritis pain in the knee. And you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the results.

For the study, 189 people with knee arthritis were divided into high-dose or low-dose exercise groups.

• Those in the high-dose group did 11 exercises lasting 70-90 minutes.
• The low-dose group did 5 exercises lasting 20-30 minutes.

Both groups exercised three times a week for 12 weeks.

Researchers used the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score to measure the results. This score evaluates the patient’s opinions of categories like pain, function in daily living, function during sports and activities, and knee-related quality of life.

These scores were taken twice a week for three months, then once at six months and once at 12 months.

At every single point in time, the scores improved in BOTH groups.

In other words, there’s no need to exercise like the Energizer Bunny. You can exercise a moderate amount and still make REAL progress with knee pain and function.

However, high-dose exercises might be a better choice for you if you participate in sports or have active hobbies. (More on that in just a moment.)

I’m highlighting this study for two reasons.

• First, it’s always a good reminder that movement is some of the best medicine for arthritis.
• Second, you don’t have to exercise an hour a day to see benefits. Twenty minutes was just as beneficial as 90 in this study.

If you’re not involved in sports or aren’t planning on taking up a hobby like tennis, doing MORE exercise won’t necessarily produce better results.

Consistency is key here. Just get moving and stay moving, and you’ll see the pain-relieving results.

P.S. Struggling with knee pain? SKIP this popular surgery. (Here’s why.)

SOURCE:

“High- Versus Low-Dose Exercise Therapy for Knee Osteoarthritis A Randomized Controlled Multicenter Trial.” Annals of Internal Medicine. doi.org/10.7326/M22-2348.