First of all….
Welcome! These posts from me will come to you every two weeks. They have two purposes: to be helpful in very practical ways and to be enjoyable.
Second of all….
Have you checked out my website yet? If not, please go to www.movebetternow.ca. Lots of good stuff there!
And you may want to check out the MoveBetter Facebook page while you’re at it
We all face mobility challenges as we proceed along life’s path. My own story, and my journey toward MoveBetter began with the arrival of osteoarthritis in my hips.
After I got over the shock of the diagnosis and the fatalistic shrug of my radiologist, here’s what I did.
I went back to basics, observing every nuance of movement in that area of my body and reading every piece of settled research I could find.
I learned as much as I could about the chronic health conditions common in my age group – the age group most of us (including trainers, yoga teachers and many other health professionals) know very little about. The classics: arthritis, bone and muscle loss, heart disease, breathing limitations…
Here are my Big Three learnings. They changed my approach and slowed the advance of my arthritis.
1) JOINTS HAVE TO MOVE TO BE HEALTHY
All joints MUST move to be healthy, even if they only move a micro-millimetre. No matter what age we are. Synovial fluid, produced by the body, keeps the bones gliding past each other as they converge in our joints. And guess what signals the production of synovial fluid, even in degraded arthritic joints? Movement! Stop moving = less synovial fluid = more inflammation = more bone-on-bone compression = Tylenol 3. Wince and repeat. Not to mention how much muscle strength you lose if you sit still. Atrophy hits us oldsters hard and fast.
2) KEEP THE FASCIA SUPPLE:
Every part of our body is held in place and interlaced by a gossamer-thin network of silvery tissue called fascia. It’s like netting, like sausage skin. It’s smooth and pliant when we’re mobile (and younger). It thickens – actually looks like day-old porridge – when we stop moving. Completely gums us up, often to the point of full stop. BUT – even the tiniest movements slow this thickening.
3) SMALL IS THE NEW BIG.
Pain science has dramatically changed in recent years. Moving into pain in order to heal is now seldom recommended. Move just a little, move slowly and only to the point of discomfort, then stop. Repeat. Rest. Repeat. Gradually your pain control centre will start to believe you actually can move without pain, and guess what? It will allow you to move a little bit more.
That’s why I teach people to move slowly, move small. Watch for the subtle sensations, “listen for the whispers”, to quote a teacher of mine. That’s when the biggest gains come.
Here’s a great read on the relationship between pain and movement. It’s all about finding the RIGHT KIND and the RIGHT AMOUNT of exercise for you.
