Movement Helps Relieve Pain

”All forms of yoga, meditation or tai chi, any gentle movement, helps to reduce pain or your perception of pain,” says Dr Sam McCarthy, an osteopath at Sydney’s Better Health Clinics.

”We once thought that yoga made muscles longer only, but we’ve now discovered that the poses make them wider, and the act of stretching actually feeds back information to your central nervous system. This in turn stimulates your muscles to become stronger around a point of weakness.” 

Although Dr McCarthy is speaking about yoga here, the facts remain the same. Exercise, even very gentle exercise, helps to relieve pain – or the extent to which we feel it. We do not need to run regularly or go to the gym. Any movement, no matter how small, can help. Even fidgeting may be useful.

As Dr McCarthy says, exercise which stretches the muscles actually stimulates them to become stronger.  And we know that stronger muscles help to support and protect our joints.  It is especially important to be aware of this as you get older and your joints start to ache.  Without exercise the supporting muscles weaken, making bones and joints more prone to damage. 

We used to think that people with arthritis should rest their muscles and joints but it has now been shown that resting can increase the pain while exercise can help to control it. So if you suffer from joint pain and stiffness always give exercise a try – however you choose to do it. Resting, healthy eating and being active are all important and should be balanced. 

Exercise can help reduce pain by: 

·          Increasing joint flexibility and your range of movement 

·          Increasing muscle strength to improve joint support and stability 

·          Keeping bones and cartilage healthy and so reducing the risk of osteoporosis 

·          Providing energy and endurance to help fight fatigue 

·          Giving a sense of wellbeing and enjoyment of physical activity

           Reducing stress and improving sleep.

Walking and gentle stretching exercises like yoga and Tai Chi can help keep you mobile by building strength, flexibility and balance while reducing pain.  Find something which suits you and which you enjoy. If you don’t enjoy it you won’t keep it up. 

If your joints are too painful for strenuous exercise, then try some simple seated exercises which some exercise groups provide. Everybody is different, so be prepared to try different self-management techniques until you find what works best for you. Pain may limit some of the things you do but it doesn’t have to control your life.  

Pain, muscle spasms, cramps and aches in any part of your body are often related to poor blood circulation.  Movement promotes blood flow and this is another reason why exercise and keeping joints and muscles moving is important for managing pain.  

The Aircycle circulation booster does just these things. It provides very gentle exercise while you sit in front of TV and it's so easy to use. Not only does it boost circulation but the exercises also help to relieve swollen ankles and cramps, strengthen muscles and improve joint flexibility,  all of which help with pain relief. 

The Aircycle is available at the Grownups store right now!