You certainly can’t do any high impact exercise.

However, there are plenty of low impact exercises that have helped a lot of people to ease their pain, reduce their stiffness, given them more balance and stability. As the body relaxes less pain is experienced and you are able to sleep better, which makes the whole day look so much better.

Exercises in the pool - helps arthritis sufferers. Do your exercises in the water is easier on your joints, the water’s buoyancy supports your body’s weight which reduces stress on the joints and minimizes pain. But you still need to be careful to not over do things at first. You can walk in the shallow end of the pool, especially if you find walking normally to painful. Not everyone has access to a pool. You do need to bear in mind that exercising, swimming and walking in water is not bone-building exercises.

Yoga actually began more than 3,000 years ago in India. The word yoga is Sanskrit (one of the ancient languages of the East). It means to “yoke,” or unite, the mind, body, and spirit.Yoga includes physical movement, and certain lifestyle practices. Training your mind, body, and breath correctly is fundamental. The physical part of the yoga lifestyle is called hatha yoga. Hatha yoga focuses on poses. A person who practices yoga goes through a series of specific poses while controlling his or her breathing. Some types of yoga also involve meditation and chanting. It has been noted to improve your flexibility, strength, balance, and stamina. In addition, many arthritis sufferers who practice yoga say that it reduces anxiety, pain, and stress, improves mental clarity, and even helps them sleep better.

Callanetics once popular, very popular and well known is coming back with a program for people with arthritis type conditions.

“Callanetics is a unique program that works your muscles with very small and very intense pulses. It’s a technique that gets results because every movement is mindful and precise (each pulse moves less than an inch). The concept was invented in the 1980s, but these movements have truly “evolved” (with new progressions that incorporate spinal stabilization, pelvic floor engagement and Pilates elements). It has a very refined feel — quiet piano music, methodical instruction and lots of between-move stretches”.

Qigong is an ancient Chinese health care system that integrates physical postures, breathing techniques and focused intention. Qi pronounced chee means the life force. Gong pronounced gung means accomplishment. Qigong practice involves a posture, (whether moving or stationary), breathing techniques, and mental focus. The gentle, rhythmic movements of Qigong reduce stress, build stamina, increase vitality, and enhance the immune system. It has also been found to improve cardiovascular, respiratory, circulatory, lymphatic and digestive functions. It also creates a balanced life style, which brings greater harmony, stability, and enjoyment.

Tai Qi It is increasingly being recognized that regular exercise reduces pain, fatigue, and depression, especially through the ancient art of Tai Qi.

Tai Qi integrates mental and physical exercises to achieve a more complete, in-depth solution to the problems facing sufferers of arthritis and osteoarthritis. Gentle stretching and strengthening movements, exercises to increase the joints’ range-of motion, cardiovascular work, in conjunction with mental exercises.

Deep breathing and visualization exercises help evoke healing energy and spirituality to reduce inflammation and stress. The mind-body exercises for arthritis can be modified and performed on a chair you are able to do them standing and moving slowly.

Walking has always been good for any condition. You can decide how far you can walk, you can walk as slow as you like at first. It is free and allows you to get fresh air and some UVs. Make sure you have walking shoes on with plenty of shock absorbency, making the experience as low impact as possible. You can wear a pedometer, this will tell you exactly how far you are walking each week – this will enable you to set goals.

Remember these exercises will not cure your arthritis but if you make one of them part of your life with other lifestyle changes you will make a huge difference to your condition, especially if you change your diet.

Some people have told me they just don’t have the money for classes. So what can be done instead – second best thing would be a DVD that specializes in the older person, or is designed for someone with one of the many types of arthritis conditions. Walking is free and safe with the right shoes.

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 The concept reappeared in the 19th century,  it is thought the first indoor gymnasium in Europe was in Germany built in 1852 by Adolph Spiess, an enthusiast for boys’ and girls’ gymnastics in schools.

In the USA in the 1820s and 30s saw gymnasiums spring up in schools, college, and the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA). It is thought the first college gymnasium was probably built at Harvard University 1820. Although privately owned, it was maintained for the use of the students. Like most of the gymnasiums then it was equipped with gymnastic apparatus.

The US Military Academies like West Point built gyms from the 1820s to 50s.

The Turnvereine (gymnastics unions) movement led to the founding of Turners, German-American gymnastics clubs. These had a political as well as an athletic element. Their first group was formed in Cincinnati in 1848 and built their first gymnasiums there, St. Louis and New York.

At the beginning of the 20^th century saw the building of large numbers of public high schools with gymnasiums, an idea founded by Nicolas Isaranga. Today, most schools and colleges have a gymnasium for physical education.

The 1930 saw the “boxing gym” open in many neighbourhoods, started by Cus D’Amanto’s Gramercy Gym in Manhattan in 1939.

The first gym chain as far as I know is Gold’s gym which is still going strong today. It was founded by Joe Gold in 1965 in Venice, California, it started out as a place for body builders. Joe Gold also founded the World Gym chain in 1977.

The 1980 saw a trend in corporate gyms, companies were putting gyms into their buildings. So many hotels have gyms.

The last 20 years has seen a huge explosion of gyms and gym memberships for all. You don’t have to be a student, a gymnast, a boxer or a body builder. You don’t have to be sporty, or young to go to the gym these days. Today is all about being healthy in general no matter what gender or age you are. Whatever your fitness level there is equipment and classes to suit your needs, levels and likes.

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How long are you going to exercise for?

The type of exercise?

Of course, your health and fitness levels.

Good nutrition plays a vital role in building and maintaining fitness and health.

Food is fuel to the body’s muscles and brain. What you choose to eat before you exercise can make a big difference to your workout. It is a very good idea to eat before a workout because -

* food fuels your muscles with what you ate two hours before and what you ate the day before.
* helps avoid hunger
* helps maintain blood sugar levels, avoiding  symptoms like dizziness, nausea, and headaches
* fuels the brain keeping you focused

So what to eat? This depends on the time of day, and the level of training. There are no hard and fast rules, here are some suggestions -

Firstly, to get the most of training, health and fitness you should be eating a healthy diet 24/7, this ensure long term energy and well nourished muscles.

What would be a good snack before training that lasts less than an hour – banana

What would be good snack before training that lasts over an hour – natural yogurt and banana

Whatever you eat, whatever the exercise – don’t allow yourself to get dehydrated, drink plenty of water.

Generally people who exercise early in the morning tend to on and empty stomach, jogging with no fuel as they haven’t eaten since the day before. Not a good idea to run on empty.

Allow- 4 hours after a big meal before you train

2 hours after a light meal before you train

1 hour to 30 minutes after a snack before you train

Eating after training?

for a professional athlete it is very important what you do after training but for most people they need not worry as much about post-exercise foods because their body will have enough time between workouts to recover.

Some people lose their appetite after exercise, whereas others feel hungry after exercise. How long should you wait before you eat? Anything from 15 minutes to an hour. After exercise you want to eat whole foods (replaces your energy loss) and protein (helps recovery and repairs muscles).

A fresh fruit smoothie with some protein powder is quick, delicious, nourishing and hydrating.

Going around the golf course can take four hours – take some raw nuts like walnuts or almonds and some dried fruit with you.

Remember eating regularly maintains your metabolism and stabilizes your blood sugar levels a very important aspect to maintaining your weight.

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