You might have noticed that your joints ache more than they used to. But, being a hard-working (and good-looking… because you’re a reader of my articles. All readers of my articles are hard-working, intelligent, good-looking people J) individual, you don’t want to stop strength training. What do you do?
In this article, we’ll discuss:
- The myth that aging causes joint pain
- The myth that there are different exercises for different age groups
- Four strategies to modify strength training if your joints do hurt
Original source: here.
This will not be an article about specific exercise strategies to make the pain go away. I’ve written about that here, here and here. I also strongly recommend the book Arthritis: What Exercises Work: Breakthrough Relief for the Rest of Your Life, Even After Drugs & Surgery Have Failed, as well as my article on exercise for osteoarthritis.
The Myth That Aging Causes Joint Pain
Aging in and of itself does not cause joint pain. The accumulation of bad habits over time causes joint pain.
These bad habits might be:
- Sitting all day
- Exercising with improper technique
- Repetitive job-related motions (for example, a cashier turning in one direction all the time)
- Being overweight. The extra weight puts pressure on weight-bearing joints, like your hips, knees, and ankles.
It just so happens that time amplifies the effects of these bad habits. But aging in and of itself doesn’t cause achy joints.
Want proof? When I go to powerlifting competitions, there’s what’s called “Master’s divisions.” These are divisions for lifters over 40. And it’s not unusual to see lifters (both men and women) in their 60s and 70s at these competitions. And these folks will out-lift most 25 or 30 year old guys who are non-powerlifters.
Furthermore, if age was the greatest predictor of joint pain, then you would see it in everyone over a certain age. But you don’t. You see it in some people, and you don’t see it in others.
So I believe you when you say that your joints hurt. But I don’t believe that it’s because of your age. There’s nothing you can do about your age. That’s why to blame your achy joints on your age is like giving up. Because it’s outside of your control. But blame your achy joints on something that is within your control, and you actually start to look for things you can do about it.
So what’s within your control?
- Your exercise technique. What if you’ve been doing an exercise wrong for 30 or 40 years? That’s a simple correction.
- The amount of time you spend sitting.
- Your weight
- Your nutrition. Certain foods are inflammatory to your joints. Eliminate those foods, and eliminate the inflammation.
The Myth That There Are Different Exercises for Different Age Groups
Absolutely not true. Exercises can differ based on:
- Your level of experience
- Your coordination
- What injuries you have
- What activities you do in your daily life
- Your health conditions
- Your goals
Notice anything missing from this list? Oh yeah: age! Age does not at all determine which exercises you should and shouldn’t do. If it did, 75-year-old men wouldn’t be able to do feats of strength like these, and 86 year old ladies wouldn’t be able to do things like this. And a 94-year old granny wouldn’t be able to deadlift 120 lbs., like this.
Joint-Friendly Strength Training
So I guess that was all just a long rant about how age isn’t the reason your joints hurt. But hey, your joints still hurt, whether it’s because of age, or for other reasons. What can you do if you want to continue strength training? The saying “no pain, no gain” is true for muscles only. Not for joints. Joints should never feel pain.
Anyways, here are 4 strategies to get around achy joints:
Strategy #1: Change the Exercise
This is the most obvious strategy, but if one exercise bothers you, replace it with a different exercise for the same body part. Lying barbell bench press bother you? Replace it with standing cable chest press. Back squats bother you? Switch to front squats, or vice versa.
Strategy #2: Change the Grip or Stance
Sometimes, all it takes to make your joints feel better is changing the grip or the stance. If the underhand grip bothers you, try the overhand or neutral grip. If standing with your toes pointing forward bothers you, turn them out 15-30 degrees.
The reason that tiny changes like this can be very effective for relieving joint pain is because of the stress placed on different tendons and ligaments (by the way, just so you know the difference: tendons connect muscles to bones, and ligaments connect bones to bones). For instance, when using an underhand grip, a ligament called the “ulnar collateral ligament” is under stress. When using an overhand grip, the radial collateral ligament is under stress. When using a neutral grip, they are under equal stress.
But you don’t need to know anatomy in great detail to make modifications like these. Just do a few repetitions, and see if it bothers you. If it doesn’t, keep it up. If it does, just change the grip of stance.
Strategy #3: Limit the Range of Motion
Frequently, it’s not the whole range of motion that’s painful. It might just be a part of the range of motion. So very simply, do the exercise through the ranges of motion that don’t hurt. For instance, if lifting your arms over your head hurts only when you’re at 30 degrees, than perform overhead presses from 0-20, and then perform it from 40-180.
Strategy #4: Use Isometrics
Isometrics are when your muscles don’t move. You’re squeezing, but the muscles aren’t moving. For example, try pushing a wall. You can bet that the wall won’t move, but your muscles sure are contracting. So try the target exercise at 3-6 different angles. Whatever angles that don’t hurt are good angles.
For example, if your target exercise is the squat, try holding a position that’s just short of full extension, another position at a quarter squat, another one at a half squat, and a last position, just short of the bottom. If you want to learn more about isometrics, I wrote articles about them here and here.
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