Why is Walking the Best Exercise to Start With if You Have Arthritis?

Why is Walking the Best Exercise to Start With if You Have Arthritis

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It's pretty easy to do, and requires no special equipment other than comfortable shoes. It also costs nothing and can be done just about anywhere.

Walking has multiple benefits. Since it burns calories, it helps with weight control. It actually helps the knees since the action of walking stimulates cartilage growth and the flow of synovial fluid within the knee. It also strengthens the muscles that protect the knee.

Because it is weight-bearing it also helps strengthen the muscles that protect the hips. At the same time it strengthens bones therefore reducing the likelihood of fracture due to osteoporosis. By strengthening the core muscles of the spine and abdomen, walking helps reduce the chance for getting low back pain.

The increased effort required for walking helps the heart to pump more strongly. This helps reduce blood pressure with the subsequent risk for stroke and heart attack.

Increasing respiratory rate (breathing rate) promotes increased flow of oxygen to the rest of the body and also helps eliminate the buildup of carbon dioxide. A major plus is improved energy.

There is some evidence that exercise such as walking increases endorphin production which helps relieve pain, reduces serum cortisol levels which helps relieve stress, and may also decrease the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

So how do you start a good walking program?

Pretty simple. The first thing is to make sure you have a good pair of walking shoes. If you have a history of flat feet, you should use orthotics.

Do not try to do too much at the very beginning. You should gradually increase the amount you walk. A good target is 10,000 steps per day, which is roughly 5 miles. If that seems like a lot, remember, most people already walk about 3,000 to 5,000 steps a day during the course of a routine day.

Your goal time wise should be about half an hour a day. Obviously, you should start more slowly... maybe 5 minutes a day to start.

How fast you walk will depend on you. Start slowly. A moderate pace you can work up to is about 2-3 miles an hour. A good rule of thumb is that you should be breathing faster and feel your heart rate going up but still be able to carry on a conversation.

How often should you walk? If you're doing other types of exercise regularly you don't have to walk every day. However, if walking is your major form of exercise, you should do it daily.

Remember, it's important to keep up your routine. If the weather is bad, you can either use a treadmill, try to tough it out outside (although you must be careful), or go to a local mall.

Should walking be the only types of exercise you do? The answer is no. It's important to incorporate light weight-training and stretching into all your exercise programs. Walking is a good complement to other types of aerobic exercise such as biking, swimming, ballroom dancing, etc.

However, walking is a good start.

Nathan Wei, MD, FACP, FACR is a rheumatologist and Director of the Arthritis and Osteoporosis Center of Maryland (http://www.aocm.org). He is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and consultant to the National Institutes of Health. For more info: Arthritis Treatment

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