Protect and exercise your knee joints As the saying goes, “people get old before their legs get old”. Middle-aged and older people often experience knee pain. If you have some reasonable knee massage and functional exercises, you can exercise your body and protect your knee. You may also be concerned that exercise may cause knee damage and pain, but actually strengthening the muscles and soft tissues around the knee, increasing their strength and maintaining their elasticity is the best way to prevent joint damage. Exercising in a gradual and appropriate manner will make your joints healthier. It is normal for your muscles to be sore after exercise, but if the pain persists or if your joints are sore, you should see a specialist. How to protect your knee joints A. Keep your joints warm and avoid cold and cold air conditioning stimulation. First of all, it is easiest to keep warm from the cold. Patients with bad joints can usually do hot compresses, but avoid the acute inflammation phase. The acute inflammation period is characterized by swelling, heat and even redness of the joints, which is not suitable for hot compresses at this time, otherwise it will aggravate the inflammatory reaction. Hot compresses can be applied using hot water bags, hot towels, salt bags, etc. The temperature should be controlled at 40℃~42℃, and the compress should be applied for 20 minutes at a time, as the elderly are not sensitive to temperature, so be careful to avoid burns. Second, the reasonable use of knee pads. In life, many patients with bad knee joints are used to wearing knee pads. Knee pads are fine for short-term use, both for local warmth and to protect the stability of the joints. However, it is important to remember that it is more appropriate to wear warm knee pads and not to wear knee pads that are less flexible or too tightly wrapped. Overly tight knee pads tend to aggravate blood circulation problems and even swelling below the calf. At the same time, if you wear elastic knee pads for a long time, the muscles and ligaments around the joints will become obsolete, which is not conducive to the recovery of joint diseases. Third, avoid damage to the knee joint from bad sports and lifestyle habits. The knee joint is a weight-bearing joint, and excessive repeated high-intensity weight-bearing can increase the wear and tear of joint cartilage, especially the patellofemoral joint, resulting in arthritis symptoms. In life, climbing stairs, hills, squatting and kneeling are all actions that increase the burden on the joint and should be avoided as much as possible. In winter, the joints, ligaments stiff, before participating in sports must be warmed up, so that the muscles and ligaments are fully stretched and then “work” to avoid sports injuries. Fourth, a reasonable diet. Eat foods rich in protein and calcium, such as milk and dairy products, beans and soy products, fish and shrimp, seaweed, etc., can not only supplement protein and calcium to prevent osteoporosis, but also nourish cartilage and joints, which can also help reduce the symptoms of arthritis. Which exercise is good for joints Adhering to reasonable and moderate exercise not only promotes blood circulation, but also exercises muscles, improves the metabolism of nerves, muscles and joints, and enhances the stability of joints. Things like swimming, biking, walking, and even jogging will not cause damage to the joints. For those who already have arthritis, what exercises can be performed on a regular basis to improve joint symptoms? First of all, strong thigh muscles increase the stability of the joint during movement, and strengthening the thigh muscles will significantly improve the symptoms of the knee. Thigh muscle strength training is based on the quadriceps muscle, the front thigh muscle strength training, but in the process of exercises to avoid repeated flexion and extension of the knee joint, which will increase the wear and tear of other joints. In addition, it is important to maintain the maximum flexion and extension of the knee joint as much as possible, and to exercise regularly to maintain the function of the knee joint. When you get older, many older people have sore knees. Here are a few very simple and easy to learn methods that can be used every day just to take the time to exercise, and after a period of time, the symptoms of knee pain can be significantly reduced. Here we learn a few simple and effective knee exercise methods: 1. Warm up Warm up before exercise to avoid injury. You can first sit on the chair, knees flexed, with the palm of both hands finger surface attached to the left (right) leg on both sides, and then slightly harder, along both sides of the thigh to the knee joint push rub 10-20 times, alternating legs. And then try to relax the legs, hands half-clenched fist, with the left and right fist around the knee gently patted about 50 times. Then you can also put the palms of both hands on the knee patella, five fingers slightly open tightly around the patella, and then slightly hard evenly and slowly rhythmically press the patella 20-40 times. 2, flexion and extension exercise supine, one knee flexion as far as possible to the chest, using both hands to fix the thigh for 5-10 seconds, and then gradually straighten the knee joint, alternating between the two legs. Repeat 10-20 times. Or in the prone position, bend one leg against the hip, hold the ankle with both hands in reverse (or wrap a towel around the ankle), gradually pull the lower leg toward the hip and hold the position for 5-10 seconds, then lower it and alternate legs. Repeat the exercise 10-20 times. 3, static contraction supine or sitting position, keep the leg straight, active contraction of the muscles in front of the thigh, each time to maintain muscle contraction for 10 seconds, and then relax for 5-10 seconds, each group do 10 times, do 10 groups a day. 4, straight leg raise If your knee joint is not in very good condition, you can start with simple movements. This straight leg raise can exercise the front of the thigh quadriceps, while the knee joint is basically no pressure. Do this by lying on a bed or mat with both hands naturally on the left and right sides of your body. Bend one leg and lift the other leg straight up to the height of the knee joint of the other leg, hold it still for about 5 seconds, and then slowly lower it. After resting for 2-3 seconds, lift the leg upward again and repeat the same action. Three sets of 10-15 times per day, alternating legs. If you slowly feel too easy, you can add weights at the ankle, such as making some sandbags with rice, and gradually increase the weight. 5, seated knee extension If you usually have back pain, you can also sit on a chair to carry out. The specific method is: sit on a chair, put both feet flat on the floor, bend the knee of one leg, so that the thigh and calf is 90 degrees, the other leg gradually straighten the knee joint and lift off the floor about 10 centimeters (note that when the straightened leg is lifted upward, the knee should not be bent), rest for about 5 seconds and then slowly put down. Rest 2 to 3 seconds. The same three groups per day, 10-15 times per group, alternating legs. 6, standing knee flexion This action can exercise the rear thigh muscle groups. Standing facing the back of the chair, hands on the back of the chair. Lift one foot backward to the knee bend 90 degrees, hold for 3 seconds. 3 sets of 15 reps per day. If slowly this action is too easy, you can add weights at the ankle joint, such as a bottle of mineral water or a bag of rice, the weight gradually increased. 7, straight leg back extension Prone. Tighten the muscles of the buttocks, thighs and the back of the calves. Raise one leg, hold for 35 seconds, lower it and repeat. Do 10-15 times then switch legs. The same can be done by adding weight at the ankle joint. This action will not lead to back pain, if the back pain, promptly stop exercise. 8, squat against the wall This is a very simple and effective exercise method. Through this method to increase the muscle strength of the front of the thigh, thus reducing the pressure on the patella in the half squat, which can play a good role in protecting the patellar cartilage. If you insist on exercising, it can play a preventive role as well as a good therapeutic role for those who are already suffering from the disease. It is suitable for young people who are busy at work and lack time to exercise, as well as for the majority of middle-aged and elderly people whose thighs are relatively strong. Stand with your back against the wall, feet shoulder-width apart, slowly bend your knees and keep your back and hips against the wall. Hold for 10-15 seconds. Do not squat too deeply, not more than 90 degrees. If the pain in front of the knee at a certain angle is obvious, you can avoid it by adjusting it, otherwise you will damage the knee joint. 5-10 times a day, you can gradually extend the duration of each exercise. This method of static squatting is both reasonable and easy to adhere to because it uses a stationary exercise method that does not increase joint damage and generally does not cause pain. In addition, this approach can be exercised anywhere, and does not require auxiliary equipment, so the feasibility is very high. 9.Tiptoe Stand with your hands on the back of a chair or the handrail of a staircase and try to slowly tiptoe up to the maximum degree, holding it for 3 seconds before slowly putting it down. 3 sets per day, 10-15 times per set. If tiptoeing is easy, you can lift one foot and exercise on one foot. 10.Lateral leg raise Lie on your side, bend the lower leg and straighten the upper leg. Raise the upper leg to the outside to 45 degrees, hold for 3-5 seconds, and put it down slowly. Do 3 sets of 15 reps each. Then switch to the other leg. This action can increase the lateral stability of the knee joint. Note: Each of these methods do not need to do, you can choose a few of your more suitable methods to adhere to the exercise. Follow this exercise prescription for 2 to 3 weeks and you should feel a significant reduction in knee symptoms. These movements are not going to cause joint pain. Muscle soreness after exercise is normal. However, if there is sharp, sudden pain in the joint muscles during exercise, it means that something is wrong and you need to stop exercising immediately and contact a joint specialist if necessary. The phrase “walk happy, live healthy”, which is always preached to patients, contains two meanings: first, that walking without pain is the minimum standard for a healthy life; second, that only by insisting on happy exercise can we maintain lasting health. I hope we all love our joints and guard our health.