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Exercise and physical activity is essential to optimizing both physical and mental health. Exercise can play a vital role in the management of arthritis. Arthritis is a condition that causes the cartilage and lining of the joints to become swollen and inflamed, can affect various parts of your body, including the feet, knees, hips and back. According to a new study, individuals with arthritis who avoid exercise double their risk of being unable to perform such everyday tasks as dressing, bathing and cooking in the later part of their lives. Seniors who didn't exercise regularly were 90 percent more likely to have a functional decline in their ability to perform these basic activities of daily living. Doing specific arthritis exercises can help ease the pain of arthritis and allow you to move around more easily. Regular physical activity can keep the muscles around affected joints strong, decrease bone loss and may help control joint swelling and pain. Regular activity replenishes lubrication to the cartilage of the joint and reduces stiffness and pain. Exercise also helps to enhance energy and stamina by decreasing fatigue and improving sleep. Exercise can enhance weight loss and promote long-term weight management in those with arthritis who are overweight. Arthritis patients should avoid high-impact sports such as jogging, tennis, and racquetball. The three types of exercise that are best for people with arthritis are range of motion, strengthening (or resistance), and aerobic exercises. Strengthening exercises include isometric exercises (pushing or pulling against static resistance) and stretching exercises to build strength and flexibility without unduly stressing the joints. Low-impact aerobics also help stabilize and support the joints and may even reduce inflammation in some joints. Cycling and walking are beneficial and swimming or exercising in water is highly recommended for people with arthritis. One study compared a group of patients who embarked on an aerobic and resistance exercise program with a group that received patient education; the exercising group developed less disability and pain and showed a better ability to perform physical tasks. If you are suffering from arthritis, go for short but frequent exercise sessions guided by physical therapists or certified instructors. Walking can help to heal bone loss, thereby preventing osteoporosis. And since exercise has been shown to slow degenerative joint changes, walking can prevent or relieve some symptoms of rhematoid arthritis. In fact, as far as joints are concerned, walking is frequently the best exercise. If a person has a damaged joint or ligament, or the kind of back problem that might be aggravated by jolting, then running may be bad for that person. Even walking produces some impact when the heel strikes the ground, but there is no question that jogging produces more impact force. That won't harm a normal joint, but a disabled joint is better off walking. Walking is a very efficient exercise especially in terms of toning muscles and giving people a good feeling. According to researchers, exercise plays a significant role in slowing the progression of osteoporosis. Women should begin exercising before adolescence, since bone mass increases during puberty and reaches its peak between ages 20 and 30. Weight bearing exercise, which applies tension to muscle and bone, encourages the body to compensate for the added stress by increasing bone density by as much as 2% to 8% a year. High-impact weight-bearing exercises, such as step aerobics, are very protective for premenopausal women. These exercises, however, increase the risk for osteoporotic fractures in elderly patients, who would benefit most from regular, brisk, long walks. Even moderate exercise, as little as an hour a week, helps reduce the risk for fracture, but everyone who is in good health should aim for more. Careful weight training is beneficial as well for older women. | 
