Managing Joint Pain
Do you ever feel joint pain or stiffness whilst performing basic tasks such as driving, walking or cooking? Do your joints swell or show symptoms of inflammation?
Despite the promise of miracle cures, current research shows that regular, targeted exercise, combined with traditional hands-on physiotherapy and education are the most effective treatments for joint pain and stiffness.
Physiotherapists are able to provide safe and effective exercise programs to get your joints feeling and moving better and to help you to achieve your health and fitness goals.
Introducing Ben Ehrlich
Ben is a caring Physiotherapist with 15 years experience both locally and in the UK, and has most recently owned his own clinic. He has a reputation for going the extra mile for his patients. Ben has particular expertise in treating joints through exercise prescription, joint mobilisations and dry needling, and has a special interest in helping patients avoid joint surgery and also in rehabilitation post-joint surgery.
Ben is a passionate runner and especially enjoys working with people who are keen to get and to stay active and healthy.
Ben’s Top 5 Tips to Help you Manage Joint Pain & Stiffness
1. Exercise appropriately.
Exercise increases joint strength and flexibility, reduces joint pain and helps to combat fatigue. As specialists in human movement and the body, physiotherapists are best placed to provide appropriate graduated exercises for your painful joints, and can ensure your exercises are correctly paced and tailored to your health, functional and fitness needs. Over or under exercising can increase symptoms while doing just the right amount of exercise is paramount and progressing correctly will improve your joint pain and lessen your fatigue.
2. Lose weight.
Extra weight means extra pressure on joints. Maintaining a healthy weight will reduce this stress on affected joints. Weight loss is best achieved by managing your diet and your exercise. Our allied health team includes an expert Dietitian, and our physiotherapists can provide you with a program to help you lose weight.
3. Strengthen your core.
Improving your core stability and the strength of the deep muscles of your affected joints will ensure less pressure on those joints. Physiotherapists teach you how to strengthen your core and the deep muscles of your joints. You can progress these exercises with a tailored supervised program in our Pilates Studio and Gym.
4. Improve your posture.
Poor posture places higher stress on the joints. By improving posture less pressure is placed on affected joints. Ask your Physiotherapist how to improve your posture.
5. Ice or Heat Packs and Bracing.
These can reduce inflammation and ease the pain and stiffness in affected joints. Bracing takes pressure off affected joints. Ask our Physiotherapists which treatment is right for you.
