Does swimming help with knee arthrosis?

Osteoarthritis of the knee joint is a common disease, present in 30% of the population. The second name of the disease is gonarthrosis. The disease is specific and causes a lot of discomfort and pain. But such a diagnosis is not a reason to panic. Knee pain should be a signal to start a health-improving physical training method. One of the popular methods of treating knee arthrosis is swimming, or water aerobics. Does swimming help with knee arthrosis? According to medical statistics compiled on the basis of patients who have undergone treatment, water aerobics allows you to regain full mobility of the knee and eliminate pain and discomfort in the affected area.

Is swimming effective for preventing arthrosis?

Is it possible to swim in the pool with arthrosis of the knee joint? The relevance of this issue can be traced back to 2007, from the moment when methods of treating this disease began to be closely studied. A group of patients was selected and divided into two teams. The first group did exercises exclusively on land, the second - water procedures.

The results showed that patients exercising on land quickly lost pain and discomfort, but joint mobility did not return for a long time. The group exercising in water restored the functionality of the affected knee faster.

From this it follows that swimming is best suited for joints that require restoration. Water procedures have a tremendous therapeutic effect. When exercising in water, a person warms up not only his joints, but also his muscles. The therapeutic course varies individually based on the degree of damage to the knee space, the severity of the disease and the chronology of the disease. You can do it yourself, but treatment will take longer.

Read more:
What are the benefits of swimming?

How does swimming help with arthrosis?

Does swimming help young and old people with joint pain? Water procedures are intended for all age categories. Osteoarthritis of the knee joint can be obtained as a work injury or occurs as an age-related phenomenon. Visiting the pool and doing water aerobics helps normalize the performance of the knee and restore the mobility of the affected joints. How exactly does swimming help:

The muscle structure relaxes, spasms and cramps are eliminated.
Pain and discomfort are eliminated.
During hydrotherapy, the knee can be extended or flexed with minimal resistance, which helps determine the presence of arthrosis.
In clinical cases, when even painkillers cannot eliminate the pain, visiting the pool is the only way out. While the lower part of the body is in the water and remains afloat, a person does not feel 40% of his weight, therefore, pain subsides.
All physiotherapy procedures cause severe pain and discomfort in the knee.

Is it possible to swim in the pool with arthrosis and severe pain? This situation is acceptable, but the duration of the therapeutic course will double.

How to choose a load level

Any physiotherapeutic procedures must comply with the standards of the lower pain threshold in the affected knee. Having considered all the benefits of swimming, it is important to remember that excess stress on the joints will have an adverse effect.

Swimming for joints will be beneficial as long as a person reasonably calculates his strength. The level of load should be even on the upper and lower body. The key factor to consider here is the lack of sensation of water pressure on the sore knee area. As a rule, the load on the patient is selected by the attending physician on an individual basis, but when visiting the pool on your own, you need to remember several practical recommendations:

Exercises for the upper and lower body are performed alternately. Thus, the blood circulation cycle is not disrupted.
In advanced stages of arthrosis of the knee joint, the maximum duration of water procedures is 25 minutes, with a short interval of 2 minutes.
The water in the pool should be warm. This way you can relax your muscles and have a longer session. The range of motion in the joints will expand significantly.

During the first lessons, it is very important to have an assistant or just a relative nearby. Joints that are unaccustomed to physical activity may not immediately get used to water procedures, which will seriously interfere with swimming.

Important to know: Doctors recommend that during your first sessions in the pool you only immerse your feet in warm water and do not perform any exercises. Thus, the knee space adapts to future loads and the first water aerobics classes will take place without serious pain.

How swimming improves your figure

Balanced physical activity, which is applied to the swimmer’s body, allows you to work out all muscle groups. In this case, the impact will be soft, without the risk of injury, and the effect will be equal to a full workout in the gym.

In the Premier Sports water zone in Moscow you can visit a sports pool, the length of which reaches 25 m, as well as an entertainment pool and two children’s pools, with a comfortable water temperature of 30-32°C:

With regular visits to the pool, your figure acquires a toned appearance and a sporty silhouette. This is achieved due to the fact that the muscles become toned in the process of overcoming the resistance of water. At the same time, metabolism is also activated, starting the fat burning process. Classes under the guidance of an attentive trainer are guaranteed to give a positive result, the key to which will be the correct execution of the exercises and swimming technique.

What rules should you follow when visiting the pool with arthrosis?

The key factors in choosing exercises are the person’s age, physical fitness and stage of the disease, which needs to be discussed in some detail.

Different degrees of stress can have a positive or negative effect on the patient’s health. If you overdo it at the initial stage of arthrosis development (incubation period), you can only accelerate the progression of the disease.

During the period of remission, methodological exercises are very important. You need to do smooth, slow, but long-term exercises to strengthen the condition of your muscles and joints. Swimming and arthrosis are compatible concepts, if you recognize the fine line between recommended methods and undesirable exercises.

In acute form, it is highly not recommended to exercise more than 15–20 minutes a day. This is due to the fact that in an aggressive form of arthrosis of the knee joint, the affected area becomes very swollen and red, and the existing pain does not decrease even in the pool.

Note: The patient needs to take into account not only the condition of the knee space, but also his own well-being, since a comprehensive therapeutic course involves exercise on land. It is necessary to calculate the forces evenly.

Strengthen your back with the help of a swimming pool

The main advantages of exercises in water

Water exercises help open up all the muscles of the body and allow them to be strengthened, breathing becomes easier, the lungs are cleared and blood pressure is normalized. Water is the most optimal habitat for humans. Just think, while still in the womb, a child swims in water, is born, loves to swim and later learns to swim. Exercises in water are recommended because in an aquatic environment, even heavy loads are not strongly felt, since water reduces pressure. Coming out of the water there will be no discomfort, only the body will be rested and relaxed, and, of course, healthy.

But there is another side to the usefulness of water procedures. Any sudden or careless movement in the water will lead to pinched vertebrae and muscles. This happens due to complete relaxation of the muscles. While in the water, you need to behave calmly, smoothly for the exercise and not rush into changing to another. There are a couple of exercises that need to be done less calmly, but this is only after instructions from the trainer.

Exercises in the pool are intended mainly for treatment, but only after the acute pain has been treated with a compromise method. The most common back diseases are osteochondrosis and pain in the vertebrae. There are strict contraindications to the exercises; before exercising, you must consult with your doctor and trainer. Physical therapy, in many cases, is aimed at treating the spine, with the exception of displacement of the vertebrae and their pinching. In such situations, therapeutic exercises in the pool will only worsen the situation.

Beware of hypothermia!

It is important to take into account when performing exercises in the pool that inattention to detail and failure to follow simple rules can significantly worsen the health of the spine. When preparing for exercises, it is necessary to check the water level with special instruments - it should be waist-deep, the temperature - considered acceptable is from 36.6 to 37.5. Of course, we won’t push the ideal cleanliness of the pool and water into the background either. Exercising in contaminated water will not improve your health; on the contrary, it will clog your pores with sediment, which will only add to skin problems rather than solve them. You should stay in the water for no more than 15 minutes. This is the most optimal time for exercise; a long stay will also not give a positive result. Muscles in a relaxed state get tired faster, but you don’t feel this in water. As soon as you get out of the water, you will be enveloped in fatigue, a feeling of lightness and peace will not even glance at you with one eye.

Another important tip is that before you dive into the water for physical therapy, you need to take a hot shower. This is necessary so that the pores on the skin open, and when in water it can breathe and be filled with surrounding oxygen.

If you use a constantly heated pool for your exercises, which maintains the water temperature set for a long time, then your exercises will be comfortable and will not cause inconvenience that you need to constantly be distracted by the temperature. Unfortunately, in summer it will be difficult to find an outdoor pool.

The therapeutic procedure in the pool has a number of strict contraindications. You should not do exercises if you have a cold, wounds, vertebral displacement, if you have infectious diseases and many more, the treatment of which must be carried out under the careful supervision of a doctor. At the pool, the coach is required to ask you for a letter of recommendation from your attending physician. This is necessary in order to select the appropriate tension, exercises, repetitions and loads.

A few simple exercises in the water

A number of simple but very effective exercises have been developed to relax muscle tone:

Holding the rope with your hands and tilting your head and shoulders back so that they lie on the surface of the water. This is good for the spine and is a good prevention of stooping.
Use a swimming board to float on the water. This helps relax the muscles, but for those who have problems with breathing, such exercises will be difficult, but you can find an alternative.
Lying on your back, you need to lean your legs and pelvis on the side. It is advisable to breathe calmly, just relax. This helps open the lungs and relax the muscular system.

Author: K.M.N., Academician of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences M.A. Bobyr

What style of exercise is most effective?

Learning to live with arthrosis is extremely difficult. It is necessary to strengthen the muscles responsible for supporting the joints. This will be enough to climb the stairs on your own without experiencing attacks of pain. Swimming for arthrosis of the knee joint, why is it useful to perform water procedures to strengthen the muscle structure? While swimming, the patient differentially develops specific muscle groups that are responsible specifically for the affected joints.

Which swimming style should you choose? There are two main methods - “breaststroke” or “freestyle”. Depending on the stage of damage to the knee space, the choice will be made. For beginner patients, experts recommend a “free” style. This method only involves extension and flexion of a certain affected area, without any additional loads.

For experienced people with appropriate physical shape, the breaststroke style will be preferable. This is a comprehensive methodology that combines exercises to warm up and strengthen muscles. To choose an individual swimming method, just contact your treating specialist. Failing this, hold onto the side of the pool with one hand and perform swimming movements. The exercises that cause the least pain are your own style.

It is important to know: in order to prevent further progression and exacerbation of arthrosis, it is strictly forbidden to take painkillers shortly before the start of training. When taking medications, you may not notice an overload of the muscular structure of the knee space, which will lead to a worsening of the situation.

To the ski track!

Skiing is one of the most favorite winter activities in our country.
It may seem strange, but the load on the knee and hip joints during a ski walk is even less than during normal walking. It is reduced by sliding: we take fewer steps, so the impact of body weight on the legs is reduced. Therefore, doctors recommend that people suffering from arthrosis regularly ski, alternating such walks with walking in winter. Keep in mind!

You can ski only in good weather, on a prepared ski track and only in a classic way. Skating (when the leg slides forward and to the side) has an adverse effect on the joints. While riding, keep a pace that is comfortable for you, avoiding sudden accelerations, maneuvers, and potentially dangerous descents. Article on the topic Arthrosis: how approaches to the treatment of diseased joints have changed
You need to start classes with 20–30-minute walks, gradually their duration can be increased to 1–2 hours.
With arthrosis of the leg joints of the 1st or 2nd degree, you can continue skiing. But whether it’s worth starting them if you’ve never skated before is a difficult question. If the desire is strong, you need to contact an instructor who can teach you skating techniques. It is imperative to follow it, because falls that are possible during a ski trip can injure an already sore joint.
The recommendations apply only to cross-country skiing. Alpine skiing, which is now fashionable, is dangerous for the joints of the legs, because the descent involves constant twisting in the knees and hips. You will have to refuse such activities, even if you have a lot of experience.

A set of special exercises

Independently choosing a style and appropriate exercises can take a long time. Moreover, the first and long-awaited results will appear only after a few weeks. For cases when a person wants to start a therapeutic course as quickly as possible, a special set of exercises has been developed for the treatment and prevention of the disease. So, how to swim correctly with arthrosis of the knee joint:

The first exercise is intended for differential muscle strengthening. You need to lie on your back and hold the handrails with both hands. After the required position has been taken, you need to alternately raise and lower your legs. Very important: movements should be smooth and unsharp.
Bike. This exercise is similar to riding a bicycle. You need to take a vertical position and hold onto the handrails with your hands. Afterwards, begin to bend your legs at the knee joint one by one and make the appropriate movements. Association with a bicycle allows patients to understand exactly what movements need to be done.
It is recommended to take a break between exercises. To do this, lean your back on the wall of the pool, then bend your knees. Spend 2-3 minutes in this position.

These are just a few exercises from a whole range of exercises designed to stabilize the muscle and joint structure of the legs. If necessary, the attending physician will select the required set of classes according to the patient’s wishes.