Thread: sore joints et al.

glucosamine and MGM have helped me with my knees alot. also very specifically directed strength training (almost PT) has helped me.

Have you seen a doctor about it? An odd joint pain is one thing, but when you're talking about your knees, shoulders and back, it might be a bit more than just taking some supplements.

Originally Posted by northpaw

Just two things to suggest:

1. Strength training. If you start slow (this is key), you can often develop the muscles around a problem joint so that they stabilize/support it. This has made a world of difference for my father, who basically destroyed the cartilage in his shoulder after years of playing competitive tennis. He literally can't lift his elbow above his shoulder, but he can now do everything else with it pain-free.

2. Warming up muscles and joints before stressing them. Seems obvious, but when someone says "hey, come give me a hand with this", it can feel a little silly to stop and spend several minutes doing knee bends and swinging one's arms around. A lot of people refuse to do it, and those are the sore people.

Beat me to it so +1 on that from me.

My dad said, as he was getting up in years, that his older cousin told him that there was no advantage in getting old. Dad's gone now and I'm the one getting up in years and don't you know the old man was so right, "there is no advantage in getting old."

Before you start taking all kinds of supplements or doing this or that you need to know specifically what the issue is. Depending on whether you have just overused something and have inflammation or have serious damage the course you take could very well make things worse. personally, I have really bad neck issues and outside of taking it easy there isn't really much I can do. Many medications have side effects almost as bad as the problem you're trying to alleviate. I Take anti inflammatories and use a heating pad. Other than that often times it's something you just have to live with which is why it important to know what you are dealing with. I could have neck surgery but I've been warned about that. I was lucky I was able to retire at an early age or I'd be in big trouble now.

I agree with those suggesting that you see a medical professional.
Those problems could all be related due to an immune problem, an infectious problem, an orthopaedic problem, or a neurologic problem. Or they could be unrelated orthopaedic problems. Treating them effectively requires knowing what the problem is.

You could take all the anti-inflammatories in the world, but if there is a neurologic problem (your nervous system is preventing your joints or muscles from operating the way they are supposed to), it won't help a bit. Same deal for strength training. Heck, in some cases strength training could make the problem worse.

Find out what the problem is, then look for ways to treat it.

Seeking pro help is fine if you can afford it. When I was a kid my mom used to always say we couldn't afford to get sick and we couldn't. I go to the sawbones if I need stitches or have a broken bone and I don't always go then.

I generally look for the problem myself if it is something requiring medical help I will go. Generally I tell the doctor what I have, he checks me out and usually confirms my diagnosis and at this time I believe its called old age and being too hard on my body in my younger years...my prognosis may change

Originally Posted by JMS

I generally look for the problem myself if it is something requiring medical help I will go. Generally I tell the doctor what I have, he checks me out and usually confirms my diagnosis and at this time I believe its called old age and being too hard on my body in my younger years...my prognosis may change

I'm an I.T. professional and people bring their computers to me all the time telling me what the problem is. I lie and confirm their prognosis to them in person because it's easier than explaining what the real issue is, and then I fix it and give it back.

As a massage therapist I can say that massage can help a lot.
But you would want to pick the right kind of massage.

Your best bet would be to look for someone that does myofascial release and deep tissue massage.
Doing that along with some strength training and cardio can help a lot.

Also, something that has helped me a lot with pain, is getting the right kind of bed.
I just got one of those sleep number beds and it has help a lot.

I wish the best for you, hope that some of the ideas on this thread can help you out.