Joint pain making you feel old?
Why Are My Joints Stiff and Achy?!
Midlife includes a lot of new experiences.
Some are fun, fulfilling, and meaningful. Like traveling or spending time with your children or grandchildren, mentoring, or having time to spend time volunteering with organizations you care about.
Others—like new aches and pains in your shoulders, hips, ankles, knees, and everywhere else —not so much.
Unfortunately, as women age, our estrogen production declines - hello, menopause!
Estrogen is a wonder-hormone that can keep extra inflammation at bay.
When you don’t have as much estrogen in your system, your body’s inflammation levels might rise without you doing anything different.
Why This Matters
Consistently elevated inflammation levels in the body can result in more joint pain, stiffness, and breakdown in joint tissues.
So what can you do to reduce inflammation in your body and get rid of joint pain?
Let's keep it simple! Here are some ways you can reduce inflammation through nutrition, fitness, and even your mindset...
FITNESS SIMPLIFIED
Imagine this…
You get to the end of your day and your back and hips feel tight, stiff and achy.
So you pop an Ibuprofen, grab your heating pad and put your feet up for a little (temporary) relief.
But what if there were something MORE EFFECTIVE that you could do that actually targets the root cause of that pain?
Something easy you could do that wouldn’t just be a band-aid for the pain, but would actually address the source of it…
Say hello to the dynamic lunging stretch!
Dynamic Lunging Hip Flexor Stretch
- Position yourself on the floor next to a couch or chair for support.
- Start with your feet in a split stance.
- Using the couch/chair to help support you as you lower, push your hips down towards the floor.
- Focusing on pressing the stretch into your hips, getting deeper and deeper with each repetition. Don't try to stay upright - keep your body leaning forward.
- Do 6-8 reps per side, fully exhaling at the deepest part of the stretch.
Extra tip: Focus on pressing this stretch into your hips, getting deeper and deeper with each repetition. Don’t try to stay perfectly upright - keep your body leaning forward. Fully exhale at the deepest portion of the stretch to encourage your muscles to release tension.
Did You Know...
Hips, ankles, knees, and shoulders will lose the most mobility as you age
Try these easy active or dynamic style stretches for your major joints everyday:
- Ankles: Calf stretches against a wall
- Knees: Deep knee bends at the kitchen sink
- Hips: Deep lunging movements (*dynamic lunging hip flexor stretch above)
- Shoulders: Thoracic rotations & Y stretches
NUTRITION SIMPLIFIED
Believe it or not, certain foods can reduce inflammation and ease joint pain. Pretty cool, right?!
NUTRITION TIP TO HELP YOU GET RID OF JOINT PAIN:
Eat MORE anti-inflammatory foods.
And on the flip side, be very cautious about eating foods that can increase joint inflammation.
What are some examples of anti-inflammatory foods?
Anti-inflammatory = Variety of fresh produce, lean protein, healthy fats and oils, and unprocessed foods.
- Cauliflower
- Broccoli
- Berries
- Chicken Breast
- Salmon
Inflammatory = High in added sugars, fried foods, processed foods, alcohol.
- Sodas
- Cookies
- Chips
- Anything Fried
- Wine & Beer
More Anti-Inflammatory Meal Examples:
- Mixed Greens Salad with Salmon & Almonds
- Apple with Cinnamon Almond Butter
- Greek Yogurt w/ Blueberries and Chopped Walnuts
MINDSET SIMPLIFIED
Part of implementing an anti-inflammatory lifestyle includes managing your stress and getting quality sleep (a topic we touched on in the last email).
You can have the perfect routine, the perfect meal plan in place, but if your mind is not in the right space, none of it matters.
Yep, I said it.
If left unchecked, your stress can increase inflammation levels in your body, leading to joint pain.
Managing stress and anxiety shouldn’t be shoved to the bottom of your daily to-do list if you’re working on reducing inflammation and joint pain.
Most women I talk to, myself included, serve in lots of different roles.
And we tend to set unrealistically high expectations for ourselves in all those roles.
Next time you notice that you feel stressed, ask yourself:
Is there something I can say 'no' to, delegate, or take a moment to breathe to reduce stress?
Chances are that there’s likely at least one thing you can immediately cross off your list.
Maybe it’s time to flex your delegation muscle by passing along the laundry or the grocery shopping to someone else in the family every once in a while.
THE TAKEAWAY
Reducing inflammation is a major key to avoiding major key to stop “feeling old and achy,” especially in your joints.
As you’re getting older, you CAN:
- Eat more anti-inflammatory foods
- Reverse mobility loss
- And actually feel so much better!
Getting Started Today
Starting today, here’s what you can do - work on the dynamic mobility of your joints - ankles, knees, hips and shoulders.
Work on eliminating habits that can increase chronic inflammation - like stress, poor sleep, and inflammatory foods.
And begin a good strength training routine that is functional and moves you through your full ranges of motion.
Don’t worry. I’ve covered you with all the exercises and the order to do them in, so you won’t have to think about it.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Self Care Simplified podcast
Ep 348: Inflammation & Joint Pain Totally Reversed (No Medication!)
Ep 328: STOP Feeling Old! Reverse Mobility Loss & Improve Joint Health to Feel Younger!
SPECIAL RESOURCE
Staying mobile and encouraging joint lubrication throughout all the joints on your body is the very best thing you can do if you’re experiencing joint pain and inflammation. Follow along with me in this video to target all the major joints of your body with feel good stretches. This routine is also great for relieving muscle tension from any stress you may be carrying. I bet you could use that!
20 MIN BEGINNER FLEXIBILITY ROUTINE // Follow Along
Until next week... Be strong
