Rheumatoid Arthritis Aquatic Therapy
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Joe increases his range of motion with aerobic and anaerobic exercises in his Endless Pool. |
Having lived with rheumatoid arthritis since
his late teens and undergone a hip replacement
a decade ago, Joe Alldredge has a fairly visceral and
immediate reaction to any interruption in his Endless
Pool exercise routine.
"I typically work out first thing in the morning,
in order to get to work by 8," Joe says, "and
if I don’t, getting loose - any movement, really
- just seems to take longer."
A condition that causes inflammation and swelling in
joints, rheumatoid arthritis is a kind of physiological
double-whammy: Because movement causes discomfort, range
of motion is constricted and muscles in turn begin to
atrophy, all of which further worsens the pain of movement.
Aquatic therapy can help to break this cycle by all but eliminating the load joints must bear during
exercise, even as its resistance 600 to 700 times
that of air provides an excellent medium for increasing
strength and endurance.
Joe, 30, who attended college on a wrestling scholarship,
maintains a temperature of about 85 degrees in his Endless
Pool. His half-hour workout, which he customarily does
four times weekly, is both aerobic and anaerobic, combining
stretching and 10 minutes of brisk freestyle swimming,
followed by five minutes of breaststroke.
A construction company executive, Joe was able to integrate
his Endless Pool in the home he completed building last
July.
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