Skiing and Arthritis

[Jilly]

I know, but my Salomon pants are tight enough. The Avalanche would be OK. I'm going to look for some over the summer.

 

[JaneB]

I have some that are thermal. the Opedix and the 2XU compression tights come in a thermal version. Here in Vt. it's usually cold. I wear insulated pants as well.
The Opedix are heavier and provide more compression. I use the 3/4 length. I don't want more stuff in my boots.

 

[Jilly]

It's going to be interesting to see where I can find these in Canada. That said I am heading to Florida in April....maybe not the thermal type might be available there.

 

[altagirl]

CW-X comes in an insulated version too.

 

[spinney98]

@altagirl what type of yoga did you do?

I do. I've had 5 knee surgeries and lost most of the medial meniscus in both knees, so they are both bone on bone in spots. Years ago, when I was hobbling around and unable to ski without pain that brought tears to my eyes most of the time, my surgeon said there was nothing to do other than wait until I'm old enough for knee replacements, and just have them scoped every 18 months or so to clean up the bits of cartilage floating around in there to keep things going. I have (our had) bone spurs all around the rims of both knees, and they blamed that for the lack of range of motion that I had then. I started doing yoga regularly and then changed my diet drastically and discovered that the swelling that was virtually constant in my knees went away when I eliminated gluten (and most sugar and processed foods) from my diet. I can still aggravate them by running on hard surfaces too much or sudden hard pivots, etc. BUT - I CAN run and ski and bike and even took up ballet and swimming recently. I couldn't do much when it was at it's worst. I do think that yoga helps dramatically - especially when done with a focus on alignment (after about 8 years, I can comfortably sit on my heels again! ). I can tell if I've been slacking. I also find it helpful to massage my own knees with arnica based salve whenever they've gotten a workout or I feel any twinges. (Hard to say if the arnica or the massage is going the good there...)

Clearly, diet stuff is individual, but I guess I'm saying to not give up hope.

 

[Obrules15]

I do. I've had 5 knee surgeries and lost most of the medial meniscus in both knees, so they are both bone on bone in spots. Years ago, when I was hobbling around and unable to ski without pain that brought tears to my eyes most of the time, my surgeon said there was nothing to do other than wait until I'm old enough for knee replacements, and just have them scoped every 18 months or so to clean up the bits of cartilage floating around in there to keep things going. I have (our had) bone spurs all around the rims of both knees, and they blamed that for the lack of range of motion that I had then. I started doing yoga regularly and then changed my diet drastically and discovered that the swelling that was virtually constant in my knees went away when I eliminated gluten (and most sugar and processed foods) from my diet. I can still aggravate them by running on hard surfaces too much or sudden hard pivots, etc. BUT - I CAN run and ski and bike and even took up ballet and swimming recently. I couldn't do much when it was at it's worst. I do think that yoga helps dramatically - especially when done with a focus on alignment (after about 8 years, I can comfortably sit on my heels again! ). I can tell if I've been slacking. I also find it helpful to massage my own knees with arnica based salve whenever they've gotten a workout or I feel any twinges. (Hard to say if the arnica or the massage is going the good there...)

Clearly, diet stuff is individual, but I guess I'm saying to not give up hope.

I've had a ton of trouble in my right knee but my left knee never gave me problems until last September as I was ramping up my workouts for the ski season. A few days after working out it became quite swollen, but only a little painful. The swelling had come down and was no longer a problem although it did get a little swollen a week ago after skiing for a few days in a row. A few days ago I had Pizza and now it is bigger than it has ever been and I didn't do anything over the last two days to cause it.

I've never considered myself gluten or food sensitive but the first bout of swelling came right after I started drinking milk again and this came after Pizza, when I normally don't eat refined processed carbs or gluten containing foods. I'm rather stunned, but it's the only explanation for the worsening swelling.

 

[Powgirl]

I am a big proponent of an anti-inflammatory diet...of course, I need my pasta and tacos once in awhile, but boy do my joints pay for the indulgence, especially my severely arthritic right knee.

I definitely feel my best when eating veggies, salmon and lentils, etc...

 

[geargrrl]

I'm going to underscore the "diet changes" recommendation. I have arthritis is my hands. My doctor recommended eliminating wheat, dairy, sugar. These are all known inflammatory foods. I didn't really buy the concept but went with it anyway; what she tells me to do is usually beneficial. After six months on this elimination diet, I went skiing and had a cinnamon roll and a beer. Whoa! I could literally WATCH the red and swelling creep to into my thumb joints. Even DH who is a total skeptic, was astounded.

The sugar part is the hardest. My understanding is that it's not the gluten so much as that wheat is a known inflammatory, as is dairy and sugar. You've got nothing to lose by trying it for six months and seeing if the works for you.

 

[VickiK]

Hate to say it, but coffee is a major inflammatory thing too.

 

[Obrules15]

Hate to say it, but coffee is a major inflammatory thing too.

But has polyphenols. Some suggest it can be inflammatory because of mold content/additives etc.