What Harvard says:

http://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/the-secret-to-joint-pain-relief-exercise

Dr. Bruno’s comments:

In actuality, this is no secret. We’ve known for decades that movement is the key to keeping the joints of your body (shoulders, knees, hips, ankles, spine, etc…) healthy and pain free.  Combine this with healthy eating and weight management and you can help prevent future joint related problems such as osteoarthritis and osteoporosis.

Here’s something more to think about.  The joints of your body, including the spine, are comprised of different soft tissue structures that serve different purposes.  In very basic terms, there are ligaments that hold the joint together, muscles that move the joint as well as muscles that stabilize the joint while it is being moved.  Of those three types of structures, it is the stabilizing muscles that play the most important role in preserving the health of the joint.  Ironically, it is also the stabilizing muscles that are the most overlooked when developing a workout program.

So, in addition to basic cardiovascular and strength training, a special emphasis should be placed on the stabilizing muscles of the body.  By “stabilizing muscles”, I am referring to the muscles that maintain balance and stiffness of the joint as well as work to hold your body upright and posturally sound against gravity.  I will get more into the roles of stabilizing muscles in future posts and will include some “how to” videos as well.  Subscribe to this blog if you are interested in receiving updates.