Ice, ice and more ice
For many of us in the +40 category, the issues are joint related, and usually knees are involved. After three or four decades of running, jumping, twisting, falling and ripping these joints the cartilage has decayed (or in my case, pretty much disappeared) and doesn’t provide the protection it used to from the smashing of the femour and the tibia.
Include a body frame that has packed on 20 or 30 pounds more than it used to and you’ve got the perfect recipe for inflammation in the knee joints causing stiffness and pain.
Ice is your friend my brothers. As soon as you get home, fill a zip lock bag with some ice cubes and go from knee to knee (ankle to ankle if you’re hurting there too) for a good hour and the next day you will feel a million times better than if you’d done nothing. I’ve got a couple of freezer packs that are about 12” x 18” and they’re perfect for wrapping around the joint for complete cool down therapy. You may also apply cold beer to your “interior muscles” as added therapy, but that’s another story entirely.
Ever see a photo of a baseball pitcher after he finishes a game? Their throwing arm is wrapped in ice from wrist to shoulder, even if the guy’s arm is fine. It’s now been proven that pro-active icing can reduce future injuries by taking the heat out of the joint that contributes to cartilage breakdown in later life.
Celebrex is a wonder too....but you got to talk to your doctor about that one.
I’m not a doctor, but after six trips to the surgeon, I know my way around the knee and given I'm based in Western Canada, lord knows I'm all up to snuff on this ice thing....
Last edited by HossHumard; Thu Sep 17, 2009 at 02:50pm.
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