Pilates for Osteoarthritis & Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and Osteoarthritis (OA)
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RA is a systemic autoimmune disease which is characterized by inflammation of the synovial membrane lining the joint, which can cause stiffness, swelling and pain. It can lead to loss of range of motion and dysfunction.
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OA is a very common condition and can affect any joint in the body. It's most likely to affect the joints that bear most of our weight such as knees, hips and feet.
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Can Pilates Help?
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Pilates greatly benefits clients with OA and RA reduces symptoms and can improve general health and vitality. At pure space a STOTT Pilates program can increase range of motion and significantly strengthen the joints, without causing aggravation.
Caroline will carefully devise a bespoke program to increase strength and flexibility to the muscles surrounding the joints, whilst keeping the bones and cartilage healthy. A program is gradually progressed to increase endurance and stamina, and daily function and activities will become easier.
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STOTT Pilates for Osteoarthritis & Rheumatoid Arthritis
Pilates exercises work wonders to gently and progressively load the joints to build strength, and increase mobility even if the muscles around the area are weak. Furthermore, the equipment allows you to also add traction to your hip join with the use of the reformer and the Cadillac. As a result, this can be extremely beneficial to increase joint space and fluid dynamics within the joint capsule.
If your goal is to try a conservative approach in order to avoid surgery, Pilates exercises may help your joints not only putting off surgical interventions, but to prepare and recover faster from them.
The cornerstone of Pilates exercise is to improve joint stability and increase joint mobility, therefore, your overall body joint health will also greatly benefit from this form of exercise. E.g. knees, wrists, shoulders, spine.
