Running and osteoarthritis of the knee

Julialovestorun

Hi. I have very recently been diagnosed with osteoarthritis of my knee. My gp said that impact exercise like running will make it worse. But I love to run. It's good for my mental and physical health. I was very upset at the idea of stopping running or reducing the mileage so I started looking for evidence. I need to weigh up the benefits of running with the possible consequences. I run about 20 miles a week, sometimes more (if my knee is good). Is there any good quality information that can help me with this? Many thanks.

[Deleted User]

Hello
Welcome to the forums. The members of this forum are very friendly, knowledgeable, empathetic, offer support, advice and light relief.

The helpline team will answer your questions as soon as they can. If you would like to talk to someone you can contact our free phone helpline on 0800 520 0520. They can usually help with your queries and concerns, but remember they are not medically trained. If they can't answer your query they will know someone to contact to find out the information. They will then get in touch with you again.

At the top of this page there are various tabs which can lead you to the various subjects and conditions Versus Arthritis covers.

I am one of the moderators, we all have one or more of the Arthritis "hangers" on or care for family with the same.

I look forward to seeing future posts from you. The most used section of the forum is 'Living with arthritis '.

Best wishes
ChrisK

helpline_team

Julialovestorun wrote:

Hi. I have very recently been diagnosed with osteoarthritis of my knee. My gp said that impact exercise like running will make it worse. But I love to run. It's good for my mental and physical health. I was very upset at the idea of stopping running or reducing the mileage so I started looking for evidence. I need to weigh up the benefits of running with the possible consequences. I run about 20 miles a week, sometimes more (if my knee is good). Is there any good quality information that can help me with this? Many thanks.

Hi thank you for your post on the forum. It is always best to talk through with a physiotherapist to get advice about exercise and the impact this may have. You can ask your GP for a referral to a physiotherapist who can provide some guidance about appropriate exercise. We do have information on a research project that is looking at the impact of running on osteoarthritis of the knee. You can read about this on the link https://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/news/arthritis-today/2017/march/is-running-good-or-bad-for-your-joints.aspx
We also have information on exercise and its benefits and impact on arthritis. You can access this on our website on the link https://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/shop/products/publications/patient-information/living-with-arthritis/keep-moving.aspx
As suggested, you are also very welcome to call us here on the helpline if you would like to talk to us about your arthritis and its impact. We are here weekdays from 9am – 8pm on 0800 5200 520.
I hope the above information is helpful.
Best Wishes
Dawn

Julialovestorun

[/quote]

I hope the above information is helpful.
Best Wishes
Dawn
[/quote]

Thank you Dawn. That is exactly the sort of information I was looking for. Really appreciate your time.