Tag Archive for: osteoarthritis

Think Arthritis Means Slowing Down? Meet the Rise of the “Ultimate Boomer”

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For decades, arthritis has been treated like a life sentence.

Once joint pain appears or an X-ray shows “degeneration” — many adults are told to lower their expectations. Walk less. Avoid impact. Be cautious. Accept that pain and limitation are simply part of aging. In more severe cases, joint replacement is presented as the inevitable next step.

But here in Portsmouth and across the Seacoast, a different story is emerging — and it’s one I see every day in my physical therapy clinic.

Adults in their 50s, 60s, and 70s are refusing to accept the idea that osteoarthritis means slowing down. Instead, they’re hiking local trails, golfing, strength training, traveling, playing with their grandkids, and staying active in the lives they love. Many tell me they feel better now than they did years ago.

This growing group represents what I like to call the rise of the “Ultimate Boomer.”
Someone who understands that while aging is inevitable, decline doesn’t have to be.

Arthritis Is Common — But Feeling “Old” Is Optional

One of the most misunderstood facts about arthritis is this:
Most adults over 50 — and many in their 40s — show arthritic changes on imaging whether they have pain or not.

Just like wrinkles on your skin, joints change with time. But those changes alone do not determine how your body feels or functions.

Problems begin when a diagnosis of arthritis starts to define what people believe their body can tolerate.

When patients hear phrases like “bone-on-bone” or “degenerative joint disease,” fear naturally follows. Activity decreases — especially walking, lifting, and load-bearing movement. Over time, muscles weaken, circulation declines, and joints receive less nourishment — exactly the opposite of what arthritic joints need to stay healthy.

Even more damaging, people lose confidence in their bodies. That loss of trust accelerates stiffness, pain, and overall physical decline.

Arthritis doesn’t make you old. Inactivity does.

The Ultimate Boomer mindset recognizes this — and it’s the difference between aging with confidence and feeling fragile as the years go on.

Why Movement Is One of the Most Powerful Arthritis Treatments

At CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth, NH, we focus on helping people move better — not less.

When done correctly, movement is protective for arthritic joints:

  • Walking improves joint lubrication and circulation
  • Strength training reduces stress on painful joints by building muscular support
  • Core stability and Pilates-based training improve posture, balance, and alignment so joints are loaded more evenly

These habits don’t “wear joints out.”
They help preserve joint health and reduce pain associated with osteoarthritis.

The Ultimate Boomer doesn’t stop moving because something hurts.
They learn how to move better.

Why Recovery Matters More as We Age

One key difference between a 30-year-old and a 65-year-old with joint pain is recovery speed.

As we age, circulation slows, tissue healing takes longer, and inflammation becomes more persistent. Improvement is still absolutely possible — but recovery needs to be supported intentionally.

This is where modern, non-invasive arthritis treatments are changing what’s possible.

At our Portsmouth physical therapy clinic, we use advanced technologies such as Shockwave Therapy and EMTT to help support healing in chronically irritated joints.

  • Shockwave therapy increases blood flow and stimulates cellular repair in stubborn, painful tissue
  • EMTT (Extracorporeal Magnetotransduction Therapy) works at a deeper cellular level, helping reduce chronic inflammation and improve tissue metabolism

When used together, these therapies can improve the internal environment of the joint — reducing inflammation, improving circulation, and making movement and strengthening possible again.

These treatments aren’t about masking pain.
They’re about restoring the conditions your body needs to respond to exercise, physical therapy, and daily activity.

For many adults with arthritis, this becomes the missing link between “I know I should move” and “my body finally lets me.”

Confidence Is the Real Anti-Aging Tool

When people tell me they want to feel younger, they’re rarely talking about appearance.

They want to:

  • Trust their knees on uneven ground
  • Lift without fear of weeks of pain
  • Stay active without worrying that soreness will spiral
  • Maintain independence

That confidence comes from a body that is strong, resilient, and supported by the right care.

The Ultimate Boomer understands that arthritis isn’t a reason to stop living fully — it’s a reason to get smarter about how you move and how you recover.

Arthritis Is Not the End of Your Story

Arthritis does not mean the end of your favorite activities.
It does not mean you are broken.
And it certainly doesn’t mean your best years are behind you.

Aging well isn’t about denying arthritis exists.
It’s about refusing to let it define you.

Because the real goal isn’t just to live longer —
It’s to live better, stronger, and more confidently at every stage of life.

That’s what it truly means to be an Ultimate Boomer.

About the Author

Dr. Carrie Jose, DPT, is a Physical Therapy Specialist and Regenerative Therapy Expert and the owner of CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth, NH. She specializes in helping adults with arthritis, joint pain, and chronic injuries avoid unnecessary medications, injections, and surgery through expert physical therapy and non-invasive healing technologies.

Dr. Jose also writes for Seacoast Media Group.

To learn more about your options or request a free Discovery Visit CLICK HERE or call 603-380-7902.

Back Pain

Tips to Avoid Injury When You’re Over 50

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Most of our clients are aged 50 or above, and staying as active as possible while they age is a big priority for them. As we get older, our bodies do need more care and maintenance to not only age well but avoid injury. 

Here are some of my top tips I like to give clients to help them stay active and mobile, avoid injuries, and continue doing everything they love.

1. Keep Moving

You’ll often hear me say: “You don’t get stiff because you get old, you get old because you get stiff.” If you want to stay healthy and mobile, you need to keep moving. One of the biggest concerns I hear from folks aged 50+ is whether they should start modifying what they do because of arthritis. Remember, arthritis is normal. It happens to everyone as they age, and it’s rarely a reason to stop doing your favorite activities. In fact, research has shown that activities like running, when done consistently and with proper form, can prevent knee arthritis! The effects of arthritis worsen when you don’t move, which is when I typically see people having problems. Common “injuries” like meniscal tears and bulging discs are more likely to occur in arthritic joints. But the more active you stay, the less likely you are to be impacted by ailments such as this — and the better your joints will feel.

2. Maintain a Healthy Diet

Both osteoporosis and heart health become bigger concerns as we age, and what you eat can have a direct and positive influence. With osteoporosis, your risk of injury, especially from a fall, becomes much greater. Greens like kale, spinach, and arugula are awesome for your bones, along with citrus fruits, fish, and nuts. These foods help your bones stay strong and durable. According to Health magazine, “The risk of a heart attack climbs for men after age 45 and for women after age 55.” As you enter middle-age, increasing the presence of foods like unsalted nuts, unprocessed oatmeal, raisins, blueberries, and even dark chocolate (over 70% cacao) can help keep your heart healthy. Before making any drastic changes to your diet, especially if you’ve got comorbidities such as diabetes or kidney disease, you’ll want to check with your doctor or dietician. But otherwise, paying attention to your diet can have a big impact on how healthy you keep your heart and bones.

3. Work on your Balance

Balance is one of the first things to go as a person gets older, and it’s one of the most crucial factors in helping you prevent falls and avoid injury. Slips and falls due to poor balance can lead to broken bones and fractures, which become more common and harder to recover from as you age. But if you’re intentional about improving your balance when you exercise, it’s not too late to improve it. While there are many great balance exercises you can do at home, I always recommend incorporating balance strategies with movement and activity. Because rarely do we fall when just standing still. Try standing on one leg when you brush your teeth, place one foot up on a stool when washing dishes, walk around on your toes and heels during commercials. These are really easy strategies to incorporate into your daily living. And of course, activities like walking regularly, Tai Chi, Yoga, and our favorite — Pilates — are also great to promote good balance.

4. Strengthen your core

Having a strong core is beneficial at any age, but especially as you get older. Strong abs, hips and buttocks (all part of your core) help you to sit and stand more upright, prevent back and neck pain, and will help you feel stronger and more confident in just about everything that you do. In our office, our favorite core-strengthening activity is Pilates. We especially love it for folks aged 50+ because it’s easy on your joints and it helps to promote flexibility at the same time. But what I love most about Pilates is that it teaches you how to strengthen your core properly and safely, two important things at any age, not just when you’re over 50. When you know how to properly engage and use your core, you start to incorporate it more into other exercises. Suddenly walking, running, Yoga, and lifting weights all become that much more effective, and you’re far less likely to get injured doing them.

5. Educate Yourself

Knowledge is power, and lack of it, is one of the biggest reasons I see people decreasing their activity levels when there is no reason to. People think that things like arthritis, bulging discs, or a torn meniscus are reasons to decrease or cease certain activities. But that’s not necessarily true! Most of the things I just mentioned are normal occurrences as we age, and having them show up on an x-ray or MRI is not a reason to change something you’ve been successfully doing for years. Plus, regular movement and exercise actually helps these problems. If you’ve got pain, that’s a different story. Talk to an expert who can help you figure out what’s going on, so that you can quickly get back to your activities and not make your pain worse. Whatever you do, try to avoid Dr. Google. It can send you down a rabbit hole and not all the advice you read will apply directly to you. 

Daily rituals to boost immunity in colder weather

Knee Pain while Running? Don’t Blame Arthritis

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Knee Pain while Running? Don’t Blame Arthritis

Is running bad for your knees? Does it cause arthritis?

We get asked these questions a lot, especially by clients who are in their 50s and 60’s and wondering if it’s safe to keep running.

The short answer is no — running is NOT bad for your knees! If you experience knee pain while running, it’s not that you’ve “aged out” of the sport or that it’s causing arthritis in your knees. This is a very common misconception. In fact, research supports that running may actually be GOOD for your knees!

Staying strong, active, and mobile is your best defense against osteoarthritis.

Therefore runners, because they are typically active and healthy individuals, often have healthier knees compared to non-runners.

Ok then — so if not arthritis — what really causes knee pain in runners?

In most cases, it’s simply a biomechanical issue that goes unaddressed over time. But the GOOD news is that once identified, these issues can actually be fixed with proper education and strengthening (best offered by movement specialists like us!).

Here are three of the most common factors we see that cause knee pain while running:

 

1) Poor ankle mobility

Ankle mobility affects the way force hits your foot, which can impact your knee. If your ankle doesn’t move fully, freely, and adequately, excess forces will be shifted up to your knee. The knee may be forced to flex, rotate, and/or tilt more than it needs to. This, in turn, may result in unwanted loads that the tissues of the knee can’t handle. An expert in biomechanics and movement can not only help you identify if this is the true root of your “knee problem,” but can also help you improve your ankle mobility. This will help prevent long term damage to the joints, tendons, and ligaments in your knees. We actually see this as a very common problem. Specifically, in those that have sprained or twisted their ankles in the past. If that’s you, this could be a reason why you’re suffering from knee pain while you run.

2) Weakness in your hips and thighs

There’s a widely perpetuated myth out there that runners don’t need to strength train. That’s simply not true! Adding strength training to your running regimen makes it way less likely that you’ll suffer an injury. When it comes to protecting your knees, developing good, balanced strength in your hips and thighs is critical. The hamstring and quadriceps muscles play a crucial role in stabilizing the patella, otherwise known as your kneecap. Since running is extremely repetitive on your joints, especially your knees, it requires they have good durability and endurance — something that is lost quickly when you neglect proper strength training. Often “wear and tear” in your knees (otherwise known as arthritis) will get blamed for your knee pain when in actuality, the loss of strength around your knees is what’s causing that wear and tear to feel worse than it needs to.

3) Unstable core

It may seem like running is all in the legs, but the stability of your pelvis and trunk have a huge influence on how your legs perform. You derive the majority of your power, speed, and stamina from your core muscles and glutes. Much like with ankle mobility, if your core is not performing adequately or efficiently – your legs will have to work harder. A stable core is key for developing and maintaining good balance and rhythm with any activity – but especially running.

With a repetitive activity like running, efficiency and form is everything. Without a strong core, it’s impossible for your leg muscles and knee joints to work as efficiently as they were designed to. It will be really difficult for you to maintain good and proper running form. When your core strength is weak, and doesn’t have enough endurance to sustain the amount of miles you want to run, your knees will suffer.

What’s important for you to remember is that arthritis is NORMAL — everyone gets it as they age. 

What doesn’t have to be “normal” is for arthritis to stop you from running, or doing any other activity that you love. You can get surgery to fix the “wear and tear” in your knees, or injections to decrease the inflammation, but if you don’t check and address any underlying biomechanical issues, these fixes will be temporary and your knee pain will keep coming back. And worse… they could force you to stop running all together!

If you’re local to Portsmouth, NH and suffering from knee pain that’s starting to impact your ability to run or do any other activity that you love, you might want to consider speaking to one of my specialists.

In this FREE Discovery Session you can tell us everything that’s been going on with you, and determine for yourself if we’re the best people to help you. It’s a completely free, no-obligation appointment that will give you all the information you need to make the BEST decision for YOUR health – whether that’s working with us or not!

CLICK HERE to request a free discovery session.

Dr. Carrie Jose – back pain specialist and Pilates expert – owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth, NH.