My first death sentence diagnosis of arthritis was when I was 39, almost 10 years ago. Cervical osteoarthritis, and I was told by my PT to never do impact exercise again. Needless to say, I found a new PT....

 

I also became extremely conscientious about my running form and my neck has been FINE. I've since developed arthritis (so they tell me) in my right foot and my left ribs/thoracic spine. I probably have it in my lumbar spine too, along with the spondylosis that I was diagnosed with too. Lucky me! For my foot issues, I wear custom orthotics and running shoes with good cushioning, and I'm good to go.

 

For the achiness in my ankles and feet (the joint pain has gotten worse as gotten closer to 50: perimenopause), I just do the point and flex thing in bed before I get up and walk anywhere in the mornings. I do tend to always wear my Birkenstocks rather than walk barefoot in the house.

 

And then there's yoga. The style I practice (Anusara) is therapeutic in nature, so I've learned the right way to hold and engage the muscles of my body, regardless of its position and movement.

So I guess it's all a matter of support, whether passive (such as with orthotics or good cushioning shoes), or proactive (maintaining good form, yoga alignment, etc.). As you use your body, parts wear out, I suppose, so everyone gets arthritis in one form or another. It's about as much of a "death sentence" as living is, in a way. I could go on and on about it... hmm, I suppose I have... Anyway, hope that helped!

 ...the trick is to exercise JUST ENOUGH, and stop before it inflames ligaments or tendons

 Very true, tomwhite. This is why I feel better when I run, but I run slowly, and not very hard, and have rather conservative weekly mileage. Same with yoga: none is no good, and neither is too much. Thanks for putting it so succinctly.

I was diagnosed with arthritis in my lower back when I was 40, and was told it wasn't unusual for "someone your age." (grrrr) I've always had lower back issues, especially after long rides (horseback), but working on core strength does help. Fast forward to the present, or recent past. Pain in my hip made me think it was arthritis flaring up there, too. A reasonable assumption, since my mother has had severe arthritis (both hips, both knees and a shoulder replaced), as did her mother (hips replaced), and my sister (right thumb joint replaced).

I tried to just run through it, and it would get better, then worse, seemingly regardless of what I did. After the DNF at Boston in 2009, a trip to the doc and x-rays showed my hips are fine. But my back was a mess! Arthritic changes in my lumbar spine manifested in a pretty full blown case of sciatica, which is what stopped me in my tracks. My new routine includes more focus on total core (trunk, abs and lower back) strengthening to support the spine that can't support itself. As for running, my doctor is amazed that I can run at all, much less the amount I do. I'm just thankful I seem to have dodged the severe arthritis bullet (so far) that has affected my mom and sister.

As for your foot, there's a lot of things it could be besides arthritis. A trip to the podiatrist or sports med doc and some x-rays would show a lot of what's going on. Arthritic changes are pretty easy to see on standard x-rays.

Hi Holly:

 

I love Spareribs' story!

 

I am in a different boat than the others who responded. I have rheumatoid arthritis ( RA), which is a full body auto immune disease Not caused by running; they still don't know the cause ( unfortunately) . Mine started with feet , pain in both feet, and actually was diagnosed after foot surgery to remove what they thought was a neuroma; it was eroding my metatarsals. The "neuroma" turned out to be a rheumatoid nodule and other symptoms followed in ensuing months: hand joints,  wrists, fatigue etc. My favorite medical line was when the foot doctor was going over xrays with residents and said,"well she is not a wimp..."

 

I was 35 when diagnosed, 34 when it started to be an issue. I think for RA at least that is pretty typical. Osteo arthritis tends to get bad later  in life and is more tied to overuse and  wear and tear in many cases.

 

There is way more to the story which I can tell you if you want to send a PM. Pretty much killed my running career in terms of racing, but medicine has become more advanced and things are reasonably under control now, most of the time.  I am dependent on pretty serious meds though.

 

  I have to be careful about the volume of training, stress and about listening to my body. If you looked at my bare feet you would not think I could run. But I do.  and I hike, ski etc.  I do go through phases  of sore feet and ankles, esp after long paved runs or races..  My feet are an issue.   Buying shoes I can tolerate which are also suitable for work is an absolute nightmare.

 

Your situation sounds more like OA, if it is arthritis at all. Does not sounds like you are having other symptoms.  I second the recommedation to see a podiatrist and also, if there is a thought it might be arthritis, get to a rheumatologist. OA responds pretty well to anti-inflammatories and PT and the sooner you get on it, the better.  There are lots of good treatments now and your fitness will help .

I was recently diagnosed with osteoarthritis, and I have very little cartilage in my left big toe. Back in December 2010, I had surgery to restore movement in my big toe joint. I've started running again, but I have very little guidance on how to train. Even finding a stiff(ish) forefoot shoe that fits is a little difficult.

 

So far, I've been told to take up cycling/swimming as my primary sport. Currently, I'm running short distances (1-4miles) and biking more. I would like to race again (5ks to half marathons), but I have no idea how to train. Maybe switch from road races to the track? Any ideas?

Both Henrun and I take glucosamine and chrondoitin (sp?) daily.  When I stopped taking it as a test, I noticed alot more aches and pains.  when I had an MRI a few yrs ago, the doc said evryone your age has some arthritis.  fortunately, for us, this is a minor issue - good luck!

marj