graphix

For the last month or so ive been going with my father to the gym. Hes 63 with a fused hip and a bad back. We spend about an hour in the pool, he does aquatic exercises and uses the steam room and hot tub while i swim laps. The other day we played basketball for around 30 minutes or so and he had to take the next couple days off because his knees and hip were too sore. Anyone have any advice for natural supplements that can help with muscle recovery and energy levels as well as easing sore joints. I hate to see him get to discouraged cause he "feels too old." Any advice?
thanks
Brendan

CB HI

The energy drink that does the most for me is SoBe's "No Fear". I use it when doing heavy weight lifting work outs. Gives lots of energy and reduces the soreness.
https://energy.nofear.com/
My guess is, that it is the large amount of taurine (an amino acid) that works for me.

Rick@OCRR

Go for a bike ride instead of playing basketball. Cycling would be much less stressful for his bones/joints. You are correct that swimming is also very beneficial. He shouldn't need any suppliments if he doesn't over-stress the delicate areas.

If you insist, however, I totally agree with CB HI that Sobe "No Fear" is excellent.

Rick / OCRR

stapfam

If I played basketball for 30 minutes- I would be in hospital- let alone just having sore knees.

If you are going to the gym- Do a series of exercises that will strengthen the weak points- Knees- Cardio vascular and a bit of gentle weight training.

Cycling is very gentle on the joints-providing you build up time and effort gradually. Rowing machines at a low level will get the back- upper body and knees working- And something like a cross trainer will get everything moving without too much strain.

The best supplement to get him back to normal mobility is gentle exercise. Doesn't have to be that gentle but low levels on the machines- low weights in the weight room but with repetitions. Do it on a regular basis and just go up a level as required and it won't be long before he can get back to the basketball. That is if he doesn't buy a bike first and find out how relaxing and strenuous that can be.

John C. Ratliff

I agree with the above; I'm 63, but without the back, knee and hip problems. I like the pool, and suppliment swimming with fin swimming (using swim fins, a mask rather than goggles and snorkel to swim laps). I am a past director of finswimming for the Underwater Society of America for a while, and it is a very popular sport in Europe. But they swim competitively, which I would not recommend.

Here are a few more suggestions:

--It looks like he is going too hard, which is easy to do. Do things easy, but keep at it. Even walking is great, but try to go at a pace he can keep up for a half hour or more. Same can be said for the swimming, water aerobics, fin swimming, bicycling, etc. The exercise itself will help the joints, but the body's response to the work, which is to produce more lubricant for the joint. But overdoing it can produce micro-injuries which the body has to repair. This is probably what his body is responding to.

--Have him do aerobics in some form repeatedly. I think the recommendations are at least 3X per week, a half hour at a time.

--Have a look at the Healthy People 2010 website:

https://www.healthypeople.gov/

There are "Leading Health Indicators" to examine, especially the one on exercise. You'll have to do some searching on this site, but it has a lot of good information.

--Have your Dad go to a doctor familiar with the issues of age and exercise. He should get a physical before starting any program, as there may be some aspects to the problems he has that are not amenable to exercise. Here is a book from the National Institute for Aging on Exercise:

https://www.nia.nih.gov/HealthInforma...ExerciseGuide/

--For bicycling, consider having him use a long wheel base recumbant bicycle. These are the easiest on the back of any bicycle, and very, very comfortable.

John

tntyz

Basketball is pretty jarring exercise, especially if he's mainly been doing pool work. I hate to sound negative, but playing ball just may be on the list of things he's not going to do again.

I love basketball and volleyball, but the jumping just kills my left knee. It has since my mid-30's (I'm 51.9 now) and the problem was probably caused by playing one of these sports. Guess what? I simply don't play them anymore. It's simply not worth the risk to me. Tough, there's a lot of other fun stuff to do.

Also, I agree with the prior posts about easing into this stuff. There's no doubt that the better your fitness, the easier it is to stay in shap. It's getting there that's tough.

Glad to hear that you've got him going to the gym with you! You're a special son to be doing that for your dad.

oldster

I ride 100+mi /week and do 40mi at a time with no knee pain. If I mow the lawn or shovel snow , my knee hurts... asked my DR. the other day about it his reply..."Don't do that"...
Probably ,,don't play B ball..
Bud

Roody

The aquatic exercises are probably very good, but most people need to add weight bearing exercises, especially as they get older. Walking would be good, weightlifting would be good, and both together would be best of all. I've read several studies that show that the older you are, the more you'll benefit from weight lifting and other resistance exercises.

IMO, the cycling should wait until he's acclimated to walking and weights. Cycling is excellent aerobic exercise, but there's no weight bearing and very little resistance involved.

He might want to see if his doctor would prescribe physical therapy. A physical therapist is like a personal trainer who has a LOT of extra education to help in cases of illness, injury, and mobility issues. The PT could help your father develop a lifelong exercise program while also easing any pain and immobility he might be experiencing.

I'm a little surprised that nobody has said this yet: 63 is not old. Many people much older than 63 on this forum are performing astonishing feats. This is a good time for your father to get back into the high level of functioning that's normal for most people over 60.

graphix

I wish cycling was an option...but his left hip has very little mobility. I dont think hes ridden a bike in 25 years or more. I think one of the cranks would have to be very short. Anyone know of anyone riding with that kind of restricted leg movememnt? Anyway, thanks for the suggestions, i will pass them on. maybe we will start even lighter with the basketball, just some free shooting then into the pool.
thanks
Grfx

Bill Kapaun

I'm 61 and take a calcium, magnesium & zinc supplement. Just 1, which is 1/3 the daily recommended dose.
It seems to help reduce my knee and other joint pain. Give it a couple weeks to work, although I've had people tell me the saw results after 1 week. Just get the cheap, generic stuff that's $3-4/100.

Jet Travis

A few thoughts from a guy who was so banged up he had to have a handicapped license plate:

Does your gym offer water aerobics or yoga? After getting my knees pounded into pulp, I gave up running on the basketball court or anywhere else, but I do walk at least five miles every day. The tip about weight lifting is very good. Maybe a friendly game of HORSE is the way to go for now on the basketball court. Also, a physical therapist might be able to help with the fused hip/bad back issues.

DnvrFox

My wife (71 years old) fights pain and a bad back and osteoarthritis continuously. A couple of years ago she was using one of those electric scooters in the grocery store. Even now, any kind of cement or real hard surface is extremely difficult for to walk on for very long.

However, she has maintained her exercise, and, for her, the most wonderful exercise is the aqua aerobics. When she first started, even that, at a mild level, gave her aches and pains. However, she has built herself up, and they have a new instructor they call the "energizer bunny" that really gives them a work out. I used to inwardly feel that the workouts were too mild, but not now. While she does the aquaaerobics, I swim laps and lift weights.

She now no longer uses an electric cart and we regularly walk 2-3 miles on "soft" surfaces, and of course, she has biked all along, as it is the one exercise that she has been able to do all along. Amazingly, she has built a a lot of muscle with the water exercises.

I (age 69) also lift weights, and have been doing so for many years, and am pretty good at that.

I think basketball is the wrong exercise, as it is very jarring for anyone, and especially your dad.

However, I don't use any supplements and can give you no advice there.

Can he swim laps also? That is really good aerobic exercise.

Good luck with your dad's exercise.

NOS88

Give him the web address of several sites such as this that cater to the 50+ individual involved in athletic endeavors.

Grand Bois

Don't take Aleve (Naproxen) for sore muscles. It gave my mother bleeding ulcers and she got so anemic that she needed a blood transfusion and spent four days in the hospital. The bill was $56,000.