Friday, February 4, 2011

Friday Confessional: Sore knees

My poor knees.  Some days they are so sore.  I can't blame them.  They've been supporting a great deal of bulk for over two decades.  I’ve damaged my knees, it’s my own damn fault and when I think about it too much I fell angry.  The damage started in high school when I played competitive volleyball, but most of the wear-and-tear is the result of two decades of obesity.  Obviously extra weight means extra stress on knees, but exactly how much more stress?  I did a big of googling and found that losing just 10 pounds reduces the force on knees by 30 to 60 pounds.  So every time I walk my knees are feeling 3 to 6 times my body weight.  Ouch!  No wonder they’re always complaining. 
This won't stop me from reaching my exercise goals.  I discussed exercise with Dr. A., my trusted MD, and he had some good advice.  I’ll share his wisdom with you on Monday.

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