Updated: Oct 23, 2020
A: Results of long term studies with healthy humans between the age 21 and 39 have shown that after 6 weeks, the people who stretch thirty seconds per muscle every day were able to increase their mobility more than the people that stretched fifteen seconds per muscle per day. Changes in mobility amongst those that stretched for fifteen seconds per muscle per day were statistically insignificant. People that stretched sixty seconds per muscle per day increased their range of motion but not significantly more than those that held their stretches for thirty seconds.Other studies have shown that people can increase their range of motion using only 15 second stretches while others gain very little increased mobility with even 45 second stretches. How long to stretch appears to vary depending on which muscle groups are being stretched but on average
studies show that its beneficial to hold a stretch for between 15- 60 seconds 3 times.
Exercising an arthritic knee may seem counterintuitive, but regular exercise can actually lessen — and even relieve — arthritis pain and other symptoms, such as stiffness and swelling.There are several reasons to exercise with knee arthritis
1) Exercise maintains the joint’s full range of motion.
2) Exercise strengthens the muscles that support the joint.
3) Strong muscles help the joint absorb shock.
Exercise doesn’t have to be hard to be beneficial. In fact, gentle, low-impact exercises are best for knee arthritis. They minimize stress on the joint as they increase its flexibility and strength.
Mild discomfort during exercise is normal. So is being a little bit sore the day after exercise. But if you experience severe pain, swelling, or stiffness, stop exercising the affected joint and see your physio or doctor.
Prolonged immobilization is associated with muscle weakness because of disuse. However, those wearing ankle braces are not immobilized, and generally only wear braces during their sport. There is no evidence that ankle muscles are weaker after wearing an ankle brace during the season. While there is some evidence of delayed activation of muscles associated with wearing an ankle brace, researchers found no effect on muscle activation with prolonged use. Furthermore, No brace can ‘prevent’ an injury (or really anything for that matter!). All we can do is reduce the risk or incidence of ankle sprains. The fact is ankle braces do not protect against initial ankle sprains very well. There is minimal reduction in first-time ankle sprains with a brace, but the real benefit of ankle braces is preventing recurrent ankle sprains
