I am 75 and very fit, partly due to having run 15 miles a week for the past 30 years. Several doctor friends (not sports specialists) have advised me to stop running as it wears out non-renewable parts of the knee. I have no problem at present. What do you think?
Edward Gwinnell, by email
Fifteen miles a week is probably not an excessive distance to run, especially if you have done so for many years. Healthy articular cartilage, both in the hips and knees, thrives on being loaded and unloaded through movement. The present scientific evidence shows that if there is no intrinsic abnormality, weight-bearing athletic activities can be continued to a very advanced age. Running gives a great boost to cardio-respiratory function and, if performed on a regular basis, there is no reason to discontinue it just because of age. Your friends are probably over-cautious.
I agree that at 75 one is at greater risk of wear and tear to the joints of the lower limb (which, unfortunately, is one of the prices we pay for living longer), and developing osteoarthritis. However, the increasing popularity of master and veteran sports events bears witness to the great levels of sports activity that older people are capable of, and of the fact that joints can stay healthy for a long while.
If you had never run, and had decided to take it up now, I would probably agree with your friends and suggest that you stick to activities which, while allowing a good cardio-vascular work out, are gentler on the joints. Classic examples are cycling, swimming and rowing, and, with the advent of more sophisticated training machines, stepping on the Stairmaster and elliptical training can be added to the list. But do avoid stopping exercise altogether. If anything, to be even kinder on your joints, I would consider alternating modes of exercise: you may find that you soon end up spending more time on physical activities than you do now.
· Professor Maffulli is a consultant orthopaedic and sports injury surgeon at Keele University medical school. If you have a question for him, email [email protected]
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