At times, pain is your body’s way of signaling that it needs to take a break. This is true, especially when your muscle fibers sustain microtears after an intense workout, a condition known as DOMS, or delayed onset muscle soreness.

No doubt, a little rest may help relieve this feeling of soreness. However, you’ll not be doing yourself any favor by becoming a couch potato or skipping your whole-week workout.

Moreover, it is seen that people with joint inflammation (arthritis) fear worsening pain, keeping them from exercising at all.

There’s a very fine line between gaining benefits through exercise and causing more damage by resting. Hence, it’s crucial to know when to kick back and when to work through exercise pain.

Stay active, when you can

Physical activity is the foundation of a healthy body and mind.

The human body is designed to move. It needs to keep moving so that your joints and the muscles around them stay stronger and limber.

Strong muscles do not fatigue easily. Moreover, they exhibit greater motor control to withstand damages and injuries. Strong joints are essential for maintaining mobility in your body parts and fending off stiffness.

Moving helps you rehabilitate faster after a surgical procedure, as well as manage other conditions that are common in people with arthritis, such as diabetes and heart disease.

That is why therapeutic exercise has become the expert’s first-line of conservative treatment for knee arthritis. The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons 2013 guidelines strongly recommend low-impact aerobic exercises and physical activity for those with symptomatic arthritis.

The benefits of physical activity are tangible. So keep moving!

Try Exercise Bikes for a Low-impact Workout

Though some exercises may be too hard on your joints and back, riding a stationary exercise bike allows you to stay active without jarring your body. It is one of the most effective, low-stress aerobic workouts for people with arthritis.

Even the elderly can benefit from riding a stationary bicycle. Research shows that riding stationary cycles prevents falls in older women by improving their balance and gait.

People with arthritis should aim for 30 minutes of low-impact aerobic activity on most days of the week.

Consider the FlexiSpot’s Deskcise Pro

Ever thought of pedaling your way to work? Do you dream about working your lower body while your mind can still focus at work? If so, then look no further. A combo of a stationary exercise bike and workstation provides a great workout while also letting you work during exercise.

One of our most favorite is the Deskcise Pro — the All-in-One Desk Bike. You can use the Deskcise Pro to ride a stationary bike while continuing with your desk work at the same time. This desk with a built-in exercise bike offers a cutting-edge way to stay active without having you to leave your desk work.

The features of this desk cycle unit are phenomenal:  

• The Deskcise Pro allows you to either pedal the bike or stand at your desk and work.
• Being a high-quality exercise bike, it doesn’t make pesky noises except for the faint sound of the swiveling pedals.
• The bike has advanced magnetic tension resistance with 8 resistance levels, allowing you to tailor your workout from light activity to a heavier workout.
• The seat of this desk bike can be adjusted easily with a light press of a lever for people between the heights of 5'1 and 6'2.
• It has four durable caster wheels (with a 360-degree swivel) that allow you to trundle the bike easily from one place to another.

Stop when you have to

Even though staying physically active is remarkably important, there are times when your body needs rest. So don’t forget to listen to your body. Moreover, while you rest, consider ice or heat therapy and judicious use of anti-inflammatory pain medications to speed up healing. But as soon as you start feeling better, get up and get moving again.

At this point, you also need to assess the type of soreness that you’re experiencing. If the case is that of mild soreness or DOMS — indicating "healthy" muscle growth pain owing to the microtears — a day or two of rest, along with some pain-relieving therapy, should suffice.

However, if the pain is unusually "bad" or is acutely hurting an inflamed joint, applying the "no pain, no gain" theory wouldn’t be the best thing to do. Instead, you need to pause right there, take a break to recharge your body, and seek professional advice.

Having painful knees doesn’t mean that you should halt exercising altogether. You may stop working your lower body but continue with the upper body moves. The goal is to stay active in one way or the other regardless of the pain.

Invest in the FlexiSpot AlcoveRiser

As opposed to staying active, sitting is a killer for your joints, muscles, and spine. It packs quite a negative punch on every part and organ of your body from head to toe. If you sit too long, not only will your joints get stiff, but your muscles also tighten and weaken over time. Muscle weakness and tightness, in turn, escalate pain levels and compromise physical activity.

That’s where standing desk converters like the AlcoveRiser - Eco Series 35" come in. These units provide you a leeway to stand and sit according to your feasibility.

Speaking of their ergonomic design, the Eco Series 35" have unparalleled quality and features:

• These desk risers don’t have to be pushed away while lifting and lowering, thus saving a lot of space.
• On top of that, you can still keep all your desktop items within reach.
• More remarkably, you can lift these desk risers using a single handle.
• The keyboard tray is easily detachable and re-attachable, accommodating your varying need to use the desk riser with or without a keyboard tray.

These qualities make them the AlcoveRisers highly convenient for users with arm, wrist, or back pain.

In a Nutshell

Staying active is the cornerstone of healthy body. Aerobic exercises are excellent pain-relievers. That said, overworking extremely sore joints and muscles may end up causing more damage. Our Deskcise Pro and the AlcoverRiser standing desk converters provide just the right blend of physical activity and working comfort for your body.