Knee osteoarthritis, also known as wear-and-tear osteoarthritis, develops when the cushioning between your bones wears down, producing pain, stiffness, and swelling.

In a new study, 189 people with knee osteoarthritis were given either a high dose or a low dose of exercise. For 12 weeks, everyone worked out three times a week. Some of the exercises were indoor cycling and lower body exercises like squats without weights and knee extensions. Bands or pulleys are used in de-loaded workouts to remove weight from the knee joint and lessen discomfort.

The high-dose group engaged in 11 different physical activities over the course of 60-90 minute sessions. Low-dose exercise participants did five exercises over the course of 20 to 30-minute sessions.

The outcome? At three, six, and 12 months, patients reported less pain and increased function from knee osteoarthritis when using a standardized pain and function measure. At six months, people in the high-dose group did have better knee function when playing sports or doing other activities. This suggests that a high-dose program may be better for athletes and people who play sports on the weekends.

Swedish physiotherapist Wilhelmus Johannes Andreas Grooten conducted the research, which was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Experts agree that the ideal workout regimen for someone with knee osteoarthritis is the one that works with their timetable, priorities, and ability.

Physical therapist Jack Fitzgerald works at New York’s Hospital for Special Surgery. He regularly develops and instructs workout programs for those suffering from knee osteoarthritis.

Fitzgerald said that the results of the new study were “music to any physical therapist’s ears.” He pointed out that the people in the study had significant improvements in their knee symptoms and that both groups did a great job of sticking to their programs.

Fitzgerald remarked that the fact that exercise was recommended with minimum to no discomfort is at least partly to blame.

“Regardless of the exercise dosage, when we are capable of prescribing exercise within pain-free limits, there is more hope that patients will respond well to the treatment,” he added.

“If you are prescribing exercises for these patients with their best interest in mind, the program should be specific to the likes and goals of the patient keeping in mind loading principles to manage pain,” Fitzgerald added.

According to Dr. Sonali Khandelwal, an associate professor of internal medicine at Rush Medical College in Chicago, exercise is a crucial component of the therapy of knee osteoarthritis.

“A component of knee osteoarthritis is weakening of the muscles surrounding the knee, and exercise strengthens these supporting muscles,” she added.

Exercise won’t exacerbate knee OA, despite popular belief, according to Khandelwal.

When recommending a strategy, “It’s important to assess a person’s risk of falls and history of exercise,” she added. For many who have never exercised, just getting up and moving about might be really beneficial, according to her.

Khandelwal said that if you have knee osteoarthritis pain, the first things you should do are things like physical therapy and exercise. Next, come injections of steroid or hyaluronic gel and painkillers like nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or acetaminophen.

Surgery might be considered when “conservative measures don’t work, pain is a 10 out of 10, and you can’t perform activities of daily living,” she added.

“It’s great to see studies like this as surgery results don’t last forever,” said Khandelwal.

“For people with knee osteoarthritis, activity is important to maintain strength and range of motion,” Professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina, Dr. David Pisetsky agreed. 

“Exercise should be easy to perform … walking is a good way to go.”

You could also go swimming, ride a stationary bike, or work out with light weights.

Image Credit: Getty