Using C2 rower for knee osteoarthritis

[Beno Pincu]

Hi all,
Years of Karate when I was young left me with knee osteoarthritis. 20 years later I start to have pain in the knees, from time to time.
I own a C2 which I don't use very often. When I use the C2 I don't stretch completely the legs and I never experience pain during the exercise.
I wonder if people with knee osteoarthritis are using the C2 rower and if it helps them with the overall knee pain.
Please share your experience.
As a note, I am not overweight and I eat very little animal products. Thanks!

[jamesg]

I re-started rowing (erg) at 62 and have had no knee problems. Now 78y. My father died at 74, effectively due to knees, he could hardly move at all, plus the English killer breakfast. Osteopathy sites tell us, as you'll know, that losing weight and exercise can reduce (and I'd say for me, possibly avoid) knee problems.

If there's any particular exercise having that effect, I'd say it's the erg: it can get us fit and maintain strength even with limited forces exerted by the legs. Being seated and using both legs together against the inertia of a flywheel, we can hold the load on the knees as low as we like, simply by low acceleration at the catch.

When I use the C2 I don't stretch completely the legs
I'd also think it best to avoid complete collapse of the knee joint, so short slide-travel coming forward.

[lindsayh]

Hi all,I wonder if people with knee osteoarthritis are using the C2 rower and if it helps them with the overall knee pain. Please share your experience. As a note, I am not overweight and I eat very little animal products. Thanks!

I have rowed OTE with progressive and >moderately severe OA of both knees (one worse than other) for at least 4/5 years now. They hurt, I limp and can't run etc but can still erg quite well and train about 40-60 kms a week pretty much all the time. I suspect that my top end power has probably suffered more than might be explained by age related slowing. All the advice I have had says its good non weight bearing exercise and to go as hard as if you want to. Most of my pain is the result of long days working on my feet (I stand a lot) rather than after a OTE session.
I am sure that the erg has helped a lot particularly in maintaining quad mass and knee flexibility which is so important for knee stability and that I am way more functional than without the exercise. I can still get to shins vertical at the catch. The result is twofold - the inevitable knee replacement is delayed and when it happens the rehab and recovery is much more likely to be successful. I think post surgery will never be great OTE especially for racing although they are getting better all the time with bespoke titanium 3D printing and other technical improvements. (a rowing orthopaedic surgeon I consulted said that anyone who can do a sub7 2km doesn't need surgery yet!)
The two pieces of advice I value the most is firstly to learn to embrace and live with the inevitable pain rather than fight it and to delay surgery for as long as possible until it is really preventing you doing what you want to do.

[messner]

I am 50, i was diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis when I was about 17 years old. I am much better now and that is because of heavy strength leg training in the gym, I started very slow with low weights. I dont really belive in knee osteoarthritis, in my case I trained to much for my muscle strenght and to fast, got muscle problems (weak) that gives the knee problem. Old school in medicine was If you got knee osteoarthritis You should not train and people got handikaped, today the hospital in Sweden have knee osteoarthritis schools and the patients train leg muscles at the hospital gym and gets great results. Its very easy to overtrain the muscles and the will be weak and the patella might not run properly or give the knee other problems. A another factor that could cause joint inflamation is inflammatory foods like sugar and most modern crap foods.

Weight is another factor for the joints, for a man it is good to be below around 15% of bodyfat over that somewhere testosterone will decrease and the risk for diabetes and heart problems and high blood pressure could increase. Its good to have waistline below 90cm or rather 85cm. Male athletes have about 6-13% bodyfat. Many are around the length in cm minus 110cm, like Bruce lee 170-110= 60kg or like Brad pit in fight club 180cm-110=70kg

The more muscle ones offen go on steroids

If one gets more muscle mass one will weigh more, but fat aint muscles. With more leg muscles one can bear a heavier weight and reduce the risk of injuries.

Here are some weights and lenghts of pro triathletes

https://www.slowtwitch.com/Products/Bik ... _6639.html

[RayOfSunshine]

I have OA in my knees and right elbow. Running is out of the question even with weight loss.

I have learned to live with the pain. I take ibuprofen daily and listen to my body (what a novel concept!).

If I hadn't been on the erg, I'd definitely feel worse overall. I'd guess my knees (and elbow) would be worse off as well.