Keep the body moving!!!

People suffering from addiction often suffer from real and phantom pain.  After periods of substance abuse, they have likely neglected to stay physically active.  As a result, they are out of shape and reluctant to get moving.  An important axiom to remember is the following:

"For the body to remain healthy, it must keep moving."
"For the mind to remain healthy, it must be kept at peace."

For people who have arthritis or physical pain, they should be sure to keep exercising and that their exercise routine has these goals in mind:

1. A better range of motion (improved joint mobility and flexibility). To increase one's range of motion, one should move a joint as far as it can go and then try to push a little farther. These exercises can be done any time, even when the joints are painful or swollen, as long as you do them gently.
2. Stronger muscles (through resistance training). Fancy equipment isn't needed.  A person can use his or her own body weight as resistance to build muscles. For example, the simple exercise described below can help ease the strain on knees by strengthening your thigh muscles. Sit in a chair. Now lean forward and stand by pushing up with the thigh muscles (use your arms for balance only). Stand a moment, then sit back down, using the thigh muscles only.
3. Better endurance. Aerobic exercise — such as walking, swimming, and bicycling — strengthens the heart and lungs and thereby increases endurance and overall health. Stick to activities that don't jar your joints, and avoid high impact activities such as jogging. If you're having a flare-up of symptoms, wait until it subsides before doing endurance exercise.
4. Better balance. There are simple ways to work on balance. For example, one should stand with weight on both feet. Then try lifting one foot while you balance on the other foot for 5 seconds. Repeat on the other side. Over time, work your way up to 30 seconds. Yoga and tai chi are also good for balance.

These exercises create a sense of well being emotionally as well as physically.