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      • Diabetes Exercise Class
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Blog

What is the difference between Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid Arthritis?

22/4/2021

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You have likely heard of many people saying they have OSTEOARTHRITIS (OA).. but what about RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS (RA)? What’s the difference between the two? I’m glad you asked! 
Osteoarthritis is a disease that involves the WEAR AND TEAR of joints over time, causing the cartilage that surrounds and cushions our joints to break down. 
Rheumatoid Arthritis is an AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE causing the body’s immune system to attack itself. Often the fist sign of Rheumatoid Arthritis is not joint pain but rather fatigue, “flu-like” symptoms or weakness. 
Disease Causes: 
Both OA and RA affect the protective tissue that surrounds our joints and prevents bone on bone friction from occurring. Although each disease impacts this tissue through different methods. 
During OA as we age the protective cartilage around the joint wears down and bones begin to scrape across each other causing friction and pain. This wear and tear can happen generally due to age but repetitive movements, high impact sports and additional load/ weight on the joints can speed up this process. 
As RA is an autoimmune disease it is caused from a mutation in the body that mistakenly attacks the healthy joint tissue, breaking it down. This can occur at any age and can progressively worsen over weeks, months or years. 
Disease Symptoms: 
Common symptoms of both OA and RA include; 
  • Joint stiffness
  • Swelling of the joint
  • Decrease range of movement within the joint
  • Joint pain
  • Increased symptoms in the morning. 
RA symptoms are known for having a very quick onset after first presenting and symptoms are often systemic, meaning that the affect the whole body. Some symptoms may include but are not limited too; 
  • Fever
  • Decreased appetite
  • Weight loss
  • Fatigue
  • Inflammation of additional areas including the eyes and lungs. 
OA symptoms are usually localised and affect only the joint and immediate surrounding tissues. Whilst OA is not systemic, the condition can cause additional bone abnormalities or pain do develop such as bone spurs or small lumps around the joints, especially in arthritic fingers. 
Where in the body am I most likely to get each disease? 
Both diseases can affect any joint within the body although OA is more likely to affect knees, finger/ thumb joints, the hips or spine. RA on the other hand frequently occurs in the hands, fingers, elbows, knees, feet and hips and will generally occur in the same joints on both sides of the body. 
Treatment/ Physical Therapies: 
In both OA and RA physical activity and treatment will assist in improving the condition of both diseases. This assists in increasing joint mobility and improving strength in surrounding muscles to decrease the load that is placed through the joint. 
To learn more about what specific movements can assist OA or RA, get in touch with a local Accredited Exercise Physiologist. 
For more information about arthritis and some exercises that may be appropriate, have a look at some of our previous blogs at http://www.optimumep.com.au/blog/category/osteoarthritis 

Aleisha Michael
Accredited Exercise Physiologist.

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Best and Worst Diets

7/4/2021

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​Two thirds of the Australian population are either overweight or obese, and although not all are trying to lose weight, many are.  Is this you?

Some dieters, 
  • Spend more than half of their life or more dieting,
  • Trying 61 diets by the age of 45; and
  • Trying 4-5 different diets each year!

Exercise and nutrition both play a part in losing weight, with research confirming that a combination of nutrition and exercise having the best result on long term weight loss.

Each year diets are ranked from best to worst
Each year the US News and World Report have a panel of experts that evaluate modern and popular diets.  Diets are rated out of 5 in terms of their success for short term weight loss, their success in achieving long term weight loss, and also how healthy they are in relation to nutritional value.

Australian researchers are also planning on commencing this rating process soon and will release their own findings.

What are the worst diets out there?
  1. Dukan Diet - strict high protein diet, low carb diet
  2. Keto - high fat, low carb
  3. GAPS diet - gut and psychology syndrome diet that eliminates hard to digest foods
  4. Whole 30 diet - highly restrictive
  5. Atkins diet - low carb
All of the above diets ranked less than 2.3 out of 5 on all aspects including nutritional value and impact on overall health.

What were rated as the top diets?

The top 3 diets for 2021
  1. Mediteranian diet
  2. DASH diet and Flaxitarian diets tied at number 2

The Mediterranean diet
  • Is an eating pattern – not a structured diet.  
  • Emphasizes eating fruits, veggies, whole grains, beans, nuts, legumes, olive oil, and flavorful herbs and spices; fish and seafood at least a couple of times a week; and poultry, eggs, cheese and yogurt in moderation, while saving sweets and red meat for special occasions.  
  • Encourages physical activity.

The DASH diet 
  • Stands for dietary approaches to stop hypertension.  
  • Is highly researched and emphasizes eating fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean protein and low-fat dairy, which are high in blood pressure-deflating nutrients like potassium, calcium, protein and fiber.  
  • Discourages foods that are high in saturated fat, such as fatty meats, full-fat dairy foods and tropical oils, as well as avoiding sugar-sweetened beverages and sweets. 
  • Sodium is capped at 1,500 milligrams per day, hence its use in the hypertensive population.

Flexitarian diet 
  • Merges the words flexible and vegetarian,
  • Promotes eating a mostly vegetarian diet, but having meat when you feel the urge.  
  • Research shows that vegetarians tend to eat fewer calories, weigh less and have a lower body mass index than their meat-eating peers.

What do the top 3 diets have in common?
All of these diets ..
  • Are not based on a strict meal plan, or meal replacement;
  • Focus on eating wholesome foods, and are low in processed and packaged foods.
  • Encourage physical activity.

Lisa Parkinson
Accredited Exercise Physiologist & Diabetes Educator 


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Why Calf Strength is important and the 3 Best Strengthening Exercises

1/4/2021

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What is the Calf? 
The calf as it is commonly known, is in the lower leg between the knee and ankle and is made up of only two muscles, the Gastrocnemius and the Soleus. These two muscles join together to form your Achilles tendon which then attaches onto the heel of your foot. 
  • Gastrocnemius – This is the bigger of the two muscles and is used in powerful explosive movements like jumping, sprinting and changing direction. 
  • Soleus – This is the smaller of the two muscles and sits underneath the Gastrocnemius, closer to your bone. This is the endurance muscle of the calf. 

Why is Strength in the Calf so important? 
The role of our calf muscles is to propel us forward during each and every step that we take. Anything from walking slowly or climbing stairs, to dancing, sprinting or jumping, all requires high levels of calf strength. 

Injuries that are preventable with good Calf Strength
Having a good foundational level of strength in the calf can assist in preventing a number of calf injuries, such as;
  • Calf tears and strains
  • Sprained ankles
  • Plantar Fasciitis
  • Shin Splints (Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome)
  • Patellofemoral Pain
  • Tendinopathies of the knee, ankle and foot
  • Stress fractures

The 3 best calf strengthening exercises
Typically, the calf is one of the most under trained muscles in the body. When conducting any of the below exercises it is important to be aware of the load and repetitions that you are completing, relative to your current ability and capacity. Be careful not to go too hard too early with these exercises, start gradually and build your strength and endurance up over time. 

  1. Straight knee calf raises on flat surface
Start with both feet on the ground and have a wall or stable surface nearby to help balance yourself throughout the movement. Lift your heels simultaneously, pushing up onto your toes, reaching as high as you can. Then slowly lower yourself back down and repeat. 

​

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Progressions: 
  • Increase the repetitions/ sets of the exercise
  • Complete standing on only one leg to increase the load
  • Increase the speed of the movement to target the Gastrocnemius or slow the movement down to target the Soleus. 

2. Straight knee incline calf raise
Start with both feet standing on an incline surface or raised surface, with your heels hanging off the edge. Have something stable nearby to hold onto and help support yourself during the movement. Lift your heels upward, pushing up onto your toes, reaching as high as you can. Then slowly lower back down and repeat. 

​
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Progressions: 
  • Increase the repetitions/ sets of the exercise
  • Complete holding onto additional weights (Eg. Dumbbells) to increase load. 



​​3. Hopping/ Skipping
Hopping produces explosive movements and replicates running or tasks that can usually cause calf injuries. Start by either skipping in a skipping rope or double leg hops and then progressing the difficulty. 

​
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Progressions: 
  • Hopping on one leg
  • Increasing the speed 
  • Hopping in a diagonal or side to side direction

By, Aleisha Michael
Accredited Exercise Physiologist
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    AuthorS

    Lisa Parkinson
    ​Accredited Exercise Physiologist, Diabetes Educator

    Aleisha Michael
    Accredited Exercise Physiologist
    ​
    Izaac Boylan
    Accredited Exercise Physiologist

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