Why do our joints click? It is harmful?
Also... I read a comment in the Aikido FAQ page
(www.aikidofaq.com) "If you crack your knuckles or
your neck all the time you can develop what is called
hypermobile joints... what it means is, the ligaments
that hold the joint together stretch a little so the
more you do it, the easier it is." -- Is it really so?
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Van Canna
Your Clicking joints
Moderator: Available
-
Bill Glasheen
- Posts: 17299
- Joined: Thu Mar 11, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Richmond, VA --- Louisville, KY
Your Clicking joints
Van
Hmmm...several issues and "possible" issues here. I'll take a shot, and there will be others who can add that may be stronger in the orthopedic arena.
Joint cracking (cracking knuckles, cracking the back, etc.) isn't really a big deal on the surface. It's a lot like popping bubble wrap. Picture a little air pocket in a joint. Manipulate the joint, and you put pressure on the air pocket. When it reaches a point that it suddenly breaks through, you hear the crack.
I've heard many wives' tales about cracking your knuckles. I put many of those in the same category as the tales about getting warts if you handle frogs.
In general though it isn't a good idea to be indiscriminately getting your back cracked all the time. One of the main reason to "get your back cracked" is to restore mobility to a region of the spine. When you do one of these maneuvers, you are mechanically stretching things for a short period of time. It is possible to do too much of this and cause inflammation of ligaments or accumulated trauma to the cartilage in the joint spaces. It would be like any other repetitive motion injury. Too much of anything is a bad thing. That's as far as I would go though...
Joint clicking is something altogether different. Many things could cause that. "Crepitus" or that kind of Rice Krispies crackling is basically like a squeaky hinge. Things can sometimes wear, and you can be a little short on lubrication (synovial fluid). Sometimes clicking is a piece of loose cartilage. Sometimes it is a tendon popping out of a track or a piece of scar tissue on a tendon popping over an edge in the joint. Some types of clicking are no big deal; other types are to be avoided if possible. It all depends.
All our joints tend to get worse with age (progressing to osteoarthritis). These days a regimen of glucosamine/chondroitin MAY delay that. Drinking lots of water and cutting back on the salt and caffeine helps. Avoiding animal fats in favor of vegetable and fish fats helps (providing you don't fry the fish and/or vegetables).
As they always say, check with your doctor if you have concerns. Every individual is unique.
- Bill
Hmmm...several issues and "possible" issues here. I'll take a shot, and there will be others who can add that may be stronger in the orthopedic arena.
Joint cracking (cracking knuckles, cracking the back, etc.) isn't really a big deal on the surface. It's a lot like popping bubble wrap. Picture a little air pocket in a joint. Manipulate the joint, and you put pressure on the air pocket. When it reaches a point that it suddenly breaks through, you hear the crack.
I've heard many wives' tales about cracking your knuckles. I put many of those in the same category as the tales about getting warts if you handle frogs.
In general though it isn't a good idea to be indiscriminately getting your back cracked all the time. One of the main reason to "get your back cracked" is to restore mobility to a region of the spine. When you do one of these maneuvers, you are mechanically stretching things for a short period of time. It is possible to do too much of this and cause inflammation of ligaments or accumulated trauma to the cartilage in the joint spaces. It would be like any other repetitive motion injury. Too much of anything is a bad thing. That's as far as I would go though...
Joint clicking is something altogether different. Many things could cause that. "Crepitus" or that kind of Rice Krispies crackling is basically like a squeaky hinge. Things can sometimes wear, and you can be a little short on lubrication (synovial fluid). Sometimes clicking is a piece of loose cartilage. Sometimes it is a tendon popping out of a track or a piece of scar tissue on a tendon popping over an edge in the joint. Some types of clicking are no big deal; other types are to be avoided if possible. It all depends.
All our joints tend to get worse with age (progressing to osteoarthritis). These days a regimen of glucosamine/chondroitin MAY delay that. Drinking lots of water and cutting back on the salt and caffeine helps. Avoiding animal fats in favor of vegetable and fish fats helps (providing you don't fry the fish and/or vegetables).
As they always say, check with your doctor if you have concerns. Every individual is unique.
- Bill
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Allen M.
Your Clicking joints
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote
When I was sufferring with arthritis in my hips, the doctor dscribed the cracking in my hips as pointy parts of the cartilage, or bone ends, that were forced together by the swelling and locked upon trying to move the leg in the hip socket instantly were released by the force of the movement of the leg.
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Allen Moulton from Uechi-ryu Etcetera
This is how doing knee bends and a loud cracking sound emits itself as a feeling of relief of pressure is felt was described to me once by a therapist. So I guess the description was more than hot air.Picture a little air pocket in a joint. Manipulate the joint, and you put pressure on the air pocket. When it reaches a point that it suddenly breaks through, you hear the crack.
When I was sufferring with arthritis in my hips, the doctor dscribed the cracking in my hips as pointy parts of the cartilage, or bone ends, that were forced together by the swelling and locked upon trying to move the leg in the hip socket instantly were released by the force of the movement of the leg.
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Allen Moulton from Uechi-ryu Etcetera
Your Clicking joints
I think I might beable to shed some light on this. Cracking your neck side to side quickly is bad. My moms boyfriend is a chiropractor and everytime I do that he grimices. The other day I asked him and he gave me the lowdown. I'm sorry but I couldn't reproduce what he told me but it has something has to do with the tolerances loosening.
My joints pop ALOT (expecially my ankles) but he assured me that no harm will come from it(same as cracking your knuckles).
BTW If you back is sore don't try to fix it yourself, see a proffesional.
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Ryan Knuth
"Pain heals, chicks dig scars, and glory lives forever"
My joints pop ALOT (expecially my ankles) but he assured me that no harm will come from it(same as cracking your knuckles).
BTW If you back is sore don't try to fix it yourself, see a proffesional.
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Ryan Knuth
"Pain heals, chicks dig scars, and glory lives forever"
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Jackie Olsen
- Posts: 619
- Joined: Fri Sep 18, 1998 6:01 am
- Contact:
Your Clicking joints
Hey Guys,
As a member of the cracking knees/sore joints club, I'd like to heartily recommend the Y's Way to Water Exercise. It is awesome in helping rehabilitate my body (those of you may remember the severe reactions I had to being bit by a tick last year). I'm still not in my "old" fighting shape (thank goodness, I hope to be in a NEW shape real soon), but I'm now able to do low kicks again and my balance is coming back. The work out is great aerobically and the resistance training is painless.
Before class starts I do a lot of kicks and some kata in the water. It is heaven being able to move again with some grace and form!
Jackie
As a member of the cracking knees/sore joints club, I'd like to heartily recommend the Y's Way to Water Exercise. It is awesome in helping rehabilitate my body (those of you may remember the severe reactions I had to being bit by a tick last year). I'm still not in my "old" fighting shape (thank goodness, I hope to be in a NEW shape real soon), but I'm now able to do low kicks again and my balance is coming back. The work out is great aerobically and the resistance training is painless.
Before class starts I do a lot of kicks and some kata in the water. It is heaven being able to move again with some grace and form!
Jackie
Your Clicking joints
As a joint-member of the cracking knees/sore joints club with Jackie Olsen, I have two remedies that have worked for me...
1) See Margaret Chojin for therapy.
2) Turn up the music when working out!
1) See Margaret Chojin for therapy.
2) Turn up the music when working out!
