tai chi

By Helen Chow, ND, Dip Herb, UK-qualified Naturopath & Herbalist,
Nutrition & Food Design Coach, Designer Realities Mind Coach
Originally published January 15, 2018. Reviewed & Updated: September 30, 2026

When your joints hurt, exercise can feel like a rather cruel suggestion.

You may be thinking: “My knees already ache when I climb the stairs. Why would I deliberately make them do more?”

Or perhaps you tried an exercise class, felt worse afterwards and quietly decided that movement was no longer for you.

I understand why.

Pain naturally makes you protective. You stop walking as far. You avoid bending. You ask someone else to carry things. You begin arranging your day around the troublesome joint.

A little temporary caution after an injury can be sensible. But months of avoiding movement can gradually weaken the muscles that support your joints, reduce your confidence and make ordinary activities feel even harder.

The answer isn’t to grit your teeth and force your way through a punishing workout. It is to find movement your body can tolerate, begin at the right level and build from there.

The quick answer: What exercises are good for joint pain after 50?

The most useful exercises are usually those you can perform regularly without provoking severe or progressively worsening symptoms.

Depending upon which joints are affected, your present mobility and the cause of your pain, suitable options may include:

• comfortable walking;
• cycling or using a stationary bicycle;
• water exercise or swimming;
• gentle mobility exercises;
• tai chi;
• adapted yoga;
• chair-based movement;
• and progressive strength exercises.

There isn’t one “best” exercise for every painful joint. Your best choice is one that suits your body, your condition and your life—and which you can adapt as your symptoms change.

In this article:

• Why avoiding all movement can backfire
• How to judge whether pain means stop
• Walking with joint pain
• Cycling and stationary bicycles
• Water exercise and swimming
• Tai chi, yoga and mobility work
• Strengthening painful joints safely
• What to do during a flare
• A simple starter routine
• When joint pain should be assessed

Firstly, do you know why your joint hurts?

“Joint pain” is a symptom, not a diagnosis. It could be associated with osteoarthritis, an inflammatory condition such as rheumatoid arthritis, an old injury, a tendon problem, gout, instability or several other causes.

That’s why I don’t want you to assume that every ache after 50 is normal ageing.

If you are unsure what your symptoms mean, begin with my guide to joint pain after 50. It explains which changes may be relatively common and which deserve proper investigation.

You don’t necessarily need a medical appointment for every passing twinge. But recurring, unexplained or worsening pain should not simply be covered up and ignored while you continue exercising around it.

Knowing what you are dealing with makes it easier to choose movement intelligently.

Why complete rest is not usually the answer

A painful joint can start a very unhelpful cycle:

• Pain leads to less movement.
• Less movement leads to weaker muscles.
• Weaker muscles make movement more difficult.
• Difficult movement creates more fear and avoidance.

Before long, the problem is no longer only the original painful joint. You may also have lost strength, stamina, balance and confidence.

This doesn’t mean that you should ignore an injury or exercise through a hot, swollen joint. It means that complete, long-term inactivity is rarely a good plan.

Appropriate movement can help you maintain:

• joint mobility;
• muscle support;
• circulation;
• balance;
• cardiovascular fitness;
• confidence;
• and your ability to manage everyday life.

If maintaining your freedom is your larger goal, my article on how to stay active after 50 places exercise within the bigger picture of strength, balance, mobility and independence.

Will exercise make joint pain worse?

It can make a joint feel temporarily more noticeable—particularly when you are beginning again after a long period of inactivity. That doesn’t automatically mean that you have damaged it.

The question is not simply: “Did I feel anything?”

A better set of questions is:

• Was the sensation mild and manageable?
• Did my movement remain controlled?
• Did the discomfort settle after I stopped?
• Was the joint clearly worse later that day or the following morning?
• Was there new swelling, heat, instability or sharp pain?

Use This Simple Guide

You are not trying to win a contest against your body. You are learning to read its response.

1. Walking: start with what you can repeat

Walking remains one of the most practical forms of movement because it helps you retain the ability to do the things that make up real life.

• Shopping.
• Travelling.
• Walking around a market.
• Visiting a friend.
• Exploring a new city.

You don’t have to begin with a heroic five-mile trek. If walking currently aggravates your joints, try:

• a shorter, flatter route;
• several five- or ten-minute walks instead of one long walk;
• a slightly slower pace;
• supportive, comfortable footwear;
• a walking aid if one has been recommended and properly fitted;
• or an indoor route where you can stop easily.

Increase either your time or your distance gradually. You don’t need to increase both at once.

If knee pain is your particular concern, these practical ways to look after your knees will help you think beyond the painful spot and consider your hips, thighs, calves, feet and balance as well.

2. Cycling: Useful, but adjust the bicycle to you

Cycling and stationary bicycles can provide rhythmic movement without the repeated impact of running or jumping. They can be particularly useful when walking for longer periods is uncomfortable. But cycling is not automatically right for every hip or knee.

A seat that is too low may force the knee into deeper bending. Excessive resistance can make you grind through every turn of the pedals. An outdoor bicycle also requires sufficient balance and confidence.

Begin with:

• a properly adjusted seat;
• very light resistance;
• an easy pace;
• and a short trial rather than a long session.

A stationary or recumbent bicycle may feel safer if balance is a concern.

Your first objective is not to burn the maximum number of calories. It is to discover whether your joints tolerate the movement comfortably.

3. Water exercise and swimming: Let the water support you

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Water can make movement feel possible again when exercising on land is difficult. The buoyancy reduces how much body weight you have to support, while the water provides gentle resistance as you move.

You don’t even have to be a strong swimmer. Depending upon the pool and the supervision available, you might:

• walk through waist- or chest-deep water;
• perform gentle leg movements while holding the side;
• attend a suitable aqua class;
• swim comfortable lengths;
• or alternate swimming with rest.

Do take care around wet changing-room floors and pool steps. A joint-friendly activity isn’t helpful if getting into or out of the pool puts you at risk.

If shoulder movement is painful, some swimming strokes may need modification. Water helps, but it does not make every movement appropriate for every joint.

4. Tai Chi, gentle yoga, and mobility work

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Tai chi combines slow movement, body awareness, coordination and balance. Many women also find its calmer pace less intimidating than walking into a gym.

Yoga can help with mobility, body awareness and relaxation, but the word “yoga” covers a very wide range of classes.

A gentle, well-taught session is quite different from repeatedly forcing painful knees, wrists or hips into deep positions.

Tell the teacher about your joint condition. Use a chair, wall, blocks or other supports where helpful. Avoid treating a pose as something you must achieve at any cost.

Mobility work can be simpler still:

• opening and closing the hands;
• gently bending and straightening an elbow;
• shoulder circles within a comfortable range;
• ankle circles;
• controlled heel and toe raises;
• or slowly straightening a knee while seated.

Small movements still count. Your body does not award extra points for suffering.

5. Strength exercises: Support the joint, don’t punish it

Strengthening exercises to increase strength might involve:

• standing up from a chair;
• pushing against a wall;
• raising your heels while holding a worktop;
• using a light resistance band;
• lifting a small dumbbell;
• or working with a machine under suitable guidance.

The purpose is to help the muscles around your joints become more capable.

For example, stronger thighs and hips can support everyday knee function. Stronger hands and forearms can make carrying and opening things easier. Stronger back, abdominal and hip muscles can improve how you control your body.

Start with a movement you can perform slowly and with control. Use a comfortable range rather than forcing the joint to its limit.

My fuller guide to protecting your muscle after 50 explains why strength matters so much for your bones, metabolism and independence. Here, the important point is simply this:

Begin with a level your joints can tolerate and progress in small steps. You may increase the number of repetitions, the resistance or the difficulty—but not everything at once.

What about osteoarthritis?

Exercise is one of the central treatments recommended for osteoarthritis, particularly exercise tailored to the person’s needs. That may include local muscle strengthening, aerobic movement or a combination.

Unfortunately, the words wear and tear have frightened many people into believing that movement simply wears the joint away faster.

Osteoarthritis is more complex than that. The joint, surrounding muscles, nervous system, previous injuries, inflammation, body weight, sleep and confidence can all influence pain and function.

If you have been diagnosed with it, my guide to osteoarthritis after 50 explains the condition and its wider management in more detail.

Exercise is not a promise that every symptom will disappear. It is one of the tools that can help you preserve function and make daily movement easier.

What if you have rheumatoid or inflammatory arthritis?

Inflammatory arthritis requires a little more judgement, particularly when disease activity changes.

On a relatively settled day, you may manage walking, strengthening, cycling or other ordinary activity quite comfortably.

During a pronounced flare, you may need to reduce the load, shorten the session or use gentler range-of-motion movements while the inflammation is addressed.

This is not failure. It is intelligent adjustment.

A hot, markedly swollen joint is not the moment to prove how determined you are. Nor should continuing inflammation be managed solely by changing your exercise routine. Your movement plan should sit alongside appropriate clinical care—not replace it.

Five ways to modify exercise on a painful day

You don’t always have to choose between completing the original workout and doing absolutely nothing. Try changing one thing:

1. Reduce the range

A shallower chair squat may be better tolerated than a deep squat.

2. Reduce the resistance

Use a lighter band, weight or bicycle setting.

3. Reduce the time

Five comfortable minutes may be more useful than twenty miserable ones.

4. Add support

Hold a sturdy chair or worktop, or choose a seated version.

5. Change the activity

Swap a longer walk for gentle cycling, water movement or mobility work.

Adaptation keeps the habit alive while respecting what your body is telling you.

A simple joint-friendly starter week

This is an example, not an individual prescription.

You might begin with less than this. You might already be capable of considerably more. Start with the body you have today.

Consistency grows from a plan that fits your real life—not from borrowing someone else’s workout and hoping your joints survive it.

When body weight is part of the picture

This subject needs kindness, because joint pain is not a moral judgement and thin people can have painful joints too.

However, when someone has knee or hip osteoarthritis and is carrying excess weight, reducing some of that load may improve pain and physical function.

The goal is not to become as thin as possible. After 50, you want to lose unnecessary fat while preserving the muscle that helps support your joints and independence. My guide to losing fat without sacrificing muscle explains that wider metabolic-health approach.

Please don’t postpone all exercise until you have lost weight. Movement and body-composition improvement can support one another.

When should you get joint pain checked?

Stop and seek appropriate medical assessment if:

• a joint is hot, markedly swollen or red;
• you also have a fever or feel generally unwell;
• you cannot bear weight after an injury;
• the joint repeatedly gives way;
• it locks and will not move normally;
• there is obvious deformity;
• the pain is severe or rapidly worsening;
• you develop unexplained weakness, numbness or loss of function;
• or persistent pain is limiting your normal life.

You should also ask for professional guidance if you have recently had surgery, have significant osteoporosis, recurrent falls, an unstable heart or respiratory condition, or another health problem that materially affects exercise safety.

A physiotherapist can be especially helpful when you need the movement assessed rather than merely described.

For the wider range of relief and management options, continue with what may actually help joint pain.

Your real exercise goal after 50

Your goal isn’t simply to complete a workout.

• It is to retain the ability to live your life.
• To rise from a chair.
• Carry your shopping.
• Walk through an airport.
• Climb the stairs to a lovely restaurant.
• Get down onto the floor and stand up again.
• Look after yourself without always needing someone else to do things for you.

Exercise after 50 should support that future.

Begin gently. Pay attention. Adjust when necessary. Get persistent or worrying symptoms properly assessed.

And please don’t decide that a painful joint means your days of movement are over. The right movement may be part of how you keep your world open.

A Health Sifu Note

This article provides general education, not a diagnosis or personal rehabilitation programme. Joint pain has many possible causes, and an exercise that suits one woman may not suit another.

If your pain is new, severe, worsening or associated with heat, marked swelling, fever, instability or injury, obtain appropriate medical advice. If you have a diagnosed joint condition or significant mobility limitations, a physiotherapist or suitably qualified exercise professional can help you adapt movement safely.

You are not required to push through everything your body says. But neither should fear make every decision for you.

Choose movement consciously. Begin where you are. Then help your body become a little more capable, one sensible step at a time.

HealthSifu
Make Smarter Choices
Consciously. Deliberately.

Scientific References & Further Reading

NICE — Osteoarthritis in Over 16s: Diagnosis and Management, NG226
NICE recommends therapeutic exercise tailored to the individual, including local muscle strengthening and general aerobic fitness. It also explains that discomfort may initially increase, while consistent exercise can improve pain and function.

Rausch Osthoff AK et al. — EULAR Recommendations for Physical Activity in People with Inflammatory Arthritis and Osteoarthritis
These recommendations support physical activity as part of standard care for people with rheumatoid arthritis, spondyloarthritis and osteoarthritis, with appropriate individual adaptation.

American College of Rheumatology and Arthritis Foundation — Guideline for Osteoarthritis of the Hand, Hip and Knee
The guideline strongly recommends exercise for knee, hip and hand osteoarthritis and recognises several suitable forms, including walking, strengthening, neuromuscular and aquatic exercise.

CDC — Physical Activity and Arthritis
A practical overview of joint-friendly activities, including walking, cycling, swimming, water exercise, tai chi, dancing and light gardening.

UK Chief Medical Officers — Physical Activity Guidelines for Adults and Older Adults
The UK guidance recommends daily movement, gradual progression, strength work on at least two days each week and regular balance activities for older adults.

NHS — Joint Pain
Guidance on when joint pain can be managed initially and when symptoms such as heat, swelling, fever or feeling unwell need urgent assessment.
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