One of the excuses for not exercising I hear from patients is that some injury or painful joint keeps them from doing it. They can’t run because they have mild knee arthritis. Or they can’t exercise because of a shoulder injury from work. They use pain in one part of the body to justify not exercising at all. Fortunately there are ways that you can modify activities after injury to get some exercise.

For instance, osteoarthritis of the knee probably would make jogging difficult for many people (although most likely not impossible). You could still get an effective workout without repetitive impact on the knee. You could try biking outdoors, riding a stationary bike, swimming and much more.

Also read:
Sports and exercise after joint replacement

An avid weightlifter might feel pain in the shoulder with certain exercises – military press, for example. Very likely you can still lift weights and not make the shoulder worse. You might give up military presses (or maybe all shoulder exercises) for a few workouts and focus on other body parts. You might even be able to work your shoulder by substituting different exercises that don’t cause pain.

Don’t use pain as an excuse not to exercise.