Arthritis ?

Does martial arts lead to surgries, broken bones & arthritis ? I am asking because I was thinking about taking Hapkido and I already have a bad back from a injury at work.

Depends on what class you go to and the condition you are in now.

I must admit that I have never been in a class where someone has broken a bone (I have been in various classes since 1989 so thats not bad going).

I think its a bit like saying that if I drive a car will I get into a car crash.

Just like a car there are things you can do to reduce the chance of injury. The main one is being in a very good physical condition before you start.

If you have a bad back, I would advise taking around 6 months to a year to make yourself tough enough (and fully recover your back injury) for Martial Arts.

This may sound a long time but in the scheme of things you will learn the art a lot quicker as you won't need to worry about conditioning, because your athletic form will already be there!!!!

If you go to the strenthening section and read the thread 'Are you strong enough?' you should use that as a guide line before you commence - as you don't want to injure yourself beyond repair or not be able to train in Martial Arts again.

Last thing - don't just listen to me - do your homework!!!!!!!1

Well I just found out i have arthritis a few weeks ago I dont think its martial arts. My docter thinks it's an old football injury.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by rb:
Does martial arts lead to surgries, broken bones & arthritis ? I am asking because I was thinking about taking Hapkido and I already have a bad back from a injury at work. [/QUOTE]

There is a type of weight training you can do for your back, in Germany its called Kieser Training or Swiss Training (dunno if its called something different elsewhere). I know a couple of people who have done it and swear by it. Ask a physiotherapist about it.

Have you spoken to the Hapkido instructor?

My father decided to start karate a few years ago, he gets back trouble. I train in 2 different styles, mainly Shotokan, but also Wado Ryu. I took my father to the Wado Club as its I think its better for an older person to learn, or someone with back trouble.

Just a thought - it also depends what sort of arthritis you have.

One can be help the bones with weights and exercises - the other weights and exercises will destroy your bones.

The number one cause is your Genes.

I have rheumatoid arthritis in my family. So I have to be more careful than other people not to expose myself to the cold or joint strain as much.

I myself have a history of nasty back injuries. The type that are brought on from carying groceries and other daily activities. In some cases I would hobble around for a couple of days. In other cases people would have to bring me stuff to pee in because I couldn't move at all for a day or two. I would have these injuries at least once a year it seemed.

I started doing tae kwon do two years ago and I haven't had a significant back problem since. Clearly part of my own problem was solved by strengthening and weight loss (dropped 30 pounds).

Obviously, your mileage may vary and you should undoubtedly talk to both the instructor and your doctor before beginning. Here's hoping your experience is as good as mine has been.

If you have arthritis already then take care. If you have rhumatoid arthritis or have it in your family then take care. If you have osteoarthritis however then you will want to be really really careful as the shocks to the joints will make it worse and the damage will not repair, so no iron hand training/hardening if thats the case.