Greg Alexander

Joint health is wealth /// Building The Knee OAsis to provide 21st century osteoarthritis care /// Doctor of Physical Therapy

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

It's not your fault.

We have been told that the sun is dangerous when it’s actually the source of all life on earth.

We have been told that red meat is unhealthy when it’s actually the most nutrient rich food known to man.

We have been told that arthritis is a wear and tear problem when it’s actually a lifestyle disease.

We have been told that surgery is the only way to “fix” an arthritic joint when the body is actually an adaptation machine capable of healing under the right conditions.

We have been told a lot of things about our health, yet we are dealing with a tsunami of chronic diseases and arthritic joints.

It doesn’t have to be this way. Just because it’s increasingly common to become sick, achy and frail with age, doesn’t mean it’s normal.

If you’re interested in healing your sore knee(s) without the pills, injections or joint replacement surgery so you can move and play without worry, I put together a free program walking you through how we treat knee osteoarthritis in the 21st century.

I spent the last 3+ years going down the osteoarthritis rabbit hole, so I know we can do better.

Comment “Knee Oasis” below and follow me so I can send you the “21st Century Treatment of Osteoarthritis” Program.

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@stevewilldoit btc. Happy birthday 🫡

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@AJA_Cortes TRT

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@GuruAnaerobic I’m not a split squat purist but… Hip extension mobility on the back leg, an opportunity to increase the intensity when you don’t have enough load to challenge the back squat, double the working sets and all the cardio/brain/metabolic benefits that come with it

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@FoundersPodcast Thank you!

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@IAmAndrewKirby Blue

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

When you stop doing elastic movements, you lose the ability to perform elastic movements. Too many people don’t train their bodies and the one that do, train like a runner or body builder.

Train like an athlete - play, Long isometric holds, low level hopping and more intense plyos will keep you young

[BowTiedBull.eth - Read Pinned or NGMI @BowTiedBull]

On a health note we need massive research on ligaments and tendons.

Far too much spent on muscle growth. As you get older strength stays the same but explosiveness goes down massive.

Reasoning is tendons/ligaments weaken.

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@zaidkdahhaj Thank you. Diving in now. Working my way through @MaxGulhaneMD circadian course.

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@zaidkdahhaj How do I begin to bring up the role of circadian disruptions with patients? Food, sleep, exercise easily acknowledged, but everyone seems to think light is a woo woo secondary consideration. Any go to analogies/stories to drive it home?

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

Your joint health determines how you’ll age. This guide is for you if want to live longer and better👇

In this guide, you’ll learn:

- How to prevent and even reverse arthritis
- Why joint pain = accelerated aging
- How arthritis develops
- Why joint pain is like quicksand

Aging doesn’t happen overnight. Gradually, then suddenly. Father time comes for all of us, but this slow process of physical and cognitive decline looks a little different for everyone.

I’m guessing you don’t want to spend the second half of life in hospital waiting rooms, organizing handfuls of pills or hobbling behind family. If you’re anything like me, you want a long life full of play and free of health concerns. We want to maximize our healthspans.

If lifespan is the number of years you’re alive, then healthspan is your number of vibrant, functional, independent years. Morbidity is the gap between healthspan and lifespan or simply the time we spend sick, frail, and hurting.

Any strategy to extend healthspan and lifespan while also limiting morbidity begins with joint health because the aging process begins with joint pain.

Joint pain is like quicksand pulling you to your grave. It sounds hyperbolic, but as a physical therapist, I’ve seen this movie one too many times. Achy joints start your slow, downward spiral to the rocking chair.

It goes like this…

A painful joint makes movement more challenging, so you move less. This decline in physical activity leads to weight gain and slowly eats your muscle strength, joint mobility, coordination and endurance.

These changes make your joint even crankier, which makes movement even more difficult, so you move even less and lose even more physical capacity. This cycle eventually leads to chronic health issues like obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

That same achy joint is also your first step towards cognitive decline. Movement is like miracle grow for the brain, but because an achy joint makes movement more challenging, it becomes harder and harder to cash in on the brain benefits of exercise. Physical inactivity erodes your vital cognitive abilities like executive function and memory.

Aging is a slow process of physical and cognitive deterioration that begins with joint pain, so to live longer, and better, protect your joints.

Ok that seems obvious enough, the better your joints feel, the more you’ll move and the healthier you’ll be.

But now you might be wondering… what about arthritis? Don’t joints age with use? Isn’t arthritis a part of getting older? Is it even possible to delay or prevent arthritis?

Let’s look at how and why arthritis develops.

We used to believe that arthritis was the natural process of wear and tear from years of use. And just like an old car might need a new part to stay on the road, we eventually require new joints to stay moving.

But recently, our understanding of arthritis was updated. And this new story of arthritis paints a much more optimistic picture.

Arthritis is not a wear and tear condition. Movement is medicine and does not harm your joint tissues. Even extreme events like marathon training, do not wear down your joints. Distance running has been shown to improve joint health even in older populations with preexisting joint changes.

Arthritis is actually a complex biological process that begins when the joint fluid is contaminated by inflammatory molecules like IL-1, IL-6 and TNFa.

These molecules thin the joint fluid, stiffen the joint capsule, and weaken the cartilage which eventually exposes the underlying bone to more force. This cascade of changes within the joint can hurt which makes movement more difficult, so you move less, leading to physical decline, more joint pain and eventually chronic disease.

Arthritis is an inflammatory process, so to protect our joints to live longer and better, we need to zero in on inflammation.

But what is inflammation and where is it coming from?

Inflammation is like an army of tiny little chemical soldiers sent to protect you from injury, infection and illness.

In the short term, inflammation is a beneficial response that can save your life. But when these tiny little chemical soldiers campaign throughout the body for months and years at a time, inflammation wrecks havoc.

These little chemical soldiers circulate in the blood and eventually work their way into the joints. The joint fluid now becomes a chemical soup which begins the cascade of tissue changes and physical decline.

It’s this prolonged, systemic inflammation that causes arthritis and disease. Systemic inflammation occurs when your biology is out of balance. Things like your circadian health, body composition, muscle function, your light environment, your nutrition, your recovery and even emotional stressors determine the state of your biology and levels inflammation.

Aging starts with joint pain and joint pain starts with inflammation. So aging is really inflammaging.

Delaying the aging process comes down to controlling inflammation and keeping your joints happy. You’re in the drivers seat. Every one of your habits is a vote for how you’ll age.

The amazing thing is it’s never too late. Even if you’re hurting now and your Xrays show bone on bone, you can significantly improve with the right strategy. Your body is an adaptation machine. Your tissues are alive and bioplastic. You are in control.

When you limit inflammation, your joints will feel better. When your joints feel better, you move more. When you move more, your joints become more robust and you are generally healthier. This is the cycle you need to live longer and better.

There is nothing in your genetic code saying that your joints must break down and you must become sick, achy and frail. The only reason age is associated with arthritis is because the longer you’re alive, the more time your habits have to compound into inflammation and joint pain.

In summary, your joint health determines how you’ll age. Arthritis is an inflammatory process. Inflammation is your body’s protective response when your biology is out of balance, and your lifestyle determines your biology. So how you age all comes down to your day to day choices.

I am obsessed with all things healthy aging and play. Follow for deep dives on everything you need to take control of your health so you can live longer and better.

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

The healthier and stronger you get, the better your joints feel ✔️

[Jeffrey Peng, MD @JeffreyPengMD]

I just updated my knee osteoarthritis treatment table.

It has ALL the common treatments including short term benefits, mid-long term benefits, impact on arthritis progression, side effects, and cost

Weight, diet/nutrition, and exercise are by far the best overall treatments.

Platelet rich plasma is the best injection option.

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@stanley_human Play Longer

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@janemccourt1 The link to the group is in your DMs 😃

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

It's not your fault.

We have been told that the sun is dangerous when it’s actually the source of all life on earth.

We have been told that red meat is unhealthy when it’s actually the most nutrient rich food known to man.

We have been told that arthritis is a wear and tear problem when it’s actually a lifestyle disease.

We have been told that surgery is the only way to “fix” an arthritic joint when the body is actually an adaptation machine capable of healing under the right conditions.

We have been told a lot of things about our health, yet we are dealing with a tsunami of chronic diseases and arthritic joints.

It doesn’t have to be this way. Just because it’s increasingly common to become sick, achy and frail with age, doesn’t mean it’s normal.

If you’re interested in healing your sore knee(s) without the pills, injections or joint replacement surgery so you can move and play without worry, I put together a free program walking you through how we treat knee osteoarthritis in the 21st century.

I spent the last 3+ years going down the osteoarthritis rabbit hole, so I know we can do better.

Comment “Knee Oasis” below and follow me so I can send you the “21st Century Treatment of Osteoarthritis” Program.

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@melissaoalbert The link to the free group is in your DMs 🥂

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

Hoping to avoid a knee replacement?

It’ll take some effort, but it can be done. But honestly, it’s going to take work either way. You’ll need to rehab hard for 8-12 months following surgery any way, so why not give it everything you’ve got and see if you can avoid going under the knife altogether?

Worst case, you drop a few pounds and get stronger going into surgery, and research shows that the healthier you go into this surgery, the better your results and lower your risk of complications.

But we also know that when you get healthier, stronger and more mobile, you often delay or even eliminate the need for joint replacement surgery. Win win.

Your body and your joint tissues are bioplastic adaptation machines. When you stop the cycle of inflammaging, improve your muscle strength and restore your joint mobility, you feel and move better.

I am not saying this is easy because it does take effort, but I am saying that if you’re willing to do the work, you’re likely to get the result.

If you’re motivated but need some help, I have a no brainer solution to help you reach your goals.

I run a group called the Knee OAsis. This group gives you everything you could possibly need to get moving again without pills, injections or surgery:

- 1 on 1 initial evaluation

- 3 optional coaching calls every week for support

- Daily home exercises specifically for knee osteoarthritis

- Access to a community of motivated individuals who are also working to avoid surgery

- Easy to implement nutrition, sleep and recovery practices to reduce inflammation

The OAsis allows you to beat knee osteoarthritis at home, on your time. No more waiting rooms. No more expensive trainers or magic supplements.

I am offering a 30 day love it or leave it money back guarantee for anyone who joins in the next 24 hours. Come in and take a look around. You truly have nothing to lose.

My client Max cancelled his knee replacement and returned to playing pickle ball for hours on end.

My client Graeme skied 3-4x a week this winter like he was in his 40s again.

My client Dan cancelled his knee replacement, and now golfs every day and even played in an alumni basketball game (full court).

My client Vic is playing squash and climbing the stairs at Premiere League matches every weekend.

You can do it too, but only if you’re willing to do the work. Click the link below and join the OAsis 👇

https://t.co/DFqFJ5s0RQ

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@thy_Boo_Radley Please follow so I can DM you the link to the program 😀

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@hameryed67 please follow so I can DM you the link to the program😀

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@ChiccoFirm23652 Please follow so I can DM you the link to the program

[Greg Alexander @kneeoasis]

@NathanJordan81 please follow so I can send you the link to the program 😀