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January 19, 2011 9:48 PM Subscribe
How do I stop my joints from popping?
I've always been very flexible. I don't know when my bones started popping, but it drives me nuts. My hips used to do it, but not so much any more. For the longest time it was just my wrists that would pop. I didn't like it, but I got used to it. Now my shoulders have started crunching. It drives me nuts!
I feel like I should be able to do something to improve this. What can I do to fix this? I'm 27. What can I do that doesn't involve taking a pill? Bonus points if my options are vegetarian.
I've always been very flexible. I don't know when my bones started popping, but it drives me nuts. My hips used to do it, but not so much any more. For the longest time it was just my wrists that would pop. I didn't like it, but I got used to it. Now my shoulders have started crunching. It drives me nuts!
I feel like I should be able to do something to improve this. What can I do to fix this? I'm 27. What can I do that doesn't involve taking a pill? Bonus points if my options are vegetarian.
My whole life whenever I roll my shoulder it makes audible cracking and you can feel it when holding the shoulder. This was true when I was a string bean, 30lbs over weight, or muscular. It's never felt different or sounded different, it just is.
My knees, hips, fingers and back all crack as well.
Some people say yoga type stuff helps with this but I haven't found anything to change the sound of it. I've taken all sorts of joint supplements and no change as well.
In my experience, Doctors will say it's normal and there isn't anything wrong with it so there is nothing to really fix. I've never been but Chiropractors claim to take care of this sort of stuff.
The biggest difference is after I started weight lifting, even before I got to very heavy weights, is there wasn't a pain or creakiness feeling associated with the cracking or popping anymore.
posted by zephyr_words at 10:25 PM on January 19, 2011 [1 favorite]
My knees, hips, fingers and back all crack as well.
Some people say yoga type stuff helps with this but I haven't found anything to change the sound of it. I've taken all sorts of joint supplements and no change as well.
In my experience, Doctors will say it's normal and there isn't anything wrong with it so there is nothing to really fix. I've never been but Chiropractors claim to take care of this sort of stuff.
The biggest difference is after I started weight lifting, even before I got to very heavy weights, is there wasn't a pain or creakiness feeling associated with the cracking or popping anymore.
posted by zephyr_words at 10:25 PM on January 19, 2011 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Are you sure it's your joints? My right shoulder pops and cracks but it's due to adhesions that develop where different muscles cross each other's paths and get stuck (due to posture, repetitive motion, etc.) When i get regular (deep, therapeutic, not relaxation) massages and do better with posture and stretching, those adhesions break up and everything moves more smoothly. Whether it's joints or soft tissue, I would look into bodywork (massage, chiropractic, yoga, etc.) and get some ideas about how changes to your posture and daily habits can change things for you. Probably strength training will play a big role too. (Disclaimer: I am a massage therapist!)
posted by headnsouth at 4:29 AM on January 20, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by headnsouth at 4:29 AM on January 20, 2011 [1 favorite]
IANAD, but I work with people who experience similar things who have a connective tissue disorder called Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. It may be worth a trip to a geneticist to test for the worst type of EDS (type 4), which also affects the connective tissue of the heart. Effective mutation testing for the other (read: milder) forms of EDS is about a year away. But it doesn't hurt to visit a Genetics Clinic and get more information...
posted by kuanes at 7:26 AM on January 20, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by kuanes at 7:26 AM on January 20, 2011 [1 favorite]
For many joints, it's gas pockets, etc. Not much you can do about those. The other possibility might be calcification, though that's mostly if you've had injuries in those joints- light shaking to loosen them up on a regular basis can mitigate it some.
But your shoulders... is the popping primarily when you've got your arm over your head?
For your shoulder to work, your rotator cuff has to rotate your scapula at a certain angle as your arm comes up, otherwise, your bones "clunk", which can create a pop sound.
For that situation, the main thing that needs to happen is that the rotator cuff muscles need exercise - as many of the other folks above mentioned, weights helped it stop for them, because when the rotator muscles are strong enough, the scapula gets moved in the way it's supposed to.
This doesn't have to be massive weights either- you can just hold yourself in the pushup position as one means of exercising it, or look up youtube videos on rotator cuff exercises- nearly all of them can use a can of food or a book as an appropriate weight.
(For hips, if it happens when you swing your leg sideways, that's actually just bone hitting bone- some people's bones give more room in the socket, others less. It's genetic.)
posted by yeloson at 9:17 AM on January 20, 2011 [1 favorite]
But your shoulders... is the popping primarily when you've got your arm over your head?
For your shoulder to work, your rotator cuff has to rotate your scapula at a certain angle as your arm comes up, otherwise, your bones "clunk", which can create a pop sound.
For that situation, the main thing that needs to happen is that the rotator cuff muscles need exercise - as many of the other folks above mentioned, weights helped it stop for them, because when the rotator muscles are strong enough, the scapula gets moved in the way it's supposed to.
This doesn't have to be massive weights either- you can just hold yourself in the pushup position as one means of exercising it, or look up youtube videos on rotator cuff exercises- nearly all of them can use a can of food or a book as an appropriate weight.
(For hips, if it happens when you swing your leg sideways, that's actually just bone hitting bone- some people's bones give more room in the socket, others less. It's genetic.)
posted by yeloson at 9:17 AM on January 20, 2011 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Pretty sure I don't have Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, because my skin is normal, not loose, and I don't think I bruise any more easily than anyone else, etc. But thanks for the tip; that would have been important to know about!
Interestingly, the alternate question I had been considering asking involved how to correct my posture given that I don't enjoy working at desks, and prefer to work on my bed. I figured that problem would solve itself soon when I graduate. I'll focus on working on my posture, and maybe start doing handstands against the wall to build up my shoulder muscles.
Thanks, y'all!
posted by lover at 10:01 AM on January 20, 2011
Interestingly, the alternate question I had been considering asking involved how to correct my posture given that I don't enjoy working at desks, and prefer to work on my bed. I figured that problem would solve itself soon when I graduate. I'll focus on working on my posture, and maybe start doing handstands against the wall to build up my shoulder muscles.
Thanks, y'all!
posted by lover at 10:01 AM on January 20, 2011
Response by poster: Oh! And no, it isn't when I'm raising my arm above my head. It's everywhen.
posted by lover at 10:05 AM on January 20, 2011
posted by lover at 10:05 AM on January 20, 2011
I used to make popping sounds a lot more frequently before I started using an inversion table on a regular basis.
I'm not certain of the correlation, but I had a chat with my doctor about hanging upside down when I first started doing it several years ago, and he claimed that it's good for moving your synovial fluid about.
I'm a fan of doing this about ten minutes a day, several days per week (I take my time and do some concentrated breathing, and I flip sloooooowwwwly -- it feels better when I take my time). It feels really great, and my posture has improved like crazy, for sure, for sure. It's not for everyone, but you might want to check into it.
posted by heyho at 10:46 AM on January 20, 2011 [2 favorites]
I'm not certain of the correlation, but I had a chat with my doctor about hanging upside down when I first started doing it several years ago, and he claimed that it's good for moving your synovial fluid about.
I'm a fan of doing this about ten minutes a day, several days per week (I take my time and do some concentrated breathing, and I flip sloooooowwwwly -- it feels better when I take my time). It feels really great, and my posture has improved like crazy, for sure, for sure. It's not for everyone, but you might want to check into it.
posted by heyho at 10:46 AM on January 20, 2011 [2 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Hither at 10:12 PM on January 19, 2011 [1 favorite]