6'2" 220 pounds 65 years old. Had knee problem start about 10 years ago.... then fell and broke a vertebra (I was to vain to use a cane when I should have been doing so). I swam 3 to 4 days a week.
I started using an Apple watch to track my progress. I pushed to hard and the injection I'd gotten for the knee stopped working. Went back for another shot. It didn't help. Thought I was looking at knee replacement. Ortho doc did an MRI and said it really didn't look that bad. Tried a different kind of injection that required a series of 3 injections....
New meds seemed to be helping but then the pool closed down due to Covid. My over all pain increase to the point I was not sleeping much. I read about older folks using Nortic walking. Bought some fancy carbon fiber poles and gave it a try. I live in the NC Mountains where everything is challenging terrain for mobility impaired folks. I set my Apple watch for outdoor walk and started in again.... I was making great progress until I pushed to hard again and my knee started yelling at me. My wife is threating to take my watch away from me when I leave the house now...
It's been a few weeks of rest now and I'm slowly starting with the trekking poles again. I probably need to get the knee injected again I'm giving it a week of slowly trying to work up distance again.
When done properly (and in moderation) it's nearly a good as swimming was for me. It keeps my back straight over uneven ground and takes weight off joints.
Here are a few You Tube clips. The first one is by an 80 year old MD who sounds like an old Jewish doctor from central casting... you can skip ahead to the research results got following people with pain issues if you like. He makes the point that Western medicine sucks at suggesting adaptive exercise
Short version of how to do it
Congratulations to the OP. Getting older while still staying healthy and fit enough to enjoy the "golden years" takes some real determination.
