When we say arthritis, you probably picture a crotchety old grandma with puffy knuckles bemoaning the weather. Guess again. Eight point four million adults under the age of 44 suffer from the disease, and swollen joints are a tiny part of the experience. Arthritis is actually an umbrella term covering more than 100 conditions that cause joint pain, stiffness, inflammation and more, according to the Arthritis Foundation.

The most common? Osteoarthritis: the wear and tear of the cartilage that cushions bone joints, causing pain in these areas. “Even when you’re young, you may see the beginning of wear-and-tear arthritis,” says Charles Matkin, director of the Satsang Yoga Center in Garrison, New York, and co-creator of the Healing Yoga DVD series. Symptoms include popping and snapping in your joints, sharp pain during movement, and resting aches. Yoga can't cure osteoarthritis, but—with poses that help you realign your joints, reduce stress on these areas and improve your posture, all while developing and maintaining a full range of motion—it can prevent the disease from getting worse and also help relieve pain, Matkin says. His picks:


Forearm Balance Variation:
This variation is good for osteoarthritis in the hands, neck and shoulders. It helps realign your joints (when they are misaligned, the cartilage wears down more easily) and also opens up your upper body, helping you reduce stress on the neck and shoulder joints.

Using a strap, make a large loop and stick your arms through up to the elbows. Adjust the strap so it holds your elbows shoulder distance apart or a little wider. Put your hands in a prayer position and place your elbows on the edge of a counter or on the back of a chair that is waist-height or a little higher. Step your feet back as you bend forward at your hips. Keep your feet hip-width apart and parallel to each other. Bend your knees slightly and send your hips back (away from your elbows) to stretch your shoulders. Try to keep your hands pointing straight up, but if that causes pain, stick to an angle that works for you. Keeping your feet hip-width apart and parallel, walk them back, stretching your hips back away from your elbows in a straight line to open your upper back. Go only as far as you can breathe comfortably, making sure to keep shoulders away from ears so they don't pinch into your neck. Hold for 10 to 20 breaths, then walk your feet back in. Repeat once.


Low Lunge Variation:

This targets osteoarthritis in the knees, engaging and stretching your quadriceps and hip flexors, which will help prevent painful misalignment of the knee joints.

Roll up a plump blanket and carefully kneel down on it, pressing the tops of your feet into the floor to take weight off of your knees. Step your right foot forward, keeping it pointing straight ahead, until you start to feel a stretch in the front of your left thigh (about half a leg's distance or a little more). Slide your left knee forward just past the edge of the blanket, keeping the blanket under your shinbone as an aid for leverage. Keep pressing the top of your left foot into the floor so your weight is on your shinbone, not on your kneecap. Keep your hands on either side of your front foot and walk your elbows or hands up onto your front thigh to deepen the stretch in your back thigh. Make sure that your front knee lines up with your ankle and hip (front foot still pointing straight ahead). Tip your hips up toward the ceiling, sending your tail down, only as far as you can breathe comfortably. Hold this for 10 to 20 breaths. To finish, walk hands back down and step your right knee back to where your left knee is. Repeat with left leg in front.



Single Leg Forward Bend

Try this for arthritis in the lower back. It stretches your hamstrings while strengthening your lower back muscles to improve arthritic-driven slouching.

Holding the back of a chair, step your right foot forward with a bent knee, and step your left foot back one leg’s distance while keeping your back heel grounded on the floor and your foot turned forward at a 45-degree angle. Make sure you don’t look like you’re standing on a balance beam—your feet should be hip-distance apart and your knees should align with the center of each foot. Press down into your feet. Remove your hands from the chair and place both hands on your hips, getting your spine as tall and straight as you can. Maintain that as you tilt forward with your hips, keeping your weight evenly distributed between both feet. Bring hands to the chair and, keeping your spine straight, straighten your front leg just a little, so you feel your hamstring muscles stretching in the back of your front leg. Hold for 15-25 breaths. Bend your front knee and use your legs, not your neck and shoulders, to step up out of the pose. Repeat with left leg in front.