The best forms of exercise can help to avoid knee pain and hip discomfort by keeping you fit. The La Jolla and Carlsbad sports enthusiast is continually searching for creative ways to piggyback exercise into the tasks of their daily routine. The use of pedometers and other fitness tracking devices can be helpful in encouraging people to get more exercise, according to multiple studies.

Researchers have determined that those who take walks every day are less likely to require the services of orthopedists for knee pain, meniscus tears, and other conditions.

A review of 26 studies, recently published by the Journal of the American Medical Association, revealed that physical activity increased an average of 27% for study participants who began using pedometers. The trials involved more than 2,700 people, Christie Aschwanden reported in the Washington Post.

Researchers found that the pedometer users decreased their body-mass indexes and lowered their blood pressure. Those who set a goal, like the commonly recommended 10,000 steps per day, tended to walk more than those who did not have specific expectations.

One pedometer enthusiast told Aschwanden that the device has “changed my behavior dramatically.”

The Post blog noted that fitness tracking devices range from simple pedometers, which clip to the waistband and count steps; to “high-tech trackers” such as Fitbit, Jawbone Up, the Withings Pulse O2 and Misfit Shine. They allow users to sync their information to smartphones or computers, and keep records.

Many of the devices monitor the distance a person walks or the number of calories burned. The accuracy of the readings varies, as some devices are more reliable than others. A study published in the Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise journal identified eight trackers that produced burned-calorie counts differing as much as 23 percent from lab results.

Public-health authorities advise that adults get 150 minutes of exercise weekly. To reach that level, taking 7,000 to 8,000 steps is necessary. Walking at a brisk pace is a form of aerobic and cardio exercise that works the arms, hips, legs, knees, ankles and feet.

Such exercise promotes fitness and healthy cardiovascular and respiratory systems, which reduces the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Walking also has been shown to help people keep their blood pressure, as well as cholesterol and triglyceride levels, under control.

Among other reported benefits are decreased vulnerability to colon, breast and other cancers; stronger bones; resistance to Type 2 diabetes; and less severe depression symptoms like anxiety and insomnia. Strenuous walking can burn nearly 400 calories per hour for a 150-pound person. People who walk at least seven hours per week reportedly are 40 percent less likely to die prematurely.

Studies indicate that those who sit for long periods are prone to many health problems and early aging. This is a widespread problem, as the average American reportedly sits for eight hours or more every day.

Among the undesirable results of sedentary behavior is knee pain due to meniscus tears and other tissue damage. Orthopedists are kept busy treating patients suffering from pain, lost mobility and osteoarthritis because of years of physical inactivity. In some cases, knee- or hip-replacement surgery becomes necessary.

As you become more active and are interesting in optimizing your ability to exercise, contact our renowned sports medicine orthopedists to evaluate you at Orthopedic Surgery San Diego.