Hi guys. It’s not summer yet but I’m wondering if anyone has issues with arthritis.
I’m age 57. I developed a small Heberden’s node on my right index finger maybe as result of typing with only my index fingers for the past 30 years. This is a sign of osteoarthritis. My hands feel great and I have no problem playing piano. My mother (who died at age 86 a few years ago) had these nodes and Bouchard’s nodes all over all her hand joints and there may be a genetic aspect to this disease. Her hands were a mess.
I am doing osteoarthritis exercises for my hands (many of them are exactly the same as the away from keyboard exercises that Kawai_cs recommended). I use a touch and press piano technique when the music allows. I am also fine tuning my diet. My diet has been very good and follows the ideas of superfoods Rx book. I am fine tuning by decreasing the omega 6 and increasing omega 3. I take glucosamine and chondroitin, fish oil, Co-q10, EGCG, resveratrol and other supplements. I lead a very healthy life. I walk 25 miles a week at 4 MPH pace and jog 3 miles a week at 7.5 MPH (three 1 mile jogs). I blew my shoulder about 15 years ago bench pressing but I recovered with physical therapy and am now doing my old man exercises and do therapy for osteoarthritis in my spine. I mostly walk to save me knees (edit: out of caution, my knees are fine).
I saw Ann Shein perform Rach 3 today with Harrisburg Symphony. She must be close to 80 years old and played great. I always thought that I would be able to play piano as much as I want until a very old age. I practice 3 hours a day and was hoping to bump this up to 5 hours after I started taking lessons. I plan to post some of my playing as bad as it is this summer.
Arthritis and piano - PLEASE IGNORE