Cardio: Do It for Your Joints

By Tony Horton, Creator of P90X

Cardio: you do it to burn calories, build your stamina, and keep your heart young. But it turns out that cardio is a knee pleaser, too.

Vigorous, maintained workouts that keep your heart rate elevated could increase the amount of bone-cushioning cartilage you have in your knees. There's just one little two-pronged caveat:

• Vigorous exercise = good for the knees
• Vigorous exercise that causes a joint injury = really, really BAD for your knees

So while the cardio parts of your P90X workout may help build joint cartilage, play it safe. Don't overdo it and risk joint injury—that'll only set your knee health back. Waaaaay back. Knee injuries can more than double your risk of arthritis down the road.

Here are a few more ways to keep your knees in great shape:

1. Maintain a healthy weight.
2. Strengthen the muscles that support your joints.
3. Stretch.

Lucky for you, all these bonuses are built right into your P90X workout. So stay committed to your exercise routine and keep on Bringing It!

Power on!
Tony Horton