What is in your knees elbows and shoulders that allow your bones to move or be flexible?

Freely movable, or synovial (pronounced: sih-NO-vee-ul), joints move in many directions. The main joints of the body — found at the hip, shoulders, elbows, knees, wrists, and ankles — are freely movable. They are filled with synovial fluid, which acts as a lubricant to help the joints move easily.

What happens to knees as we age?

The aging knee Your knees absorb a huge amount of pressure with every step — typically one-and-a-half times your body weight. That pressure, plus regular wear and tear, takes a toll over time. Muscles and ligaments get weaker. The knee’s two shock absorbers — pads of cartilage called menisci — start to deteriorate.

Why are my knees and hips so stiff?

Stiff hips may be the result of a short-term injury or part of a chronic, debilitating condition. One type of injury that can occur is a labral tear. The labrum is a type of cartilage, and it covers the hip socket. You also may experience hip stiffness after exercising due to tight hip flexor muscles.

Why is it better for the knee to be less stable than the elbow?

Less stability = more motion = more wear and tear = more injury (including more arthritis). This means not only that strong muscles are especially important to protect less stable joints like the shoulder and knee, but also that those joints are particularly susceptible to ligament and muscle injuries.

Why do we need joints?

Joints are where two bones meet. They make the skeleton flexible — without them, movement would be impossible. Joints allow our bodies to move in many ways.

Why do knees get bigger as we age?

As the disease progresses, the cartilage thins, becoming grooved and fragmented. The surrounding bones react by becoming thicker. They start to grow outward and form spurs. The synovium (a membrane that produces a thick fluid that helps nourish the cartilage and keep it slippery) becomes inflamed and thickened.

Why do knees change shape with age?

Age-related changes in joints As you age, joint movement becomes stiffer and less flexible because the amount of lubricating fluid inside your joints decreases and the cartilage becomes thinner.

Why do my hips pop?

Whenever a hip starts to click, it is usually due to snapping hip syndrome (SHS), a hip disorder medically referred to as coxa saltans. SHS occurs when the muscle tendons around the hip joint become inflamed and begin to click as they rub over the hip socket bone.

Can you get a frozen hip?

Frozen hip, also called adhesive capsulitis (AC) of the hip, is a painful condition that causes restriction of motion in the hip joint. The connective tissues surrounding and within the hip joint become inflamed and scar tissue forms inside the capsule, causing extreme pain and stiffness in the buttocks and groin.

Why does flexibility decrease with age?

As you age, joint movement becomes stiffer and less flexible because the amount of lubricating fluid inside your joints decreases and the cartilage becomes thinner. Ligaments also tend to shorten and lose some flexibility, making joints feel stiff.

Why does muscle mass decrease with age?

However, during aging, the body becomes resistant to the normal growth signals, tipping the balance toward catabolism and muscle loss (1, 7). Summary: Your body normally keeps signals for growth and teardown in balance. As you age, your body becomes resistant to growth signals, resulting in muscle loss.