If the skeleton fails to stand poised¹ and well-balanced when upright, then our joints² won't work properly. A simple parallel is a skyscraper³ standing⁴ at an angle - the lifts won't run smoothly⁵ up and down their shafts⁶, the doors and windows won't open properly, the desks will inch across floors. The better your joints run, the better you run, and vice⁷ versa, so it's important to keep them supple⁸ and watch out for signs of trouble.

如果直立时骨架不能维持平衡，那么我们的关节不可能正常工作。一个简单的平行理论是就像倾斜的摩天大楼-电梯不会在上下轴线上运行流畅、门窗无法顺利打开、地板上的桌子会慢慢移动。关节运行越好，你的运就力会更好，反之亦然，所以保持其柔顺和注意危险病灶产生是至关重要的。

1 Don't ignore stiffness

1 不要忽略僵硬

One of the first signs of any joint wearing out is generalised stiffness, particularly after being in one position for too long. With the larger weight-bearing joints such as the hips⁹ you might - for example, getting out of the car after a long drive - find it difficult to get upright and take the first few steps. But you can also get a similar sense with non-weight-bearing joints such as an elbow after being bent¹⁰ for a long time.

任何关节磨损的第一迹象之一就是通常意义的僵硬。特别是保持一个姿势时间很长之后，尤其较大的负重关节如髋关节，例如长期驾驶后从车里出来，你可能发现很难直立和最初举步为艰，然而你也可能会有与非负重关节的类似感觉，比如弯曲较长时间的肘关节等。

2 Stretch

2 伸展性

Lack of multidirectional joint looseness, otherwise known as "joint play" makes it much easier for joints to be traumatised by an incidental jolt¹¹ during daily life. Stretching makes joints more compliant¹² and less susceptible¹³ to injury and arthritis¹⁴. A knee, for example, or an ankle, which has more joint play, will be able to cope better with uneven¹⁵ ground.

减少多向关节松动也被成为"关节内运动"。日常生活中的突然颠簸就会使关节容易损伤。伸展使关节更顺从和减少损伤和关节炎，比如膝关节或踝关节，有较多的联合关节内运动，它们能更好适应不平整的地面。

3 Test your joints to their limits

3 测试你的关节局限性

All joints are wont¹⁶ to get trapped in their middle range of functional¹⁷ movement and losing end-of-range freedom is an early indicator¹⁸ of trouble - even if there is no pain. For this reason it is important to exercise the extremes of "non-useful" movement at every joint. With the big toe, for example, separating it out as far as you can from the other toes helps prevent bunions.

所有的关节习惯于功能性运动的中间范围，失去功能性运动的自由范围，即使不疼痛也是早期的隐患指标。练习一些关节 "无用"运动是重要的，例如你的大脚趾，练习尽可能与其他脚趾分开而帮助预防拇囊炎的发生。

4 Exercise with care

4 运动与护理

Poorly crafted gym regimes often leave the joints out of balance because they concentrate on repetitive joint activity in their middle range which simply emphasises the patterns of every-day use. Dumbbell routines to strengthen biceps do this, when really the elbow needs to be opened out fully to keep you from developing "tennis elbow".

不良的健身运动常常使关节失衡，因为他们集中重复关节在中间范围的运动，而这种运动只是简单的加强关节每天的利用形式。当真的需要打开肘部动作时，常规的哑铃练习可增强肱二头肌，这能完全预防"网球肘"的形成。

5 Don't be afraid to bend

5 不要怕弯曲

The lumbar spine¹⁹ is designed to bend forward and doing so gives the spine's discs a drink by moving fluid around them. This becomes more necessary with age.

腰椎形成就是向前弯曲，如此前后弯曲运动通过周围组织液的流动润滑椎间盘。随着年龄的增长，这种运动更有必要性。