Is Impact Bad for Your Joints? (No — and Here’s Why)

About the Author: Hannah Breal, PT, DPT is the co-owner of Made 2 Move Physical Therapy in Charleston and Charlotte. She helps athletes and active adults rebuild strength, mobility, and confidence so they can move pain-free for life.

Made 2 Move Physical Therapy – Charleston | Daniel Island | Mount Pleasant | Charlotte

The comment that set me off

I admit it - I fell for the rage bait last week.

Back story: someone commented on one of our instagram posts about running:

And I’m not gonna lie, in the moment I was PISSED. I didn’t know how to respond.

BUT I decided to use my anger for GOOD, not evil, and to use it as an opportunity to educate.

because what’s better inspiration and fuel than anger??

That's not a bad thing. The problem is that we've been taught it is.

The myth: your joints “wear out” like car parts

Unfortunately, a lot of people have been taught to think that impact is bad for our joints: that our joints “wear out” from too much usage and that by doing things like running or jumping or CrossFit that we’re going to “pay for it later”

*cringes*

This fear of impact comes from the belief that our bodies are like car parts and that they have a limited amount of usage before they break down and need replacement.

Humans are not cars

BUT HUMANS ARE NOT CARS.

We are adaptable, living, breathing creatures.

SO this belief that impact is bad for our joints is actually pretty ironic...

Because the only thing that makes our joints healthier, stronger, more resilient, and more capable of handling stress IS impact and stress.

That’s also why you should be hesitant of passive treatments that require no stress or energy on your part... but that’s for another day!

Your body adapts to stress — that’s the whole point

Our bodies are pretty amazing, and they adapt in response to stress (unlike cars).

We create thicker tissue, denser bone, stronger muscles, etc - so that we’re more prepared for the stress the next time we encounter it.

That means the opposite is also true - without stress, there’s nothing to adapt to - so our bodies get weaker and less capable.

The saying is true: use it or lose it.

So ironically, the people who believe that impact is bad for their joints are also the people who avoid doing the things that are GOOD for their joints.

The real cost of avoiding impact

IN CONCLUSION: One of the most destructive things you can do for your body is avoid stress and impact and believe that it’s bad for you.

Without stress, there’s no reason for our body to make denser bone, thicker tissue, stronger muscles... so we get weaker and less prepared.

Which means if you don’t give your body a reason to build and maintain bone and muscle, you will lose it at an even faster rate than typical aging and then when you’re 60, you’re frail, you struggle to go up and the down the stairs, you’re a fall risk, your bones are brittle, and life gets really hard really fast and that SUCKS.

That is what we want to avoid.

What do you want your body to be capable of?

We have to stress our bodies so that our bodies stay capable.

What do you want your body to be capable of?

You have to train it for that.

If this sounds helpful, you can sign up to get the letters here. Why this matters so much to me

It’s sad to know that people believe their bodies are weak, fragile, and incapable of handling stress.

It’s sad to know that people are teaching other people this about their bodies and that these harmful narratives are still rampant in 2026... & comments like these make me wonder how much healthier people could be...

How much less chronic disease we’d have

How many more people would be running, exercising, and lifting weights

How many people would feel happier & more fulfilled if it weren’t for these harmful narratives.

That’s why it was so much more than comment for me: anything that paints exercise in a negative light is always going to upset me.

And I will keep fighting back!!

because exercise and movement are essential to being healthy.

You cannot be healthy if you don’t move and if you don’t exercise and if you never stress your body.

Placing stress on our bodies is HOW we become healthier, stronger, and more resilient.

And the people who avoid movement and avoid impact are the ones who will actually “pay for it later.”