knee problems

liliesinmycereal · 01-30-2012, 01:23 PM

I think I've been getting knee problems from overdoing the amount and intensity of Zumba. 5 or 6 hours a week with one day "rest" and then back at it. My knees hurt to the point that I called the doctor. I've never had knee problems before doing Zumba for so long but it hurts to stand for too long. Do you think the pain will go away if I just lost some weight? I have like 30 pounds left but if I need to lose 40 I will. I'm not sure what the doctor is going to say. I'm alittle nervous. I want to be able to run in the spring and if I can't stand for too long how can I run?

KatMarie · 01-30-2012, 06:26 PM

My knees were beginning to hurt pretty bad when I was doing the treadmill and this was after I was in a normal weight range. Went to doc, he took X-rays and found nothing wrong. I got an elliptical and no more knee pain. I think the treadmill was just too hard on my joints. Maybe you need to find an exercise less stressful on your knees for a bit or not do Zumba so often? I'd at least go to your doctor and get your knees checked out. I'm 41 and had a hysterectomy at 20, so maybe that's why I'm having knee problems on the treadmill...not to mention I weighed over 300 pounds for years.

alitorry · 01-30-2012, 07:11 PM

Hi! I just started getting that this week and I do Zumba about 4 times a week along with other exercise. I'll tell you something that my military doc (I used to be navy) told us when we were running and getting knee problems, I actually hear this often - He said that you need to strengthen the muscles in your legs = quads and hamstrings. and that really helps! So, if you haven't incorporated strength training into your routine, go ahead and try that

hope that helps!

linJber · 01-30-2012, 07:48 PM

It could be the twisting, too. I could do all sorts of squats, lunges, etc., but when I had to twist, my knees hurt. They don't now - I think the weight loss and the fact that my quads are stronger make the difference. Stronger quads = stronger knees.

Lin

liliesinmycereal · 01-30-2012, 08:24 PM

Thanks I know I'm awkward at the twisting because I took off half of my toe nail at Zumba before. I'm going to start the strength training soon I did it during the summer but stopped when the personal trainers was getting all creepy. I'm afraid to work through the pain. I have the elliptical at home so I'm going to try it later. I've been overweight and obese most of my life but never experienced this much pain from exercising. I am going next week for the doctor and hopefully it will be good news. Thanks! I really appreciate the advice! I've been freaking out.

KittyKatFan · 01-30-2012, 09:09 PM

I agree with everyone, it could be the weight or not having the muscle structure around the knee.

I am not a runner (hurts my boobs

) but now that I am in better shape I decided to try jogging. It absolutely irritated my right knee. I had experienced some knee problems just from walking and going down stairs a couple of months earlier, and I thought it was better, but the impact from jogging made it worse.

So now I only use low impact machines like ellipticals, or I WALK on the treadmill. Much better on my knee.

You may want to stop zumba-ing for a little while and switch to a low-impact exercise machine to see if it makes a difference for you.

pattyhues · 01-31-2012, 05:02 AM

Does the pain come on suddenly? At its worst does It feel like a hot poker? does it come and go or is it there all the time? It could be a tiny bit of cartilage in the fluid of you knee. There are loads of things it could be. Try taking cod liver oil and/ or glucosamine. It will help. there are some simple exercises you can do just to keep the knee moving properly. As a rule though if it hurts = stop.

runningfromfat · 01-31-2012, 05:57 AM

I'd say it's worth at least a visit to the doctor.

FWIW, I have super crappy knees. I still don't know what the problem is and that's AFTER two visits to two different doctors.

Then again, I've put them through the wringer and then some (I was both a high school and college athlete). Its not from lack of muscles either because I have done a lot of weight training and my quads/hamstrings are very solid.

So mostly, I've found other ways to exercise that aren't high impact. I swim 3x a week and do upper body lifting. We walk often (as a family) so I figure that helps too.

It might be worth it to try some lower impact exercises to do in the meantime until you can get them checked out.

thistoo · 01-31-2012, 06:20 AM

I have osteoarthritis and a torn meniscus in one knee and the pain comes and goes. I have refused all my internist's attempts to refer me to a surgeon so far, but I know someday it will get bad enough that I'm going to have to deal with it.

It's worth getting it looked at. Intense exercise can actually *cause* osteoarthritis, so it's best to know what's going on so you can compensate for it appropriately without making it worse.