My KNEES! I feel so old....
 

Yanno, I never had troubles with my dagum knees back in my 20's or early 30's...or late 30's for that matter, but now @ 39 almost 40 :sssh: , just about everytime I aerobosize, I hurt my knees and have to ice them and walk around limping! I am TRYING to lose weight here and I really need some cooperation from the knees!!!:dizzy:

Welcome to the Sore Knees Club - we have lots of members! :lol:

First of all, do you know why your knees are sore? Is it arthritis or have you injured them? Have you seen a doctor or been through physical therapy for them?

What kind of exercise are you doing now that makes them hurt?

There are lots of ways to exercise that will protect your knees and actually help them by strengthening the muscles that support the joints. If you can fill me in a bit on what the knee issue is, what you're currently doing, and what your goals are, we can put our heads together and come up with a plan. :)

Meg, I am looking for knee strengthening exercises too so will be keeping an eye on this thread. (Why the heck didn't I think to ask before now?)

Diva, you are wise to tackle the problem now instead of waiting until you are an antique like me waiting for a knee transplant!

I had the same first thoughts here as Meg. Sounds like carpal tunnel in the wrist, especially if you're a right-hander and use the computer a lot. I sometimes get trouble in my right wrist too (usually when at the computer for long periods) and wear a wrist brace when I feel it start to act up.

And I had the same problem with just one knee when running (high impact). I found that using a knee support or wrap also helped. It takes some of the impact. And mine IS arthritis due to my weight. The doctor couldn't figure out why I had arthritis since I told her I had only been exercising a few years. Then I told her what I used to weigh and the light went on. LOL

When I first started playing with weights I did some forearm things. I had quite annoying discomfort about 2/3's of the way from my wrist to my elbow. You can feel a mound of muscle there if you make a fist.
I asked my physiotherpist friend who said that forearm exercises weren't necessary. They get worked out any way (and I needed to watch my form).

Do you trainers folks agree with that?

OMG I didn't know the 4x the amount of stress on the knees! That's really interesting and scary and makes me want to stop eating right now! :lol:

I've got Patella Tendonitis at the moment :p :rolleyes: So I'm another one in the sore knee club :wave: Would be interested in any knee-strengthening exercises too! I've been doing partial one legged squats on a step and step downs, which I read about on a PT site.

I have a knee related question too. I hope you don't mind me putting it in here.

I have a funny little injury from a goofy fall 8 years ago (whoops is there a step here). It is almost all gone and I have been running with no ill effects (knocks wood).

However when I try to do squats the knee kind of starts to get nervous. It doesn't want to do full range of motion. I am trying something to stabilize it and maybe improve range of motion so I can squat through the full range of motion without this one side hurting. It only hurts when I try to squat low. Slight adjustments with the angle of my feet help alot.

Thanks to the OP for starting the old knee thread!

Diva, I have three exercises for you but I gotta make dinner for the hungry hordes. I promise I'll get back to you tonight or tomorrow morning. :)

Old knees unite! May we all get strong and pain free.

Does anyone else's knees make noise when they do squats and walk upstairs and such? My knees have always done this - thought they don't hurt. I have no idea why they make noise. And if I put my hand on my knee while going up a step I can feel it make the noise (if that makes sense).

Jo

"Do anyone else's knees make noise when they do squats and walk upstairs and such? My knees have always done this - thought they don't hurt. I have no idea why they make noise. And if I put my hand on my knee while going up a step I can feel it make the noise (if that makes sense)."

My knees have a bit of crunch to them. If I put my fingers on my knee and make a bicycling motion, I can feel my knee crunching and grinding. It's pretty gross. Mine have always been like that though--I remember getting my friends to feel my crunchy knees when I was a skinny 13 year old. I've asked doctors about it (because I do have other problems with my knees) and they have always seemed entirely uninterested in the phenomenon.

My knees crackle and grind, too, but after years of strength training, no longer hurt. When I first starting lifting heavy, I wrapped them with an ace bandage each for stabilization. It helped alot.

When you are doing "ball squats", place a lightweight ball about the size of a basketball (but light...those kid ones that are in the supermarkets now) between your knees and hold it there with leg pressure throughout the exercise. This will keep your knees from wandering in or out.

Fru- In your situation, I'd wrap both for lifting and use a neoprene brace for kickboxing. Do ball squats with a smaller ball between your knees and holding dumbbells. If you are using a leg press, put the lightweight ball between your knees. You really want to stabilize both legs so that they can't widen out as you press or squat. This doesn't work for free bar squats- you just need to wrap or stay away from them for a while.

Mel

The -only- solution I've found to my knee problems is to develop my quad muscles. Rock hard quads = knee stability for me. My doc explained that the quad muscle helps to "guide" the kneecap in its correct track, reducing friction on the underside of the kneecap, which prevents pain. It also stabilizes.

My knee hasn't dislocated since the very beginning of my journey - and this from a girl who used to sublux or dislocate her kneecap probably once a month (congenital knee problem - extra ligament called a plica ran under the kneecap, which over the years resulted in the complete replacement of cartilege under my right knee with scar tissue that is thicker than the cartilege layer would be - kneecap rides high and tended to "pop" off whenever it was struck or bent funny).

All of those exercises that Meg posted seem like they would work the quad, so that makes sense. The stronger your quads get, the less knee trouble you'll have, at least in my experience.

Thanks Meg for the exercises and pics. And thanks Mel for the ball between knees advice.

I have a follow up question...

Can you do the ball between knees with regular dumbell squats or were you (Mel) tallking about adding dumbells to the wall squats or could you do either?

The knee wandering is totally my problem. I noticed this today durning lunges. Left knee is a good little soldier and right knee has ADD and will only behave if I concentrate hard.

I was talking about adding dumbbells to a wall squat. I think that is a lot easier on the knees and you can still do a weighted squat that way. Another good knee strengther is one legged stand-up-sit-downs. Find a platform or bench where when you are sitting, your quads are parallel to the floor and your knees form a 90 degree angle. Put one foot one the floor and hold the other bent out in front of you. Stand up. Sit down. Do this 10 times. Switch legs. This is hard- a lot of women can't get their butts UP at all. If you can't do it, sit down on one leg--control, control...the stand up on two. When you can easily do the "down part", then try the standing again.

Mandalinn- Strong quads are only half the equation. You also need strong hamstrings to balance them. If you only work your quads and have underdeveloped hamstrings, you'll create knee problems. Many runners who don't cross train have problems because their quads are so overdevoped in relation to their hammies.

Mel

I must have never had problems with hammie development, because i mainly focused on the quads and resolved my issues.

I stand corrected! Strong hammies and quads!

Mel, that's a great exercise! I'm going to do it myself. :)

:wave: me! me! In my 20's my knees would pop or crack once in a while when I walked. It never hurt, in fact, it felt relieved like when I used to crack my knuckles (but that's another story :rolleyes: ) . Now that I'm in my 30's and my weight has been going up and down drastically by 30+ pounds or more several times over the past few years, my knees tend to flare up more often. My orthopedic doc says the crunching noises are scar tissue, which could be from bone rubbing on bone, or the meniscus (cartilage) wearing away, basically any debris "floating" around in the joint fluid will cause the sound.

I had arthroscopic surgery in Feb. this year to remove a large meniscus tear and had a lateral release at the same time. Let me tell you, that crunching sound is magnified now and I can hear it while I walk.

Meg, those are great exercises. Just wanted to add also that if you don't have a giant exercise ball to do ball squats, you could always put a towel (worn like a cape) on your back and lean directly on the wall and do wall slides for the same effect. But as always, proper form is necessary so you don't hurt yourself. Wow, I'm glad I happened upon this thread, such great info from all.

I don't know if this will help anyone, but I was in physical therapy for a while for my knees because I was hyperextending (basically, constantly locking them when I was walking) them without realizing it. One of the ways they got the pain to go away was to strengthen the muscle around my knees. They had me do leg lifts, lying on a table (or on my bed, if I was doing them at home) on my stomach, lifting and holding my leg a few inches up. Same on my side and on my back, with a five pound velcro weight strapped on my leg. Sometimes, if my knees were having a particularly bad day, I'd wear bootcut jeans, and I'd wear the weights while I was going about my buisiness for the day. That last one wasn't a reccomended exercise from my PT, so maybe it isn't a good idea, but it helped me.

Thank you Mel :D For my free bar squats I am really lightening the load and concentrating on my knees not caving inwards.

I am going to try the ball squats in the gym next leg day. I have been doing one legged squats and step-downs as suggested on some PF website.

Just for plain old arthritic knees...glucosomine works wonders....I was not a believer, but went to Dr with inflamed bursa in my knees (have had prob with shoulders for years, but this was first time with knees). They have been creaky, cranky and jittery for a long time. He put me on Move Free by Schiff (6 pills a day for 3 weeks then down to 3 pills a day...for life...)....its like being 20 years younger. I have never been much for pills or supplements, but man is it nice to move with out the snap, crackle, pop in my knees....and to squat without pain......and to go upstairs without feeling like they were going to give way at any second.

Dr did say that it only works for 40% or so of his patients..but if it does work...it works well.

Can I ask what is the difference between wall squats and ball squats? What advantages are there to using the ball?
Thanks,
Emily

Not "knowing" the answer to that, I'm guessing though, as it appears, that the ball would at least be gentler on the back with its soft curve than a hard flat wall.

I think it is so you can control the ball, i.e. make sure you don't drop it, so maybe it improves your form, as well.

It is easier to roll up and down the wall with the ball, than just leaning against the wall and trying to go up and down. Also, with the ball, you use a lot of your core muscles and that's very good for balance, abs, everything...

Thanks! I've got one, so I'll give it a whirl!

Pretty much - forearm exercises if you need them.. but doing free weights for the major muscle groups will really work them. If a person is to isolate them then I would ask that there is a purpose to it that is beyond 'general conditioning.' The key in any exercise regimen it to know WHY you are doing certain exercises and what they will yield for you. Making your fitness program your own in this way is important.

cert pft fitmom 1

differences with the ball or regular squats..
Wall ball squats are often better tolerated by those just starting into it, those with need to work more on form, those whose knees bother them with regular squats. The ball wall squats work the muscles a little bit differently as you are actually pushing against the wall and ball - and possibly are bearing slightly less weight than you would without the ball. The movement with the ball changes the plane of movement and the adjustment of the lever.

Regular squats are also valueable if performed correctly. The plane of movement is much more functional (how often are you pushing back when you go to sit on the sofa or toilet, or get up from them?) than the ball, though I like to do a combination of both with my personal training clients and with my classes. The muscle recruitment is different than with the ball. It requires more balance/stability.

Both exercises, however recruit multi-muscle groups including the core muscles (abs back and sides) and both are fit in the generally accepted movements of safety if performed correctly and if appropriate for the individual attempting them.

cert pft fitmom1

Even the elliptical trainer hurts my knees. I've tried using that sucker (we have one at home), and I'm very lucky if I last a minute, without my knees screaming from pain.

Very interesting about the 4 pounds of pressure on the knees for one pound of body weight- that would explain why my knees have been screaming after playing tennis and bike riding on our country "dirt" roads. Swimming, however, relaxes them.

Take stock out on Ben Gay, folks, as I'll be buying it in massive quantities. :rofl:

Meg, I wanted to ask, I've thought about joining a local gym, and as I have horrid knees, is there anything I should tell the trainers then if and when I start? And if you want details, I've got arthritis(age 12) and patella tendonitis(age 9) in both knees, and had mcl repair and a lateral release on my right knee.

Nix the Ben Gay. Head to your local Chiroquack for some Bio Freeze, or order it off the net. I threw out Ben Gay, Aspracream and all that garbage when my chiro sold me that stuff. Been ordering it online ever since.

I noticed that many of you have complained about "popping" of your knees when you go up and down stairs and the like. The major culprit to this can be a Discoid Meniscus. I have this, myself.

I have an article here about it. Most people never know they have one because in most cases the pain never hits a level of severity that merits a doctors visit.

Discoid Meniscus

Hope this helps some of you!