i hurt my knee yesterday doing squats. i had i a feeling i was squating too low, but thought that i should try to "push" myself. screwed up in that sense. my knee hurts whenever i go up and down the stairs, bend it, etc. what should i do? i know about icing it (15-20 min, 3x a day), but is there anything else i could do? also, does anyone know how long the pain should last?

and because of my knee, i'll be taking a break from exercising for a few days. is this necessary (i know i shouldn't do squats, lunges, but could i continue doing other exercises that dont seem to put a strain on my knee?)

thanks

I'm so sorry. That's frustrating isn't it? I read everywhere that you should never send your knee out further than the tip of your toe while squatting. Although I'm not a fan of mirrors, I bought a cheapy full length one at WalMart and watch myself do some exercises to check form.
Have you checked out www.stumptuous.com ? She has marvelous tips on form.
I sit to do some of my exercises. Arm stuff. You still can do quite a few things. Take care of that knee! And I hope it feels better really soon.