KNEE SRENTHENING EXERCISE
Exercise 1: Knee Extension
Sit on a table or desk with your legs hanging freely, and place a thin pad under your knee, so that the knee is slightly higher than the hip. Extend the knee slowly with the foot flexed, until the leg is extended; hold 3-5 seconds, and then lower slowly under control. Do 10 repetitions and repeat with the other leg. You can do 2-3 sets as needed.
As you get stronger, you can add light ankle weights to increase the resistance. Your kneecaps will love you for this one! Your hamstring muscles will also get an excellent stretch in the process, as you strengthen your quads.
Exercise 2: Knee Flexion (Standing)
Stand on a 2-inch board or small step. Keeping your thigh in a straight line with the upper body, bend your knee to a 90-degree angle and slowly lower down. Keep your foot flexed throughout the movement. You can keep your thigh pressed against a table, to ensure that it stays in line with your trunk.
Do 10 repetitions and repeat with the other leg. You can do 2-3 sets as needed.
As you get stronger, you can add light ankle weights to increase the resistance. In this exercise, your hamstring muscles get stronger, while you stretch out your quads.
Exercise 3: Heel and Calf Raises
The calf muscle is intricately related to the hamstring muscle and the back of your knee. Strengthening the calf muscle will greatly benefit your hamstrings and provide your knee with greater support and stability.
Stand barefoot (or wearing socks) on a 2-inch board or aerobic step. Place the toes and balls of your feet on the board, with your heels on the floor. Make sure your body is balanced; you can hold onto a support such as the wall or another stabilizing surface. Raise vertically up as high as possible onto your toes and slowly lower down. Do 10 repetitions and 2-3 sets, as needed.
A great variation of this exercise is to turn your toes inward (heels away from each other) and raise up vertically. This isolates and strengthens the inner part of your calf muscles. Then try turning your toes out and bring your heels close together and raise up vertically. This will isolate the outer portion of the calves.
This is a fantastic exercise that will benefit both your knees and your ankles at the same time.
Exercise 4: Wall Squats
Stand with your head, back and hips against a wall, your feet about hip-width apart. Slowly bend your knees, and glide down the wall until just before you reach a sitting position. Hold the position for five to ten seconds and then slowly come up. Repeat 5-10 times as needed.
You should keep your abdominal muscles engaged and not allow your pelvis to slide down lower than your knees. Avoid bringing the knees forward over the toes.
This quadriceps exercise will strengthen your knee joint and build stamina along the entire leg.
My Top 2 Quad Strengthening Exercises
Quadriceps strengthening is vital to restore normal muscle tone following an injury and assist in supporting the loads transferred through the knee during impact activity.
Here are my top 2 quad strengthening exercises. Do ten repetitions of each exercise, on both legs.
1.Static Quad
Start on unaffected leg.
Pull the toes up towards your shin, push your knee into the bed to tighten the quad muscles. This should cause your heel to slightly lift off the bed.
Hold for 7 seconds. Repeat on affected leg.
2.Knee Extension over Roll
Position knee over a rolled-up towel as shown.
Pull toes up towards the shin and fully straighten the knee.
Hold for 7 seconds.
Return to start position and repeat.
KNEE PAIN
Pain is a common knee problem that can originate in any of the bony structures compromising the knee joint (femur, tibia, fibula), the kneecap (patella), or the ligaments, tendons, and cartilage (meniscus) of the knee.
Knee pain can be aggravated by physical activity, as well as obesity, affected by the surrounding muscles and their movements, and be triggered by other problems (such as a foot injury).
Knee pain can affect people of all ages, and home remedies can be helpful unless it becomes severe.
- difficulty weight-bearing or walking due to instability of the knee,
- limping due to discomfort,
- difficulty walking up or down steps due to ligament damage (sprain),
- locking of the knee (unable to bend the knee),
- redness and swelling,
- inability to extend the knee, and
- shifting weight to the opposite knee and foot.
What causes knee pain?
- Acute injury: such as a broken bone, torn ligament, or meniscal tear.
- Medical conditions: rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, infections.
- Chronic use/overuse conditions: osteoarthritis, chondromalacia, IT band syndrome, patellar syndromes, tendinitis, and bursitis.
Acute knee injuries
Fractures: A direct blow to the bony structure can cause one of the bones in the knee to break. This is usually a very obvious and painful knee injury. Most knee fractures are not only painful but will also interfere with the proper functioning of the knee (such as kneecap fracture) or make it very painful to bear weight (such as tibial plateau fracture). All fractures need immediate medical attention. Many fractures require significant force, and a thorough examination is performed to detect other injuries.
Ligament injuries: The most common injury is the ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) injury. An ACL injury is often a sports-related injury due to a sudden stop and change in directions. The remaining ligaments (posterior cruciate ligament, lateral collateral ligament, and medial collateral ligament) are injured less frequently.
Meniscus injuries: The menisci (medial and lateral) are made of cartilage and act as shock absorbers between bones in the knee. Twisting the knee can injure the meniscus.
Dislocation: The knee joint can be dislocated, which is a medical emergency that requires immediate attention. Knee dislocation can compromise blood flow to the leg and have other related problems. This injury often occurs during a motor-vehicle accident when the knee hits the dashboard.
Medical conditions
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune condition that can affect any joint in the body. It can cause severe pain and disability, as well as swelling.
Gout is a form of arthritis that is most commonly found in the big toe, though it can also affect the knee. Gout tends to flare up and is extremely painful during acute episodes. When there is no flare-up, the knee can be pain-free.
With septic arthritis (infectious arthritis), the knee joint can become infected; this leads to pain, swelling, and fever. This condition requires antibiotics and drainage treatments as soon as possible.
Chronic use/overuse conditions
Patellar tendinitis is an inflammation of the tendons connecting the kneecap (patella) to the shinbone (the bone of the lower leg). Patellar tendinitis is a chronic condition often found in individuals repeating the same motion during exercise (such as runners and cyclists).
Patellofemoral pain syndrome is caused by degeneration or stress under the kneecap (patella) where it meets the thighbone (femur). Patellofemoral pain syndrome occurs in runners and cyclists.
Osteoarthritis: a wearing down of cartilage of the joint due to use and age
Prepatellar bursitis: Inflammation to the bursa (fluid-filled sac) in front of the kneecap may cause anterior knee pain.
What are risk factors for knee pain?
Biomechanics: The knee joint is complicated in its operation and is used frequently throughout the day. Any change in the movement of the joint (leg-length difference, change in walking style due to back problems) can cause subtle changes and cause pain and injuries.
Excess weight: The stress on the knee joint is increased with excess weight. Obesity also increases the risk of knee osteoarthritis as the cartilage breaks down more rapidly.
Overuse during repetitive motions as are found during certain exercises (jogging, skiing) or work conditions (long periods of kneeling) can cause the breakdown of cartilage and lead to pain.
Radiologic tests
A plain X-ray can establish fractures and degenerative changes in the knee.
MRI is used to evaluate the soft tissues of the knee for ligament tears or cartilage and muscle injuries.
Blood tests
If gout, arthritis, or other medical conditions are suspected, a health care professional might order blood tests.
Removal of joint fluid (arthrocentesis)
Some conditions are best diagnosed by the removal of a small amount of fluid from the knee joint. During arthrocentesis, a small needle is placed into your joint, and fluid is withdrawn. This is done in a sterile method. The fluid is then sent to the laboratory for evaluation. This procedure is especially helpful if an infected knee joint is suspected or to distinguish between gout and different forms of arthritis. If there is a collection of blood in the joint due to a traumatic injury, removing the fluid can help relieve the pain.
What is the treatment for knee pain?
Treatments for knee pain are as varied as the conditions that can cause the pain.
Medications
Medications might be prescribed to treat an underlying medical condition or for pain relief.
If you are taking over-the-counter anti-inflammatory pain medications regularly for your knee pain, you should see your doctor be evaluated.
Physical therapy
Sometimes physical therapy sessions to strengthen the muscles around the knee will make it more stable and help guarantee the best mechanical movements. Working with a physical therapist can help avoid injuries or further worsening of an injury.
Injections
Injecting medications directly into your knee might help in certain situations. The two most common injections are corticosteroids and lubricants. Corticosteroid injections can help arthritis and other inflammations of the knee. They usually need to be repeated every few months. Lubricants that are similar to the fluid already in your knee joint can help with movement and pain.
Model of a knee replacement with titanium hinge joint.
Model of a knee replacement with titanium hinge joint.
Will surgery treat and cure knee pain.
Surgery
Knee operations range from arthroscopic knee surgery to total knee replacement. Arthroscopic knee surgery is a very common surgical procedure that allows the physician to look inside your knee through a few small holes and a fiberoptic camera. The surgeon can repair many of the injuries and remove small pieces of loose bones or cartilage. This is a common outpatient procedure.
Partial knee replacement: The surgeon replaces the damaged portions of the knee with plastic and metal parts. Because only part of the knee joint is replaced, this procedure has a shorter recovery than a total knee replacement.
Total knee replacement: In this procedure, the knee is replaced with an artificial joint.
Other therapies
Acupuncture has shown some relief of knee pain, especially in patients with osteoarthritis. Glucosamine and chondroitin supplements have shown mixed results in research studies.
A female ices her knee to relieve pain.
What natural home remedies relieve knee pain?
Over-the-counter pain medications can frequently alleviate the pain. If someone is taking these medications on a regular basis, he or she should see a health care professional to evaluate the knee pain for proper diagnosis and to avoid the potential side effects of chronic medication use.
RICE TREATMENT
- Rest: Rest the joint and take a break from your usual activities involving the knee joint.
- Ice: Applying ice can help with pain and inflammation.
- Compress: A compression bandage can help prevent swelling and help knee alignment. It should not be tight and should be removed at night.
- Elevate: Elevation can help with swelling and resting of the knee.
What are the complications of knee pain?
Frequently, knee pain will disappear without ever finding a specific cause. Depending on the underlying cause of the pain, the condition can progress and lead to more serious injuries or complications. Usually, these complications are long-term and result in worsening pain or an increasing difficulty to walk.
Can you prevent knee pain?
There can be many reasons for knee pain. Therefore, there are different strategies to prevent the pain depending on the underlying cause. Running on soft surfaces or decreasing the amount of running can help if the pain is due to overuse. Avoiding any direct injuries to the knee including wearing a seatbelt can prevent traumatic injuries. Weight loss can be helpful for many different forms of knee pain.
Can knee pain come back after treatment?
Readers Comments 6 Share Your Story
Frequently, knee pain will occur for a short period of time and then resolve. Sometimes it can return a few weeks or months later. For chronic knee pain, it is important to get it evaluated to avoid further damage to cartilage, bones, or ligaments. Prognosis depends on the underlying causes of the pain.
With modern surgical techniques, it's possible to relieve many knee pain syndromes and return to an active lifestyle.
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