Knees :(

[RBurke]

Hi ladies and gentlemen,
I've had some problems lately with my knees. I hurt them back in January doing too much, too soon. They never hurt me before this incident. Since then, I've moved to a new home with all the bedrooms upstairs. I've not worked out since January because I've been trying to let my body heal. I finally gave up and tried doing some very light aerobic work. I've tried walking for 20 minutes, twice a week. My knees are still hurting. They hurt going up and down my stairs. They hurt sitting and hurt while walking. I have an appointment with a sports medicine doctor tomorrow. What should I ask him? I am not familiar with this type of injury. Any advice on how to ask the right questions.
Thanks. Will they get better? It is getting warm here and I want to wear shorts and swimsuits but I am too soft and mushy in my opinion. Any suggestions????

 

[KimberlyH]

Just tell your doctor your complete knee history--what you did too much of, what you've been doing lately. He'll examine your knees, probably measure your legs, test your strength and flexibility in your legs and move your legs in all different directions to test the stability of your knee joint.

He could end up recommending any number of things: x-rays, MRIs, exercises, anti-inflammatories, ice, surgery, to name a few. If your health insurance allows for physical therapy, ask if you can get a referral. Your knee joints are surrounded and supported by a lot of muscles, and strengthening them so that your knee is aligned properly can make a difference. Doctors are notorious for giving out exercises on paper with diagrams and instructions on how to perform the exercises, but having a physical therapist watch you do the exercises and monitor your progress over a period of a several weeks is invaluable.

Good luck!

 

[Colia]

Hello RBurke,

I am so sorry to hear about your knees - I can relate to your frustration. I think KimberlyH gave you excellent advice. I would just add that not all doctors are the same - if you are satisfied with the person you're seeing tomorrow - yippeee, but if not, ask around and find a sports medicine doc or orthopedist who has a lot of experience/interest in knees. They are not all the same! As my current orthopedist put it, chronic back pain and knee pain are the albatrosses of their field, and surgeons being surgeons, many will lose interest if they can't quickly fix a problem surgically (not a putdown,just a generalization). Find someone who is genuinely interested in your problem and will hang in there with you for the duration. It doesn't sound like there's gonna be a quick fix for you, but remember, that you can get better - be sure to ice your knees after any exercise - if you are healthy, most would recommend anti-inflammatory agents like ibuprofen or naproxen - you can take up to twice as much as the over the counter dosing - if you are otherwise healthy - ask your doctor about this though. The hardest thing is to be patient, but hang in there!

Please keep us posted - the other thing you might do in the meantime is get some pilates tapes - they are very gentle on the knees, can be done with modifications, and leave you feeling great! Not like the sweaty exhaustion of a Cathe tape, but great nonetheless. Hope this helps and keep us posted!

Cheers,
Colia

 

[RBurke]

Hi.
He said that my knee caps aren't right. Both are sitting to the side. He said this could cause discomfort. He said to go to physical therapy. I don't have a lot of confidence in physical therapy. I've been before for other problems and it did absolutely nothing for me. I guess we will see. I am willing to try. The stairs in my house are a problem right now. I have to go up and down in a side-ways step. He also said no squats, no lunges, no step aerobics of any kind and no running or even walking on an incline. I am allowed to walk, swim or ride a bike unless my knees ache later. It was not good news to me as I really want to look better for swimsuit and shorts season. As of right now, I will not be wearing either one. I am frustrated that I've done this to myself. I never had knee problems before so I didn't know that I was hurting them. Anyway...
I guess my Cathe tapes will be collecting dust for a while. However, I am going to start using the PS Upper Body tapes with some other cardio things at the gym. My legs need the most work and I can't do anything about it right now. Oh well. Thanks for posting to me. It helps to have encouragement. Where would I get Pilates tapes?

 

[Colia]

Hi RBurke!

Don't give up on that bathing suit yet!

You have lots of options that will provide you with an excellent cardio workout and give those knees time to heal. It sounds as if you have the same problem I do - abnormally tracking kneecaps. Don't underestimate physical therapy - again the trick is to find the right person for your problem. The goal is to build up the medial head of your quadricep muscle - it looks like a pear when it is well-developed - this is the muscle that will 'pull your kneecap' back to where it is supposed to be. In most exercises we build up the lateral aspect of the quads, but unless you target the medial side, it will be underdeveloped and thus the knee will pull laterally, thus causing friction and pain under the kneecap. Make sense? Simple exercises that seem stupid and pointless, but could really help are simply putting a ball between your knees, squeezing it as tightly as you can with the legs pushing toward one another, and contracting your quads as hard as you can. Your kneecap may be sore now with this motion, but feel that medial head working. Do millions of these. You can also do mini leg extension using the squeezing action with the ball and mini wall squats as well (stand with back flat against the wall, go down until you begin to have any pain, hold for 15 sec to one minute and repeat as many as you can).

For cardio biking and swimming burns tons of calories and will really tone your legs - when you begin to recover, you may be able to use the elliptical trainer at the gym, which is also great. I got my pilates tapes through Moira Stott's site - I think it's www.stottconditioning.com. I also have Jennifer Krie's Method Precision Toning which is good too. You can often get a deal on ebay as well. The balance ball may be another option for you - there is a lower body balance ball workout that is supposed to be through Living Arts - I haven't done it myself.

Hope this helps -

Cheers!
Colia

 

[SusanR]

Your knee problem sounds just like mine. My doctor said this is a very common problem in women. He sent me to physical therapy and gave me some anti-inflamatories to take. In physical therapy they taught me strengthening exercises and stretches. It has really hepled me. I really think you should try it.

My doctor didn't tell me to quit exericising. He told me to keep doing what I always do. Maybe yours are worse than mine.

Good Luck and I hope your knees get better soon. I know how frustrating and painful it can be.

SusanR