Do anybody else's knees hurt when doing squats?...........

[Calico]

Mine really hurt the deeper I go or depending on the angle I do the squats. I am able to complete the exercises with only minimal pain or discomfort. Plies don't seem to be as bothersome. I did the Power Hour tape this morning and was able to up my weight on some of the exercises so that made me feel better. Though I might be paying for it tomorrow. I did the Power Hour on Friday also and wasn't sore at all, so I don't think I pushed myself hard enough. I am going to try to do Power Hour 3 times this week and see how that goes. I actually exercised for an hour and 25 min. today because I did a 25 min. step aerobics(not Cathe the other Kathy, Kathy Smith) for my cardio then did the Power Hour.

I am pumped today!!!

Take care everybody & God bless you all!!!

Annette

 

[kathryn]

Annette, You might want to experiment with your stance and turn-out, since you have no problem with pliés, which take a wider, more turned-out stance than squats. A wider, shoulder-width or a bit more, stance, with your toes turned out to about 45-degrees (varies from individual to individual) might help. Also, think of having your knees go more toward your little toe than over your big toe. I always look to Rhonda for good squat form. Her knees are always behind her toes (as close to being straight up over the ankle as possible).

 

[Calico]

RE: Do anybody else's knees hurt when doing squats?.......

Ok thanks Kathryn, I will do some fiddling with my stance on the squats. And I will have to watch when Cathe introduces the group to see who Rhonda is. Thanks for taking the time to post a response.

I need to get back to schooling the boys.

Take care and God bless you!!

Annette

 

[kristieschultz]

Be very careful if you are feeling pain, you don't want to mess up your knees. If fact, you probably do NOT want to up your weight until you're feeling these in the right places. I was also feeling them a little in my knees at first. Try this. I focused on keeping my shoulders pointing up the cealing and not allowing my chest to cave in and shoulders to round. I tried to get my body was very upright(not folding in half). I allowed my hands to come in closer to my shoulders while holding the bar instead of way out more towards where the weights are. This really seemed to help to keep my body upright. I was also really trying to push through my heels at first but I abandoned that idea and just push through my whole foot. I hope this is understandable. It worked for my, so goodluck!

PS. I always use a wider than shoulder width stance for these like Cathe does. WHENEVER I try to put my feet shoulder width apart I ALWAYS feel it in my knees.

 

[hounddogs]

Do you hear any grinding in your knees? You could have cartilege damage or patellar tracking problems. Please be careful. I have two bad knees in two different ways. My PT says (he also has bad knees) that a 35% reduction in range of motion amounts to only a 5% loss of strength gains. Don't go so deep unless you're sure it's nothing serious.

--Ann

 

[Maribeth]

As a PT and exercise physiologist, I agree with what Ann says. Patellar tracking/malalignment can cause tons of knee pain, especially with deeper squats and lunges.

Get your knees checked out--in the meantime, keep squats and lunges in a pain-free range of motion. I started with patellofemoral joint problems as a kid and went for years trying to ignore the pain--ended up having surgery on both knees last year. I now have virtually no cartilage on the back side of either of my kneecaps. Not good!

Take care of your knees!
Maribeth

 

[miller2917]

RE: Do anybody else's knees hurt when doing squats?.......

My left knee hurts when doing squats, any power moves on the step and lunges. It also hurts when I walk up stairs. It crunches and pops whenever I exercise. After reading some of the posts here, I saw a physical med and rehab doctor who told me nothing was wrong. He suggested I do leg extensions, take celebrex and come back if it didn't improve. I can't take the celebrex b/c I am pregnant and the knee is not any better. I am sure they will put me off until I need surgery. Sometimes I think that's their goal. I did lower my step to 4" which seems to be helping a little.

 

[kathryn]

RE: Do anybody else's knees hurt when doing squats?.......

After reading some of the posts here, I saw a physical med and rehab doctor who told me nothing was wrong. He suggested I do leg extensions, take celebrex and come back if it didn't improve.

I'm not a PT, but I've gone through physical therapy for "patello-femoral pain syndrome" (which, translated into normal-speak, seems to mean "knee pain of unknown origin"--sound familiar?) The two different PTs I saw both advised me to do lying straight-leg lifts rather than extensions(which I'm surprised your doctor recommended, as they can put more stress on the knee). Lying on the floor with an ankle weight on, lift one leg to about 60-degrees (keeping the knee straight), hold a beat, then lower slowly. Repeat for a goal of 25 reps per leg (as with most PT exercises, start very light--like no weight at all) and increase reps when you can.)

 

[miller2917]

RE: Do anybody else's knees hurt when doing squats?.......

The pain feels like it's coming from of my knee cap at the top and underneath if that makes any sense.. He never gave me a "diagnosis" per se. I thought it was weird he would suggest leg extensions as well and said something but his explanation was vague. My knee pops when I do extensions with no weight at all.

Thanks for the suggestion - I'll try it.