Knee problems?
- Thread starter dtubb
- Start date
I have knee pain as well. the mor eI exercise the more pain I have. I keep ignoring it though, figuring it will go away. Some day I will get it checked ot. i am afraid I need surgery and therefore cannot continue to exercise. Does that make sense?I am a nurse too, pretty sad. Do as I say not as I do. I am thinking posibly arthritis or a torn meniscus. My dad and brother both have bad knees and required surgeries. I have been taking advil when it gets bad.One week a couple months ago i had bronchitis, so I couldn't really do aerobics, the pain was gone the entire week. I have read th epain may go away once you get used to xercising, but I have been doing this for 2 years now. Thats not my answer. What type of pain do you have? Lisa
I had a knee injury about three years ago. I had an MRI and it revealed a partially torn ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament). Of course my doctor immediately recommended surgery. I was reluctant though. He also recommended I get physical therapy before the surgery to strengthen the muscles around my knee. I was out of shape at the time which probably in turn caused my knee to buckle. Anyways, my physical therapist seemed more informed about this type injury and said he has seen so many types of these injuries that do not undergo surgery. He said if you strengthen the muscles surrounding the knee it will usually stablize itself that there should't be a need for surgery. However, if you are the football, soccer type, of course, surgery would be the best option. But I am neither, so I opted to see if I could do these strengthening exercises and see what would happen.
Well, gladly to say, three years later, I'm in the best shape of my life (at the ripe old age of 31 no less). My knee injury is still there, but since I'm much stronger physically and my legs are much, much stronger, I barely notice it's there. I started out with Yoga and gradually progressed to more intense workouts. I'm to the point I can do all of Cathe's more rigorous workouts, i.e. BC, KPC, IMAX 2, etc. with no modifications! My knee rarely acts up, and when it does, I just take a time out on lower body exercises and work upper body. So, did I make the right decision not to get surgery? Right now I don't see the need, but eventually I think I will when I get older. Yikes!
Hopefully this was helpful!)
Brenda
Well, gladly to say, three years later, I'm in the best shape of my life (at the ripe old age of 31 no less). My knee injury is still there, but since I'm much stronger physically and my legs are much, much stronger, I barely notice it's there. I started out with Yoga and gradually progressed to more intense workouts. I'm to the point I can do all of Cathe's more rigorous workouts, i.e. BC, KPC, IMAX 2, etc. with no modifications! My knee rarely acts up, and when it does, I just take a time out on lower body exercises and work upper body. So, did I make the right decision not to get surgery? Right now I don't see the need, but eventually I think I will when I get older. Yikes!
Hopefully this was helpful!)
Brenda
Hi Brenda, can you tell me what type of exercises that the PT made you do? I work out almost every day and my legs are very strong, except my knees. If I could do some specific exercises maybe that would help. today they are just killing me, even to get up from a chair. I am only doing upper body today and must go to work later. Not working out tomorrow, cooking for 10 people. So I will have 2 days of rest for them. Thanks for your help, Lisa
Hi Lisa,
I'd advise you to see a doctor first and foremost. Your knee problem seems very painful. Here are some exercises that may be of help.
-Ride a stationary bike on medium tension for 10-15 minutes to warm up the legs. Also, this is an excellent way to strengthen the thigh muscles. Low impact too.
-With ankle weight 3-5Lbs, sit in a chair and lift the lower leg straight up for one count and lower for 3 counts. 2-3 sets of 15.
-Lying on you back, place a pillow under your knee and tense your leg muscles as you lift you lower leg. 2-2 count. 2-3 sets of 15.
-Lying on your belly, hamstring curls with ankle wights. Up 3 counts down 1 count.2-3 sets of 15.
-Stand in a doorway and balance on one leg. Now close your eyes and try to balance. This seems silly but you can really feel all your muscles.
-Yoga is really what helped me gain strength in my knee, as well as my whole body. There's a program on the Oxygen network called Inhale that comes on early in the morning that's worth checking out.
Good luck and I hope this helps!
Brenda
I'd advise you to see a doctor first and foremost. Your knee problem seems very painful. Here are some exercises that may be of help.
-Ride a stationary bike on medium tension for 10-15 minutes to warm up the legs. Also, this is an excellent way to strengthen the thigh muscles. Low impact too.
-With ankle weight 3-5Lbs, sit in a chair and lift the lower leg straight up for one count and lower for 3 counts. 2-3 sets of 15.
-Lying on you back, place a pillow under your knee and tense your leg muscles as you lift you lower leg. 2-2 count. 2-3 sets of 15.
-Lying on your belly, hamstring curls with ankle wights. Up 3 counts down 1 count.2-3 sets of 15.
-Stand in a doorway and balance on one leg. Now close your eyes and try to balance. This seems silly but you can really feel all your muscles.
-Yoga is really what helped me gain strength in my knee, as well as my whole body. There's a program on the Oxygen network called Inhale that comes on early in the morning that's worth checking out.
Good luck and I hope this helps!
Brenda
I used to experience pretty severe knee pain when I first started doing Cathe's workouts. There are a few things that can help. First, what surface are you working out on? If you're working out on cement (the WORST) or carpet over cement, hardwood floor, or any other really hard floor, you may want to check out those interlocking matts. You can get them at Sports Authority, Costco, and Home Depot. I noticed an immediate difference in my knees when I started using them. They absorb the shock that would normally be absorbed by your joints. Also, how old and what kind of shoes are you using? Make sure you're using a quality, newer pair of shoes specifically designed for fitness. I also recommend trying Spenco cross trainer insoles. They make good shoes even better. These are the things that worked for me, but please don't ignore your pain: your body is trying to tell you something when it hurts! See a Dr. if the pain doesn't subside.
Hope this helps!
Hope this helps!
Hi and thanks for the tips. I am going to get those interlocking mats. I know what they are. I have carpet over a wood floor and have very good sneakers and they are fairly new so thats not it. I replaced them when I started having pain.I will look for the insoles too. Thanks so much,I must swallow my pride and go. For goodness sake I see docs all the time at work but they hate "curbside consults". Will keep you posted. Lisa
harleygirl
Member
Lisa:
I also have had bad knee pains in the past especially my right knee. I started taking Glucosamine and I am just amazed on how pain free I am today. Doctors recommend this to arthritis patient. You can pick it up at any Wal-Mart or Walgreens. It will take about 2 weeks to kick in but I'm sure you will be happy with the results.
I still get some weird creaking noises from my right knee but I can live with that.
Hope this helps.
Kristie
I also have had bad knee pains in the past especially my right knee. I started taking Glucosamine and I am just amazed on how pain free I am today. Doctors recommend this to arthritis patient. You can pick it up at any Wal-Mart or Walgreens. It will take about 2 weeks to kick in but I'm sure you will be happy with the results.
I still get some weird creaking noises from my right knee but I can live with that.
Hope this helps.
Kristie
Hi Kristie. I have been taking Glucosamine for 2 years now three times a day. My husband heard on one of those talk radio shows that people have had great luck with it. It must be me. I don;t notice an improvement but figured it would stop it from getting worse. Thanks for your help. Lisa
Shelbygirl
Cathlete
I started having pain in my knees, not as bad as yours seems to be, but pretty bad. I also started taking glucosamine, but with chondroitin and MSN. For me, it took about a month to kick in, but now I am more or less pain free. I would consult a doctor, however, just to be safe.
SHelbygirl
SHelbygirl
Timber99
Cathlete
You have gotten some great advice here so I won't add much, except to stress the importance of seeing your doctor! I had a knee injury a few years ago and I was misdiagnosed by teh doctor but properly diagnosed by my brother (who is a chiropractor). If I had followed through after the first doc visit and gone to an orthopedist or other specialist, he would have seen it sooner than my brother and I could have rehabilitated it much faster.
Glucosamine with chondriotin and MSN helps. Are you sure you are taking enough? Like you said, even if you don't notice an improvement, it will help prevent you from getting worse.
Low impact is the way to go until you seek medical advice. Bike riding, elliptical, leg raises (make sure to keep your knee straight in the proper position or these can actually hurt rather than help), etc. My PT also recommended icing after each workout for ten minutes. I woudl stay away from squats, tall box climbs and esp. lunges (well, stationary ones are okay but stay away from lunging back and forth) until you know that is safe.
Good luck, Christine
Glucosamine with chondriotin and MSN helps. Are you sure you are taking enough? Like you said, even if you don't notice an improvement, it will help prevent you from getting worse.
Low impact is the way to go until you seek medical advice. Bike riding, elliptical, leg raises (make sure to keep your knee straight in the proper position or these can actually hurt rather than help), etc. My PT also recommended icing after each workout for ten minutes. I woudl stay away from squats, tall box climbs and esp. lunges (well, stationary ones are okay but stay away from lunging back and forth) until you know that is safe.
Good luck, Christine
I have read a few responses and skimmed the others, but I don't think there is a mention of chiropractors here.
Here's my story: I used to have such bad knee pain that going up a flight of stairs was excruciating. My right knee was especially bad. It turns out that my knee pain was caused by a minimal little curvature in my spine. It was causing the right side of my body to be "shorter" than the other, putting pressure on my leg. This curvature wasn't detected until I saw the chiropractor and got x-rays and a thorough examination.
If you have a slight curvature in your spine, one physical indication would be that your head seems to tilt to one side and one shoulder will be slightly higher than the other. It's hard to notice this unless you are trained to know what to look for, though.
So, if your knee pain is on only one side of the body, maybe a trip to the chiropractor would be the first thing you'll want to do. I have been going to a chiropractor for years now, and I swear by them.
Here's my story: I used to have such bad knee pain that going up a flight of stairs was excruciating. My right knee was especially bad. It turns out that my knee pain was caused by a minimal little curvature in my spine. It was causing the right side of my body to be "shorter" than the other, putting pressure on my leg. This curvature wasn't detected until I saw the chiropractor and got x-rays and a thorough examination.
If you have a slight curvature in your spine, one physical indication would be that your head seems to tilt to one side and one shoulder will be slightly higher than the other. It's hard to notice this unless you are trained to know what to look for, though.
So, if your knee pain is on only one side of the body, maybe a trip to the chiropractor would be the first thing you'll want to do. I have been going to a chiropractor for years now, and I swear by them.
I was doing the Firm workouts and after about two weeks of using the fanny lifter (12 inches?, my knees were hurting so bad i could hardly sit down, bending my knees hurt that bad! anyway, i went to the doctor and turns out i had tendonitis in both knees. only cure for that they said is to stop working the muscles. it took abo ut a month for the pain to go away. the doc had me taking a hi-dose ibuprofen regimen and icing and heating my knees, keeping them elevating, and doing no exercise! i didn't like that part, i was just getting into exercising and that put me on the bench for a while. the pain was felt right above the knee joint and doc's recognize it right away.ifthis is what you have, i don't think surgery does anything for it :-( and it has a good chance of recurring, mine has come back slightly a couple of times. hope this helps a little.
maddie
maddie
If it is really painful and not allowing you to do your normal routine, I would definitely get it checked out. After 3 years, I've tried glucosamine, physical therapy (3 months strengthening exercises)and finally I've hopefully resolved it with arthroscopic knee surgery. My symptoms were just pain and swelling, but that wasn't allowing me to keep a normal routine. It would swell to the point of me having to take ibuprofen for a couple weeks, just to get it to calm down. Then I ended up with stomach problems from prolonged (3 years) use of anti-inflamatories.
I finally got a second MRI which showed a "loose body" and some other damage from overuse as a kid, sports etc. The Doctor recommended arthroscopic surgery and cleaned a lot up. I'm a week into recovery, but I have to say it's not as bad as I imagined it to be and I'm 34. There is a lot of work to recover from it, but if you're in constant pain, I urge you to go to your doctor. It might not be anything torn, but it could be something floating around in there that can cause severe swelling. Better to have it done now than when you're much older!javascript:smilie(';-)')
Good luck to you!
Anne
I finally got a second MRI which showed a "loose body" and some other damage from overuse as a kid, sports etc. The Doctor recommended arthroscopic surgery and cleaned a lot up. I'm a week into recovery, but I have to say it's not as bad as I imagined it to be and I'm 34. There is a lot of work to recover from it, but if you're in constant pain, I urge you to go to your doctor. It might not be anything torn, but it could be something floating around in there that can cause severe swelling. Better to have it done now than when you're much older!javascript:smilie(';-)')
Good luck to you!
Anne