What do you guys do for knee pain?

R

Rockerchick

Cathlete
I feel like im falling apart LOL. I have PF which I have under control sort of. I just started stepping when the new series came out and my knees are alternating aching - after one workout one will ache and then after another the other will ache......I have never had my knees hurt before and I have never done any high impact or step workouts before. Any advice? Should I get some knee braces? I want to do high impact workouts! LOL!
 
You'll probably get some good advice here. My brief suggestions are to stretch after doing any cardio. Focus on the quads and hamstrings. Also, floorwork always helps me when I start to feel a knee "twinge". I find floorwork helps strengthen the muscles surrounding the knees, Cathe's Legs and Glutes is a good one for that. So often leg muscles become unbalanced when we do lots of standing leg work like squats and lunges.

Another rec: Crosstrain! For every day of step, I do another day of kickboxing or low impact cardio.

HTH!
 
I know there will be those who disagree with me, but if this is your first time doing step or high impact, it could be simply that your legs need to get used to the new activity. Instead of doing the full hour, cut it back to 30 minutes and add a bit more each week as your knees can handle it. When you are done, ice anything that hurts for 20 minutes. Also be aware of the pivots - those get me more than the high impact - I know BM2 has a lot of twisty/turny moves, for example and I'll bet LIC does as well (haven't done it yet - it's on the agenda for Monday). Be careful of those.
 
Thanks Christine! I really appreciate the advice. I am hoping that it is just getting used to the step. I will try the ice. I am doing BM2 tomorrow (I do it on Saturdays since it is so long) and I will try to be mindful of the turning and I am going to modify to low impact and see how it goes. I don't think I have done any jumping for 10 years at least. I think I am so used to keeping up with all the workout dvds I do and am not used to modifying :)
 
I agree w/ Christine. You are probably having breakin pain.
Lower your step to 4 " till you get used to it then raise it.
Slow and easy. there is always time.
Rome was not built in a day...
Good luck.
Don't try to do too much. Increase it slowly .
Your body is important...

Anne
Aka( Storm)

http://www.picturetrail.com/acatalina
 
Wow! Great advice! I will go ahead and put it down to 4". I have been doing it at 6". I knew there was no way in h--- I could do 8" lol.

I wanted to say that I am very impressed with this forum. Everyone is very sweet and helpful.

Rosie
 
The best thing I did to stop my knee pain (about 2 years ago) was to lower my step height. I have a reebok step, (thinking about getting the one Cathe uses... someday), and I put it on the lowest level. That really took care of it for me. Now, doing LIC, I've raised it, and so far it hasn't bothered me. But for all the other workouts, I'll keep it low.
 
Also, there are exercises to strengthen the knee. I got lots from my PT (BTW the firewalkers are one of them!), and I think that the Mayo clinic site might have some. When my knee bothers me I use a band designed to circle the knee (my DD uses it for tennis). It is about an inch and 1/2 wide and fastens with velcro. You can get them at any sports place. HTH
 
Some ideas:
One telling statement: "I have never done any high impact or step workouts before." You are probably progressing faster than your body an adapt. Back off!

Limit your high impact workouts to what your body can tolerate (maybe 1-2 per week, maybe more).

Watch for torquey moves (sometimes Cathe will do a move off the side of the step, then move to the back of the step without cuing that you need to step wider/farther back to get into the right position without torque). I eliminate moves like ricochets and double ricochets and modify other torquey moves as needed.

Vary your cardio (don't do step on consecutive days). How much step one can do varies according to the individual. SOme folks can only do once a week without problems. Others can do 4 times a week.

Take anti-inflammatories (alkaline foods--not drugs-- like raw fruits and veggies, antiinflammatory foods like flax, cherries, mangosteen).

Ice your knees after a workout that may cause soreness, to reduce the risk of swelling.

Try glucosamine.
 
I too just developed knee pain. I think I have the same thing. I thought I had jumper's Knee, but after a thorough google search I think i have Patellofemoral Pain. I have been doing very low impact 3 days a week and weights 2 days per week. I also did no exercise for 2 full weeks. It is so depressing. I have never had knee problems and I have been doing Cathe along with other high impact vids, without any knee problems. This came out of the blue. But I realize today, while exercising, I do fine until I do jumping jacks, grapevines or any other lateral type moves. It kills the inside of my knee. My hamstrings and in the back of my knee have always been sort of stiff. I am really focusing on more gentle stretching 3 times per day. I think it's helping. Time will tell.

But as others have said, I too think that I may be unbalanced with my foot and legwork. I miss my impact and think that after Christmas my knee will be good. I have very little time for exercise during the holidays. Hope I get back to fun workouts soon. I did do the first 2 segments of Christi's Step Heaven on a 6 in. platform with know problems. I guess I better put new workouts on hold right now! Goodluck! A quick recovery for us both!
 
Another plug for glucosamine. I just decreased my dosage in the last 2 weeks and I'm feeling soreness againx( . I have to take quite a bit of it to keep the pain from bothering me.

Also a PT responded to me about a year ago and said that one of the best exercises was the one where you lay on your back and cross one ankle over the opposite knee and reach under and gently pull the crossed leg (knee) toward your face - you know the one Cathe frequently does in her stretches? BUT she told me to hold this for at least 2 full minutes. It DID help. (I'm sure someone could explain that move in a more understandable way).

Hope you're feeling better soon.

Briee
 
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