what to do for a bad knee?

[bearandhunny]

Hi yall

i looked and looked but i couldnt find what i wanted to know.

i was wondering that after hi impact workouts what do i do if i feel my knees are sore? i usually ice it but i can still feel pain the next morning. am i overdoing it?

Also, how much do i need to stretch and when for the body to be relaxed and stronger for the next workout?

one last question, does anybody have any good tips for what to eat after a workout that is nutritious and wont sabotage all the hard work.

I am sorry about all the questions ,but i cant seem to get my answers anywhere , i thought a little wisdom from the forums would be just what i need.

Anybody offering any advice would be greatly greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Aisha

 

[pimom2001]

Hi Aisha,

You didn't mention how old you are. I'm 44 and for the last 4 years or so I felt pain in my knees. Rule 1- exercise should not cause pain. You have a lifetime to use your knees, and you don't want problems. I aviod any exercise that cause pain to the point I would have to ice my knees.

You can do moderate impact with a treadmill on an incline, an eliptical machine, lower your step, etc.

Again, take care of your body and listen to the signs.

Good luck

 

[Sonnenschein]

Hi Aisha,

If your knees are hurting after the workout and/or the next day, yes you are overdoing it. This happened to me too and unfortunately I let it go too long and injured myself and then had to put up with 3 months of only stationary cycling for my cardio. After that I experimented gradually and found that my knees can manage well on 3 walking days, one step day and one cycling day per week and I love this routine. Both high impact and twisting movements can cause problems for your knees. You may have to be a bit of a detective to find what works for you and it helps to be open to new exercise options. A note about the walking: it was frustrating at first because my muscles and nerves couldn't move fast enough to get my heartrate up, but I kept trying (using racewalking based technique) and within 3-4 weeks I could stay in my target heartrate range and by 6 weeks could stay anywhere in my heartrate range I wanted. But whatever you try, your criteria for success is lack of joint pain.

I can't be much help in the nutrition department but you might find glucosamine supplements useful. I take glucosamine sulfate with either chondroitin or MSM in the same pill and I also take fish oil capsules (they were recommended for joints in an old issue of Muscle and Fitness Hers--sorry, I don't remember which one). Unfortunately these supplements can take a long time (as in months)to start helping. Sometimes I wonder whether they really helped or if it was something else completely, but every time I quit taking them for just a few days my knees start acting up again so I think I'm finally getting the message that I need them.

My only other advice is to be sure you're doing strength training for your legs. If the muscles surrounding your knees (both quads and hamstrings are important here) are strong they absorb a lot of the impact your knees receive instead of letting it all go to the joint. Here too you have to experiment and be careful. For example, lunges are great strength exercises but a lot of people who have knee problems find that lunges (or sometimes just some forms of lunges) bother their knees, meaning of course that those people should not do the lunges but instead find alternates. Good luck in finding what works best for your body! --Karen