Are you one of the millions of people who are searching for relief for knee pain?
Who would have known that when I posted the Knee Cap Dance exercise video on YouTube two years ago that so many people around the world would be seeking help for knee pain!
I’ve appreciated the comments and questions that have been sent to me since this video posted. I think it’s important that EVERYONE has the opportunity to live a healthy and happy life, and dealing with knee pain is no fun.
I recently received a question from a viewer of my YouTube video – Knee Exercises to Strengthen Muscles Around the Patella to Avoid Knee Pain.
He writes,
“Two years ago my right leg knee cap got a minor fracture and the doctor operated & applied plaster. I took nearly 6 months of bed rest. After it healed, the doctor told me to do some exercises but did not insist that I go to physiotherapy. Now my knee cap area is having pain & during cold days it hurts a lot! I saw your video on YouTube regarding knee cap it was really nice. Please can you help me get rid of this knee cap pain?
My problems:
1) I have pain in & around knee cap.
2) When I sleep my right leg doesn’t straighten to touch the ground like other left leg.(There’s about 4 fingers difference)
I have consulted many doctors but have not gotten complete relief…
Please guide me how to get rid of this knee pain.”
Here are my thoughts as a Pilates teacher, & Functional Movement Specialist:
Unfortunately, without seeing you and working with you personally to evaluate your posture, gait, and muscle movement habits, I can’t give you any specific exercises or advice. But here are a few tips to keep you heading in the right direction to ultimately get rid of your knee pain.
First of all, 6 months of bed rest and being in a plaster cast will lead to a lot of muscle atrophy. The only way to get the muscle tone back and strengthen the leg is to exercise. If your physician and physical therapists have indicated that it IS possible for you to get full range of motion back, it will take dedicated hard work, and the right strength training, and stretching exercises to improve how straight the leg goes, and how well the knee bends. I’d start with a sports-medicine doctor, then see if you can find a great PT, Personal Trainer, or Pilates Teacher near you to work with one-on-one.
To maintain good movement – it takes movement. Doing exercise for a few weeks or months will not solve all your problems. You’ll need to commit to a lifetime of exercise and fitness activities to keep you strong, fit, and flexible. It will just be a matter of discovering what activities you enjoy that are best for your knees. Even if you don’t enjoy the activities that are best for you… What do you need to be doing daily to keep your legs (and whole-body) strong, fit, and flexible?
If the knee joint is tracking properly, the muscles of the hips and legs are working optimally, and there should be no knee pain (or grinding, crackling, or popping) as you bend and straighten the leg.
Almost everyone has a little “knee noise,” especially as we get older, but if the knee cap is not gliding in its groove, this noise will be worse and this can be a contributing factor to knee pain.
Perhaps you haven’t found the right help from the experts you’ve consulted, YET… Keep on the hunt. It’s important to find someone that can see and work with you personally. Search for a qualified expert that understands your goals and is confident that they have the expertise to help you.
Check out my recent post – 7 Tips to Help Get Relief for Knee Pain and see if this can help give you some guidance to keep looking for the solutions you need to alleviate your knee pain and get your body back to 100%.
I tend to be an eternal optimist. I believe there is always a solution, I just might not have found it yet. If we’re still alive and breathing, we’ve got an opportunity to continue searching for a solution to any problem we may be experiencing. Pain is a message from our body that something is wrong. This message a gift that our body gives us because it wants to be healthy.
Listen to your body, and continue searching until you find the right doctor, PT, or specialist with the solutions your body needs to have healthy, pain-free knees.
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