Runners, athletes, those with osteoarthritis and pretty much anybody can experience knee pain at some point in their lives. When this happens, you’ll probably want to avoid exercising so as not to aggravate your condition. But there are many studies showing the numerous benefits of exercise. It’s been proven to help maintain knee health as it can keep the tissues, ligaments and structures strong. Besides, if you give your knee too much rest, it will weaken the muscles and make the pain even worse.
That said, you should be aware of what exercises you need to avoid when you’re experiencing knee pain.
First of all, don’t run. When you have knee pain, regardless of the cause, you should never run. Even if the treadmill at Retro Fitness is your favorite exercise machine, you have to avoid it until such time the pain in your knees is gone. High impact activities like running can put a lot of stress on the knee joints.
Avoid exercises that require excessive knee bending. Squats, lunges and similar exercises are not recommend for anyone with knee pain. Just like running, it can put a lot of pressure and strain on the knees.
Finally, stop any exercise when you experience sharp, sudden or shooting pain in the knee. It’s an indication that the movement is affecting your knees and if you continue to do the exercise, it will only make matters worse.
What You Can Do
For anyone with knee pain, you need to focus more on gentle exercises. You may want to start with water exercises as exercising in water does not put stress or pressure on your knee. Water exercises are low impact activities that can help strengthen your joints whilst giving other health benefits as well.
Try walking. It’s a gentle cardio exercise that can greatly benefit people with painful knees. Just make sure to walk on flat surfaces so it does not put any strain on your knees.
Go for gentle stretching. There are yoga exercises that are fine for people with knee pain. You may not want to focus on lower body poses, but instead go for poses that are designed for overall flexibility and balance.
It can be difficult dealing with knee pain, regardless of whether it’s caused by injury or an age-related degenerative condition. You may be tempted to stop moving around thinking it’s better for your knees. But as mentioned, lack of physical activity can weaken your bone, muscle and joints. It’s OK to rest after an injury but keep it to no more than a couple of days.
All of our joints need proper lubrication and strength. The best way to get these things is through movement.
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