Are you left feeling weak in the knees with pain? If you squat to lift weights or just squat down in general, this repetitive motion can be known to cause pain. You may be feeling this sort of pain due to the mechanics in how you squat. You can bend down or squat and hurt yourself very easily if you are not doing it properly.
Along with you hurting your knees, you can also be hurting your back at the same time. Knee pain is a very common issue we treat in our clinic. Many times your knee pain can even be a symptom of back or hip issues. In this article, we will be going over some symptoms of knee pain, knee pain when squatting, and how to reduce the pain.
Symptoms Of Knee Pain
Depending on where your pain is located on your knee, symptoms can be different from patient to patient. Some common symptoms can be burning, cracking, tingling, swelling, pain when bending or straightening the knee, swelling, stiffness, and weakness.
If you’re experiencing symptoms of knee pain then watch this youtube video to learn what you should do: https://youtu.be/Ld0Rz72ZqPY
How to Sit Properly To Avoid Knee Pain
A lot of our day is spent sitting whether that be working, watching a movie, or attending a sporting event. Sitting for longer than 5 hours is potentially bad for you. Sitting for long periods of time causes your muscles and tendons to stiffen, which may cause discomfort. Sitting cross-legged or in an uncomfortable position for long periods of time can put pressure on your knees. If possible try sitting with your legs straight out as often as possible while also taking walking breaks. When working at a desk make sure you have your feet on the floor at a 90-degree angle to limit the amount of knee pain.
Knee pain when Squatting
If your knees hurt when squatting while working out you more than likely are squatting too much or your form is not correct. When you squat too much weight too fast your muscles are not strong enough yet to properly carry that weight. Your knees are one of the most stressed joints in your body. First, you’ll need to strengthen your whole body, especially your core, hips, glutes, and your quads. Once you’re strong enough it’ll be easy to squat heavier weight and be less painful for your knees.
Along with squatting too much weight too fast, that can contribute to your form. If you add a lot of weight right away that will not give you time to perfect your form if you are a newbie in the gym. Even just starting with the bar is perfect when trying to get the form down before adding weight. Even if you are not lifting heavyweights in the gym and are just squatting down to pick up a bag of dog food, you still need to have proper form in order to prevent yourself from injury.
Watch this video on squatting techniques from one of our physical therapists.
Warm-up
Warming up is essential when doing any sort of exercise. This allows your muscles time to activate and warm up before performing more strenuous work. Warming up allows your cardiovascular system to come more alive and increase blood flow to your muscles. Depending on what your exercises will consist of should help you decide what sort of warm-up you need to complete before starting your exercises.
When you finally start squatting you want to make sure your knees are not pushing inward and are staying in line with your feet. If you do notice your knees are pushing inward make sure you push them outward to help prevent knee pain when squatting and pain in your back.
Another simple fix may be that you are starting with too much weight if you are squatting to work out. If you put too much weight onto your knees when they aren’t strong enough yet that may cause pain in your knees.
read this blog for tips on how to improve knee pain.
Preferred Physical Therapy
At Preferred Physical Therapy, operated and owned by Dr. Nick Hunter, we practice the Preferred Practice Method which sets us apart from other clinics. We first have a discovery call with you to learn more about you such as your activities, your pain, and what is important to you. Secondly, we get to the root cause of your pain. You may be experiencing pain in one area but the problem could be coming from another area.
Click here to sign up for a free digital knee pain report.
You receive one-on-one hands-on care which includes exercise and manual therapy. From there we create a personalized plan of care created just for you and your goals. If you’re tired of being in pain and not being able to go for walks, cook dinner, or clean as much as you like then give us a call at 623-486-3333 to learn how we can work together to achieve your goals.
Dr, Nick’s greatest passion is seeing his patients recover from injury and return to their activities that bring them joy.
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