Let’s face it, your knees take a pounding. Every day, most adults take between 3000 – 7000 steps, combined this over a lifetime, and the average human walks around the world twice!
So, if you are currently dealing with knee pain – it’s no wonder, there has been some heavy mileage done on them.
Today I am going to share with you, the top 5 things that you need to stop doing to reduce your knee pain and reliance on painkillers.
- Stop wearing thongs/going barefoot
Incorrect footwear can increase the pressure on the knees by as much as 25%. So ditch the high heels, flats, squishy soft shoes and thongs, and get yourself a good pair of supportive running shoes like asics/new balance. Trust me, it will make all the difference.
- Stop kneeling down onto your kneecaps
Arthritic changes occur in the knee not just in the knee joint, but also under the knee cap. When you kneel onto your kneecaps, you are putting direct pressure onto this arthritic joint and irritating it significantly. My advice is to get a small chair to sit on or a very cushiony pad to rest your shins on (not your kneecaps directly)
- Stop being lazy and start stretching
One thing I really encourage all of my clients to do, is regular stretching of the quadriceps, hamstrings and calf muscles. There are multiple ways to do this, but I find the most effective is with the use of a massage stick or foam roller (see article on how to do this here)
By keeping the muscles flexible, you reduce the pulling power these have on the knee and can significantly reduce your knee pain.
- Stop sitting with your legs crossed
When you sit with your knees bent, your placing them in a position which loads up the cartilage. So avoid it! Simple as that.
- Stop squatting
Squatting is an excellent exercise to increase strength in the leg and buttock muscles. Unfortunately, very few people squat correctly, causing an increased load on the kneecap and knee joints. So, if you are going to squat properly, make sure your knees do not come over the front of your toes. Making sure your butt goes backwards is the most important part of the squat (see video)
Bonus tip:
- Stop eating too much!
The best piece of advice I can give you to stop doing in order to reduce your knee pain is to stop eating too much! Did you know that for every 1 pound of weight you lose, it is equivalent to a reduction of 4 pounds of force off the knees. If you want a quick, easy way to reduce knee pain, then drop off a couple of kg from your waistline and you will notice a considerable reduction in knee pain.
So there you have, my top 5 tips on what you need to stop doing to reduce your knee pain and reliance on painkillers.
If you have any questions about things you need to stop doing to reduce your knee pain, then feel free to reach out to me via facebook (www.facebook.com/benchmarkphysiotherapy) or email me at [email protected]
Yours in health
Nicholas Young
