Question
Hi Marina, I had a question and I feel you can help me out a little with it. So I injured my knee a few years back while running. Back then my doctor told me to lay off running because apparently I have arthritis tendencies. Since then I don’t risk it and stopped running. Recently, I’ve started doing HIIT and tabata workouts. But that pain is back again and it’s been bothering me a little. It’s not intense but I feel a pressure when I do jumps (squats are fine btw)
Any suggestions?
Response
Yes there is MUCH you can do about it. Infact, ladies I HAVE BEEN YELLIN AT THE TOP OF MY LUNGS – stop doing cardio and impact workouts if you have previous knee issues.
Infact, stop doing cardio and intense impact workouts period ! Impact exercise means movement which causes your feet to slam or have an impact with the floor. This impact force is transferred to your ankles and knees and hips. Chances are, you have structural degradation due to nutrition and muscle deficiencies and these are made worse through exercise.
Even a squat is going to cause pain in the front, back and side of your knees. Why are jumps so dangerous? Because a joint that is structurally not strong now has a force on it – it causes the ligaments and tendons to weaken when it is already not ready to take that impact force.
Things for you to avoid:
jogging, running outside
zumba / dancing
treadmill, rowing machine
HIIT
Things for you to do:
1. Knee extensions using ankle weights that will use your large knee muscles (tear drop muscle)
2. Donkey kicks and hip thrusts – to strengthen hips, lower back, knees, calves and ankles
Must focus on:
1. Nutrition – your muscles, bones and organs need fuel to repair and thrive not just barely survive
2. Supplements – you will need supplements like hyaluronic acid and glucosamine and a good collagen supplement. dosages depends on your specific body type.
*** a good multivitamin that comes with the proper ratio of of vitamins and minerals. this you have to order from amazon.com
3. Water intake – no less than 3 litrs
4. Avoid junk and processed foods. they increase inflammation and damage nerve cells.
Here is what your doctor failed in telling you:
arthritis tendencies are due to nutritional deficiencies and immune response to your body. THEY CAN BE FIXED AND YOU CAN LIVE PAIN FREE. you can gain control of your health again.
Inflammation is the most basic problem in all arthritis, whether it is “inflammatory arthritis,” like autoimmune rheumatoid arthritis, or the arthritis most associated with wear and tear on joints over time, osteoarthritis.
The traditional / conventional medical approach to these two kinds of joint inflammation is to use medications to block the inflammation process. Although these can be successful in decreasing symptoms and can in some cases prevent further joint destruction, the medications don’t get at the root cause of why you developed the inflammation in the first place.
It is important to find out in the first place what has lead to the wear and tear of your knees. From here on out you can develop a recovery plan that includes nutrition, supplementation, corrective exercise and better lifestyle changes.
Marina Farook 