Your knees are one of the most vulnerable joints in your body, as they support the weight of your body. Damage can occur to any part of your knee including the knee cap, meniscus, connective tissue, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, and muscles. Knee injuries and conditions are common and can cause severe pain.
Here are ten tips that can help prevent injury to your knee.
Control your weight
By carrying extra weight, you are putting more stress on your knee joints than they were designed for. This can strain your knees and may lead to arthritis and other diseases. Obesity is the number one preventable risk factor for osteoarthritis of the knee. Losing one kilogram of weight can take five to ten kilograms of weight off your knee.
Keep active
You need to keep your leg and knee muscles strong. They will support your knee joint and ensure it functions properly as well as acting as shock absorbers. Swimming and cycling are great exercises for strengthening the muscles around your knee whilst not placing too much strain on your knee joint. You could also try climbing stairs and specific strengthening exercises such as half squats, straight leg raises and practising getting out of a chair without using your hands to strengthen your muscles around the knee.
Regular exercise will also help you keep your weight controlled or can help you lose weight. It also helps improve your balance and reduces your risk of falls.
Eat a healthy diet
A nutritional diet will contain all the vitamins and nutrients your body needs to help its natural defences and support your bone health. A healthy diet will also help you maintain or lose weight as needed.
Wear properly fitting shoes
It is important to wear sports shoes that offer the correct support and fit for your feet. It is worth investing in a good pair of trainers or sport specific shoes. Sports store specialists are able to professionally asses your foot shape and ensure you have the correct footwear for your feet and running style so that they take a lot of force and load off from your knees.
Ideally trainers should be changed every six to twelve months. Worn out trainers will not offer the same level of support for your knees.
Beware of high heels
Wearing high heels can put your feet in incorrect alignment and cause knee problems. It’s advisable to wear high heels for short periods of time only. If you have knee problems, then it’s best to wear small heels or avoid heels altogether.
Stretch, warm up and cool down
It is very important to warm up and warm down when exercising.
Warming up generally includes five minutes of gentle exercise and five minutes of stretching. It aims to increase the blood flow to your muscles, prepares your body for activity and reduces the chance of injury.
Cooling down is also important to gradually return your body back to its normal function and prevent injury. Often it involves five minutes walking or gentle exercise and five minutes stretching your muscles.
Don't overdo it
If you over-exercise you will put more strain on your knee joints. This could lead to wear and tear injuries such as arthritis in your knee joint.
If you experience knee pain when exercising, you should stop and cool down. Often people brush off knee pain when they first feel it and believe it will eventually go away but you should not ignore this signal from your body.
Stop and seek treatment if you injure your knee
Early diagnosis of knee injuries is key to preventing them from getting any worse and causing more severe and irreversible damage. Treating knee problems earlier often has better results.
Your knee produces fluid when it is damaged or irritated. It can also be painful. If swelling and/or pain is persistent or occurs on a regular basis you should get this checked out by your GP or a knee specialist. They can assess your knee fully.
Change the way you exercise
It’s advisable to vary the exercise you do so that you mix high-impact activities such as running and racket sports with gentler exercise such as swimming and yoga. This will allow different muscle groups to be exercised as well as allowing the muscle groups to perform different types of exercise and develop in a more balanced way.
If your feel your knees hurting, you may benefit from trying a gentler exercise for a while at least, to let the inflammation go down. High-impact exercise could make things worse.
Make time to rest
Often in today’s busy world we don’t make time to rest. To keep yourself and your knees healthy you need to make sure you get enough sleep. Sleep is a time your body uses to heal, recover from the demands the day has placed on it, and allow your muscles to relax. It allows your body to stay strong whilst also positively impacting on your general well-being, all of which will contribute to the care of your knees.