Pain relief or just wait it out?

i_am_losing_it

I have been working out (mostly WII's EA Active Sports 2) for a few weeks now and my legs hurt all day everyday and my left knee is hurting more than anything else. My legs are also giving out and stiff, I have caught myself from falling at least a couple times a day. My knee has given me pains in the past, but this is the worst ever. The workout has a lot of jumping type exercising and I think that is making it so bad.
My question is has anyone experienced this? What worked for you? Any advice for the pain? Should I just keep doing the same thing and at some point my legs/knees will get stronger and the pain go away? I don't want to stop doing the workouts but I don't want to cause permanent damage either.
Thanks

Lesa_Sass

Are you stretching before and after? If not, it is very important that you stretch your legs before and after exercise.

Take a 24 hour break from working out, take some ibuprofen and put about a pound of epsom salts in a hot bath and soak for around 20 minutes. Are you wearing a shoe that is 1 size larger than your dress shoe? How old are they? Do they have good cushion for all the jumping? Muscle pain is one thing but knee pain is another. If you continue to have the knee pain, you may want to reconsider doing another type of exercise.

And yes, I not only have experienced it, I am currently going through this right now thanks to that 30 day shred DVD.

i_am_losing_it

I am stretching out. I actually am not wearing any shoes. I work out bare-footed, could this be part of the problem?

knittnponder

When I started P90X I had similar issues. It was just too much jumping and things for my weak knees. I modified greatly (no jumping) and focused on doing the lunges and squats properly and carefully (even if it meant not doing as many as the people on the DVD). Over time my legs and knees got stronger and I was able to start adding in the jumping but I did still need to be very careful. Now I'm doing New Rules of Lifting for Women that includes squats, lunges and step ups but I am able to go at my own pace and I increase weight as I am able. My legs have never felt better or stronger and my knee pain is pretty much gone.

If your knees and legs are hurting you probably want to rest them. Do some gentle stretching (yoga is really good but don't force yourself into positions your body isn't ready for. Be gentle!) And be very careful with your form. If it hurts when you do it, don't do it! I've never done the program you're doing but I would modify the heck out of it if the moves were too much. Give yourself time to build up to it instead of diving in full force and over working your body. Recovery days are just as important as the workout days.

I'm sure much more knowledgeable people will chime in with better helps but that's what I found helped me. Good luck!

ETA: I work out barefoot all the time since I'm at home and more comfortable that way. I also do it barefoot because I do Taekwondo barefoot.

Lesa_Sass

I am stretching out. I actually am not wearing any shoes. I work out bare-footed, could this be part of the problem?

I could be, the only way to find out is to wear a tennis shoe.

I have to wear shoes to work out, It hurts my knees, back and ankles of I do not. So to each his own I guess. I have a very high arch, I do not know if that makes a difference or not but it does mean I come down on the ball of my foot or heel. Putting all my weight onto one area with out cushion is painful for me.

I think after resting and taking the hot epsom bath, when you resume playing, do it in sneakers to see if that helps.

Good luck.

rml_16

I have been working out (mostly WII's EA Active Sports 2) for a few weeks now and my legs hurt all day everyday and my left knee is hurting more than anything else. My legs are also giving out and stiff, I have caught myself from falling at least a couple times a day. My knee has given me pains in the past, but this is the worst ever. The workout has a lot of jumping type exercising and I think that is making it so bad.
My question is has anyone experienced this? What worked for you? Any advice for the pain? Should I just keep doing the same thing and at some point my legs/knees will get stronger and the pain go away? I don't want to stop doing the workouts but I don't want to cause permanent damage either.
Thanks

Muscle soreness is normal and healthy. What you're experiencing is not. This is not an exercise you should be doing. You need to talk to your doctor and maybe a physical therapist.

sofaking6

Have you taken any days off since you started? If not, give yourself a rest day or two to let your muscles knit. Definitely do the epsom soak, it will help more than you think.

Also, you might want to pick up a sleeve/brace for your knee, you can get them at the drugstore really cheap and they DO work, I wear one every time I work out.

RAFValentina

Painkillers as you're booking docs appointment and until you have further medical advice, plus rest. Knees are tempremental complex structures that you cant afford to f about with!!!

jpogany

I have been working out (mostly WII's EA Active Sports 2) for a few weeks now and my legs hurt all day everyday and my left knee is hurting more than anything else. My legs are also giving out and stiff, I have caught myself from falling at least a couple times a day. My knee has given me pains in the past, but this is the worst ever. The workout has a lot of jumping type exercising and I think that is making it so bad.
My question is has anyone experienced this? What worked for you? Any advice for the pain? Should I just keep doing the same thing and at some point my legs/knees will get stronger and the pain go away? I don't want to stop doing the workouts but I don't want to cause permanent damage either.
Thanks

If you are doing alot of jumping, you should not be barefoot. Consider getting yourself a pair of crosstrainers. You need support. Also, be sure to stretch before and after. Not sure where you are from, but you could always find a chiropractor or physical therapist that does ART (Active Release Technique) to help you with the stretching. Not sure where on your knee it hurts, inner or outer, but you could be in need of some hands on therapy while you are working out. Try shoes and some rest. Don't cover up your pain with pain meds, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to take an antiinflammatory as long as you don't have any contraindications to them...allergies, bleeding problems etc.

HonestOmnivore

I'm 44 and my knees don't like exercise - here are a few tricks I've learned!

1) SOFT KNEES - all jumping jogging bouncing etc over bend your knees and think soft springy thoughts!

2) ICE is your FRIEND - get those reusable ice packs (two) and a couple ace bandages and slap them on your knees as soon as you're done exercising- keep them iced for a minimum of 20 minutes. I used to drive to work with my knees still being iced!

3) Heat later in the day like around five hours later - I use heat WITH an antiinflamitory - to limit bad inflammation while still increasing the circulation around the joint.

As I lose weight the knees are getting better. I'm running barefoot now and using super soft knees - and I no longer have any knee pain afterwords!

Good luck and remember - you're doing the right thing!

rml_16

Painkillers as you're booking docs appointment and until you have further medical advice, plus rest. Knees are tempremental complex structures that you cant afford to f about with!!!

Another sane person in this thread! Yay!

LorinaLynn

When I first started EA Sports Active 2, my knees - more specifically my quads right above my knees - were screaming all the time. It wasn't the jumping... it was that I was doing squats wrong. Once I started sitting back into the squats more, and forcing my weight into my heels rather than on my toes, I was targeting the right muscle group and they stopped hurting.

frosty73

DO NOT continue to damage your knees with this type of exercise! Take a day or two off, and if you are feeling better, then modify the exercises so you aren't doing as much jumping and bouncing around. If you are still in pain after 2 days, please go see a doctor.

nikkifk

I also use EA sports active 2 regularly, I have an old ankle injury and have a list of things I'm not meant to do. You can actually take things off the list of exercises shown at the beginning of the session, you just click on the one you want to delete. I also find taking rest days important.

brittanylock09

1) Try something else that has less impact on your knees.
2) Make sure you are drinking plenty of water so your muscles aren't giving off a chemical that causes sore muscles (can't think of the name of the chemical right this second)
3) Make sure you do some arm and leg stretches afterwards. Stretch the ham strings real good.
4) Lastly, I recommend Aleve (Naproxen for off brand which is what I use). I take two of them when I take it. It really gets to the pain fast. Use them sparingly. Try the first three steps for a few days and see if that helps.

Don't torture yourself. If the pain is really interfering with your daily routine, I suggest taking a pain reliever.

BaconMD

I had bad knees, specifically my left one, in my early days of working out. I also started with EA Sports Active 2.0. Some of the warmups would hurt my knee, and so on. But as I got used to it and the weight started coming off, now my knees are fine.

I don't take painkillers unless pain is unbearable. For me, it takes a lot. All it does is mask the symptom. To be on the safe side, you should talk to a doctor about it, as others have said. He/she will likely be happy you're working out and they can help assure you there is no issue, or find out if there is one.

Either way, the ONLY way you should be doing any jumping barefoot is if your floor is well-padded. I don't wear shoes unless I am on my treadmill. I do my EASA2 workouts barefoot in my basement, but on top of a 1" thick exercise mat that covers my entire workout area. It wasn't cheap, but I hated wearing shoes to work out. It is so much easier on my joints. I'd strongly advise it. But order it online, because it'll be cheaper and higher quality, and thicker mats.

i_am_losing_it

Thanks so much everyone for all the advice. I am going to try doing the soak, I do take 3 days off (not in a row) on that program and do other exercises but I am still in pain, I will try the ibuprofen, shoes, soft knees, modifying my workout, checking my form, and ice. Unfortunately I do not have insurance if I did I would go to a doctor and if it gets much worse I still will (and pay like a bazillion dollars) .

I actually was trying to go all out and do it all perfect, and I would have thought for other people to modify their workout but for some reason I just felt like I needed to do it all "right" but of course it makes more sense to modify until my knees and legs get stronger. Again, thanks for the advice I should have known some of this and not applied the all or nothing thinking to the jumping up and down ones when my knee was screaming in pain.

PurplePookie

Muscle soreness is normal and healthy. What you're experiencing is not. This is not an exercise you should be doing. You need to talk to your doctor and maybe a physical therapist.

I agree - at the very least you need to try a different exercise for now. You may be able to go back to this later on if it's something you really love.

Cait_Sidhe

Painkillers as you're booking docs appointment and until you have further medical advice, plus rest. Knees are tempremental complex structures that you cant afford to f about with!!!

This. Is there a reason you haven't gotten this checked out by a doctor? None of us are qualified to give medical advice online. You really should have it looked at. My mother had to have bilateral knee replacements due to aerobics. Don't be like her.

rml_16

Thanks so much everyone for all the advice. I am going to try doing the soak, I do take 3 days off (not in a row) on that program and do other exercises but I am still in pain, I will try the ibuprofen, shoes, soft knees, modifying my workout, checking my form, and ice. Unfortunately I do not have insurance if I did I would go to a doctor and if it gets much worse I still will (and pay like a bazillion dollars) .

I actually was trying to go all out and do it all perfect, and I would have thought for other people to modify their workout but for some reason I just felt like I needed to do it all "right" but of course it makes more sense to modify until my knees and legs get stronger. Again, thanks for the advice I should have known some of this and not applied the all or nothing thinking to the jumping up and down ones when my knee was screaming in pain.

If you keep doing the exercise that's causing your knee to "scream in pain," you're going to pay a lot more than a doctor visit will cost when you need knee replacement surgery. STOP DOING THIS EXERCISE.

Ibuprofin and soaking it are only going to mask the pain, not solve your problem. Pain like that is your body telling you to STOP DOING THAT. There are plenty of exercises you can do that won't cause you injury.

Lesa_Sass

Thanks so much everyone for all the advice. I am going to try doing the soak, I do take 3 days off (not in a row) on that program and do other exercises but I am still in pain, I will try the ibuprofen, shoes, soft knees, modifying my workout, checking my form, and ice. Unfortunately I do not have insurance if I did I would go to a doctor and if it gets much worse I still will (and pay like a bazillion dollars) .

I actually was trying to go all out and do it all perfect, and I would have thought for other people to modify their workout but for some reason I just felt like I needed to do it all "right" but of course it makes more sense to modify until my knees and legs get stronger. Again, thanks for the advice I should have known some of this and not applied the all or nothing thinking to the jumping up and down ones when my knee was screaming in pain.

If you keep doing the exercise that's causing your knee to "scream in pain," you're going to pay a lot more than a doctor visit will cost when you need knee replacement surgery. STOP DOING THIS EXERCISE.

Ibuprofin and soaking it are only going to mask the pain, not solve your problem. Pain like that is your body telling you to STOP DOING THAT. There are plenty of exercises you can do that won't cause you injury.

Ibuprofen and soaking are for muscle pain, not knee pain.