Insanity with knee injury

kgeer31

Is there anyone out there with any joint issues that is currently doing or has completed the Insanity workout program? Really want to try it but I'm supre worried about my knee; torn ACL (unrepaired with 40% remaining tissue), 3x arthoscpies on same knee forn torn scar tissue and torn meniscus. I'm mostly worried about jumping. I have a knee brace for super crazy stuff like deciding to play basketball or maybe Insanity workout??? Any suggestions or input would be greatly appreciated!

DavPul

DON'T!!! I was able to do insanity on a repaired knee but especially during month 2 there was pain and swelling. To try to do an intensive plyo jumping program on a damaged knee is unfeasible.

chivalryder

I'm sure ANY trainer/couch/physician/whoever would tell you NOT to do anything even remotely close to what the Insanity thing is. You need to take it easy and build up SLOWLY (key word there being *SLOWLY*, if you didn't catch that). Start with simple, no-impact exercises and build up from there. Don't go for anything that will put a lot of stress on your knee. It'll just increase the risk of re-injuring it.

gillz89

So, I can't really help but I am curious as well. I have really bad knees (no one injury...born with bad and multiple injuries...quite a few surgeries/etc to try to fix) I have tried Insanity once in the past and was good for a couple weeks, then had to quit due to hurting my lower back. i'm pretty sure I was moving and using my back to compensate for my knees which caused my to hurt it. I know that lunges/squats/etc kill my knees so I'm not sure what to do. If anyone else has done it or has any advice, I'd like to hear it. I would like to start Insanity on Monday.

lolo406

Its not recommended for people with any injury because it is high impact exercises. I don't have injuries and my knees were still sore in the beginning. With that said a lot of the moves can be modified for a lower impact option, whatever you do use extreme caution- you don't want to make anything worse!

ouryear002

I say NO and so does my knee. I've always had a troublsome knee, but Insanity put me in phsical therapy. I even tried to not do as much jumping and it didn't help. Insanity is a knee killer, becasue it is almost all plyometrics.:sad:

blazegries

Hey all, I can respond with all the answers you need. I have a surgically repaired right knee (ACL and Meniscus tears) and osteo-arthritis in my left knee. I was able to insanity for month one with minimal pain and icing, but it was still somewhat painful and I had to modify. When I got to month two, I got through about 2 weeks before my knees, especially the left one, just flat out GAVE OUT. I'm not talking I can go through the pain style, I mean it just gave out and I had to accept defeat.

While I understand the voice in the head to say we can do it anyway, I have had to accept that I cannot do that, and it kills me because I LOVE the way the workouts are designed.

But realistically, you're better served doing something where you can modify moves to lower impact on your knees because insanity doesn't allow for modification of moves unless you can do that on your own.

kgeer31

Thank you all! It seems my gut instincts were right. My hope was for movement modification but sounding like that's not even going to help. Grrrr..stupid knees.

Majesworkout

Actually, it's very possible to do insanity with knee problems. The biggest thing is listening to your body.

Now if your knee was currently injured I'd say not to do it, but given you can play basketball and with a knee brace I'm guessing it's not still injured but just has permenant issues in it yes?

There are a few things you could do so that you could do insanity.

The major thing is, knowing how to modify your exercises, don't expect to be jumping at your highest during plyo or some other things. Modify, as in if you can't jump, don't. Use your tip toes or make small mini jumps and listen to your body and remember that form is everything. As in if your knee hurts and you could only manage one rep, do that one rep as slow as possible with the form in tact or don't do it at all.

Land on your toes softly after each.

As in don't let your ego get the best of you, if you're hurting or your form is impossible to do then you're done and stop THAT exercise and rest till the next one.

On to the other things you can do.

You can add foam mats and put a small rug over them, interlocking foam mats i hear work well for the jumping exercise, and once again I say if you can't jump, don't.

There actually is movement modification, like I mentioned above.

Those that say that insanity would force you to do otherwise have either never done it, or don't know about it.

I'm an insanity grad so I do know that there are forms of modification. As Shaun T says it doesn't matter how many reps you do as long as your form is good and are doing what works for you, as long as you've given 100% effort you have succeeded.

So that means if on the jumps all you're doing is slightly pushing up to your tip toes that's just fine, if that means you're only going halfway down on your squats that's just fine. Just modify things to what works for you and keeps your form correct and that is fine. I also recommend a good pair of cross trainers If you have ANY other questions don't hesitate to ask I'll be here to help

Here's an inspiring message from someone at Beachbody that has gone through many knee issues and still found a way to do Insanity, through modification her name on the forums is kashubian

Hi all,
I'm a veteran at the knee pain thing, I've had 2 surgeries on the left (condrial cartilage break) and 3 on the right. Mine sound like cue balls rolling on broken glass when I do stairs or squat. That's a catcher's knees for you. Anyone who has spent a lot of time behind the plate knows exactly what I'm talking about. Loosing weight is the absolute best thing you can do for your knees, that's what's motivating me.

This is my second time through Insanity, I love the work out, but I do have to modify it. The jumps? Yeah, I can't do those anymore, so I will go back and do one of the moves that I can do. The squats: don't go down so far. If it hurts, you're pushing too hard, too low into a squat, etc. Mind your form and listen to your body. Go at your own pace and don't beat yourself up if you can't do a jump, do a basket ball drill instead.

Add extra stretches to loosen up. Walking it out will help, too. I take ibuprofen or diclophenac for pain, but be careful as you can have stomach bleeds or hurt your liver with too much for too long. (I know, my spelling is poor.)

I'm also taking HA joint formula and a Dr. Cannals Vit. D from Purity Products and they work very well for me, I don't hurt getting up in the morning any more.

Hope this helps, I know that seeing that I'm alone has sure made me feel better. Best of luck.

kgeer31

Actually, it's very possible to do insanity with knee problems. The biggest thing is listening to your body.

Now if your knee was currently injured I'd say not to do it, but given you can play basketball and with a knee brace I'm guessing it's not still injured but just has permenant issues in it yes?

There are a few things you could do so that you could do insanity.

The major thing is, knowing how to modify your exercises, don't expect to be jumping at your highest during plyo or some other things. Modify, as in if you can't jump, don't. Use your tip toes or make small mini jumps and listen to your body and remember that form is everything. As in if your knee hurts and you could only manage one rep, do that one rep as slow as possible with the form in tact or don't do it at all.

Land on your toes softly after each.

As in don't let your ego get the best of you, if you're hurting or your form is impossible to do then you're done and stop THAT exercise and rest till the next one.

On to the other things you can do.

You can add foam mats and put a small rug over them, interlocking foam mats i hear work well for the jumping exercise, and once again I say if you can't jump, don't.

There actually is movement modification, like I mentioned above.

Those that say that insanity would force you to do otherwise have either never done it, or don't know about it.

I'm an insanity grad so I do know that there are forms of modification. As Shaun T says it doesn't matter how many reps you do as long as your form is good and are doing what works for you, as long as you've given 100% effort you have succeeded.

So that means if on the jumps all you're doing is slightly pushing up to your tip toes that's just fine, if that means you're only going halfway down on your squats that's just fine. Just modify things to what works for you and keeps your form correct and that is fine. I also recommend a good pair of cross trainers If you have ANY other questions don't hesitate to ask I'll be here to help

Here's an inspiring message from someone at Beachbody that has gone through many knee issues and still found a way to do Insanity, through modification her name on the forums is kashubian

Hi all,
I'm a veteran at the knee pain thing, I've had 2 surgeries on the left (condrial cartilage break) and 3 on the right. Mine sound like cue balls rolling on broken glass when I do stairs or squat. That's a catcher's knees for you. Anyone who has spent a lot of time behind the plate knows exactly what I'm talking about. Loosing weight is the absolute best thing you can do for your knees, that's what's motivating me.

This is my second time through Insanity, I love the work out, but I do have to modify it. The jumps? Yeah, I can't do those anymore, so I will go back and do one of the moves that I can do. The squats: don't go down so far. If it hurts, you're pushing too hard, too low into a squat, etc. Mind your form and listen to your body. Go at your own pace and don't beat yourself up if you can't do a jump, do a basket ball drill instead.

Add extra stretches to loosen up. Walking it out will help, too. I take ibuprofen or diclophenac for pain, but be careful as you can have stomach bleeds or hurt your liver with too much for too long. (I know, my spelling is poor.)

I'm also taking HA joint formula and a Dr. Cannals Vit. D from Purity Products and they work very well for me, I don't hurt getting up in the morning any more.

Hope this helps, I know that seeing that I'm alone has sure made me feel better. Best of luck.

What you are describing is what I was thinking of doing. Glad to hear it CAN be done. Thank you so much.

Sherylmarlee

bumping to read later...have a knee deformity and am looking at trying Insanity. I will say, though, that most of my activities that I enjoy to do as work outs....were all strongly advised that I not do them. I get pain, have pain, live with pain, but the strength that comes from doing these activities seems to outweigh the pain for me. Such a double edged sword sometimes.

karynspeace

I looked up insanity modifications on youtube and there are a lot of people who offer advice on what to do in place of specific exercises. I am 50 pounds overweight so the jumping concerns me, but doing the modified versions as part of the plan seem to work really well. Worth a try at least!

Sherylmarlee

I looked up insanity modifications on youtube and there are a lot of people who offer advice on what to do in place of specific exercises. I am 50 pounds overweight so the jumping concerns me, but doing the modified versions as part of the plan seem to work really well. Worth a try at least!

likes this! will have to check that out.

Majesworkout

What you are describing is what I was thinking of doing. Glad to hear it CAN be done. Thank you so much.

Yeah I was helping my gf out with this sort of thing today too And I stumbled across this thread and saw you being discouraged by some people so I made an account here just to jump on and tell you it CAN be done It's just all about modification

Like for instance if you can't do like jumping kicks cause of your knees, just do something simpler that works the same area, like high knees at a slow pace and crunching your abs whenever they come up. Stuff like that. Insanity can be done by people of all ages It's all about finding what works for you and modifying when necessary, everybody's body is different, so make it work for you, not the other way around ^_^ The only important thing is form, and fun Stay safe ^_^

kyleoneill300492

I have started the Insanity program and i had a previous knee injury (osgood schlatters that turned into patellar tendonitis).

As far as i know and from everyone i have spoken to. Make sure your injury is no longer present. Do not do Insanity with an existing injury!!

R.I.C.E everyday (Rest Ice Compress Recovery) and invest in a tubular bandage to compress your knee if you want to be careful. Elevate your leg often on off days and stretch daily, mainly quadricep stretches but a mix.

Stop if you feel pain in the knee. Always be aware of form. Bad form is not good when you are completely healthy but is dangerous when you have had injury in the past. Be aware of your body and pay attention.

If you feel the need to stop, Stop. do not push too hard.