Knee pain

rudimae
rudimae Posts: 107
in Fitness and Exercise
I was trying to do the 30 Day Shred. This was supposed to be day 4 for me. But as soon as I did the first jumping jack, I felt pain in my knee. It was a sort of sharp pain, but not a pain that said something went snap. Not sure if I'm describing it right at all.

I tried to keep going, sort of favoring that leg when I'd jump. By the time I got to the squats, it was hurting too much to keep going.

I didn't want to give up exercise totally for the night, so I did do a half mile on the treadmill, but my knee was not happy. After a shower, a couple of ibuprofen and some Ben Gay, it feels a bit better.

I'm not asking for official medical advice; I know if it gets worse or doesn't get better soon to go to a doctor. But I think I just did too much the last few days...especially for my low fitness level. That said, what else can I do to make it feel better and be able to resume exercise as normal?

Just bummed 'cause I was so pleased I'd made it through 3 days and couldn't do day 4. :(

Replies

  • megancarlotta
    megancarlotta Posts: 36
    Hi- I have recently developed knee pain myself. Somebody at the gym I go to said it could be from my leg muscles not being developed enough to support all the exercising I have been doing. In addition, I have been pretty hard on my knees. I have a meeting with one of the trainers on Tuesday, so I am hopeful I will get some new exercises that will help!

    Take it easy on your knees, if you start to have problems it can been really difficult to get them back on track!

    Good luck!
  • jeyko
    jeyko Posts: 368 Member
    I bought a mini trampoline and I use it for the cardio sections of her DVDs, made a huge difference in how my knees felt after.
  • myfitnessval
    myfitnessval Posts: 687 Member
    the trampoline idea is a really good one and i'm totally stealing that for my mom who has knee issues too. i've had knee issues on and off pretty much my whole life, the only things ive found that work are wearing proper arch supports in my shoes, since rolling your ankles in or out can have a dramatic effect on knee health and ive been taking glucosamine regularly to help keep my joints healthy. obviously i'm not aware of what specific pain you are having but you could give it a try and see if it makes a difference, it did for me thats for sure. that and a lot of stretching during my cool down & knee strengthening exercises.
  • rudimae
    rudimae Posts: 107
    the trampoline idea is a really good one and i'm totally stealing that for my mom who has knee issues too. i've had knee issues on and off pretty much my whole life, the only things ive found that work are wearing proper arch supports in my shoes, since rolling your ankles in or out can have a dramatic effect on knee health and ive been taking glucosamine regularly to help keep my joints healthy. obviously i'm not aware of what specific pain you are having but you could give it a try and see if it makes a difference, it did for me thats for sure. that and a lot of stretching during my cool down & knee strengthening exercises.

    I have been curious about glucosamine. Is it available in a drug store? Or health store? And are there different doses?

    I'm not sure if I just have over used my knees lately or did something to it. I also have psoriatic arthritis, so that could play a part as well. But the glucosamine could be helpful for that as well.
  • rudimae
    rudimae Posts: 107
    I love the idea of the trampoline. Unforturnately, the only place we can really work out in our house is the basement, which has pretty low ceilings. But that is a great idea!
  • becki101_4
    becki101_4 Posts: 47 Member
    I was hit by a car four years ago and ever since have had varying amounts of trouble with my left knee. Shortly after the accident and subsequent surgery I noticed I could barely walk the five blocks to the bus stop without stopping to let my knee rest, but as I rebuilt and strengthened that joint my endurance increased tremendously. Now I can run on flat surfaces and use the elliptical and bike without any pain. This morning a ran a hilly route for the first time, and my knee was screaming at me all morning after I was done. But a couple hours of elevation and ice made it feel like new. Only you know how much pain you can tolerate and whether you can work through it or not, but I would suggest you keep going for as long as you can. If you are quite new to working out will take a couple weeks to strengthen your knee joint, but I promise you it will happen. The increased endurance and new pride you have in yourself will be well worth it! You might also want to consider working out with some sort of athletic knee brace. I did this for roughly the first two years after my accident because I noticed my knee felt too sore/weak if I exercised without the brace. I didn't use anything expensive, just a velcro support from Shoppers Drug Mart. Anyways, I hope this helps you and I hope you decide to keep on exercising because the pain will go away and you will get stronger and be able to challenge yourself in new and exciting ways. Congratulations and good luck!
  • this_is_my_year
    this_is_my_year Posts: 38 Member
    Maybe try some jump squats instead, I find them to be a little easier on joints than jumping jacks.
  • CrystalDreams
    CrystalDreams Posts: 418 Member
    Glucosamine can be found anywhere vitamins are sold, even Stop and Shop near me has it. I will warn you, it can upset your stomach and give you cramps and such.
  • Reinventing_Me
    Reinventing_Me Posts: 1,053 Member
    You may just need to rest it for a few days too. Definitely stay away from the traditional jacks and squats and try modified versions or other exercises altogether. I don't think you need to stop completely though. I suffer from knee pain too and I tried to do some jumping jacks the other day just to see how it felt. My knee was not in agreement at all. My joints are just not ready for higher impact stuff like that.
  • childofArtemis24
    childofArtemis24 Posts: 334
    I actually had to buy some stuff to help my knee joints, and I am only 24, plus I wear knee supports when I workout. The knee support bands help a lot. I wear them at Zumba, and I do pretty good.
  • fittocycle
    fittocycle Posts: 827 Member
    Try icing it and taking a few days off. I've had two knee surgeries and my knee issues started out as relatively minor aches and pains. If I had taken the time to let it heal, I might have avoided knee surgery and hence more time off from my workouts!:ohwell:

    By the way, I also have the 30 Shred DVD. I love it, but can't do it very often because it will bother my knees.
    Give ice a try. You'll be surprised at how much it will help!

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