how to protect knees?

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I'm suffered from very weak knees from running and heavy weight-lifting. It's been so bad that barbell squat or any time of jumping are becoming a luxury to me, even a small knee movement will produce a clicky sound.
Wondering whether any one here also have the same problems and do you guys have any fitness suggestions or supplements?

Replies

  • yesimpson
    yesimpson Posts: 1,372 Member
    edited September 2016
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    I am slowly recovering from runner's knee (my kneecaps were not tracking properly, causing a horrible grating/clicking sound and soreness).

    I'm a stubborn fool so tried to push through it for a while, but what I had to do in the end was see a physio to get assessed, do rehab exercises to strengthen my quads (your quads are made up of a number of muscles, and some can be more dominant than others), lay off all intense exercise for a good few weeks and then build up slowly again. I tape my knees for a bit of support when I run, ice afterwards, do yoga 5 times a week now, and have had to focus much more on cross training to strengthen my legs. My knees are now getting much better (and quieter!) and I can do most activities without any discomfort at all, but it took a good while. I actually did lunges at a bootcamp session yesterday morning without pain, the first time in nearly 6 months. I was over the moon!

    Please go and see a physio or similar about your knees. It could be what I had or it could be something totally different causing your issues. Don't do what I did and make your recovering longer and more difficult because you refused to acknowledge anything was actually wrong for 3 months!
  • tybrummilehigh2016
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    Copper fit arm and knee pads
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
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    Copper fit arm and knee pads

    No

    As was suggested earlier, see a doctor or other medical professional and determine what the issue is. They will tell if a brace is needed and whst type.

    Don't put a random Internet or supercenter brace on a problem.
  • SonyaCele
    SonyaCele Posts: 2,841 Member
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    i have bad knees, but heavy lifting has strengthened them, so i'm not sure if your form was all wrong because they should get strong not weak from lifting. And i can't run anymore, the impact is too much. What i do for my bad knees is wear tight neoprene knee sleeves when i do certain leg movements. Clicking without pain is generally ok. but its always best to see a dr, but if you can't see a dr dont do anything that causes pain. My knees click and crunch until they are fully warmed up and then they are fine. For cardio, my sports dr suggested anything with my feet on a pedal, like bike or elliptical. i dont do anything high impact like jumping or running.
  • piperdown44
    piperdown44 Posts: 958 Member
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    Definitely go see a sport medicine Dr.
    Like Sonya, my knees got better once I started strengthening the muscles, especially the hamstrings.
    The PT I saw a long time ago after surgery to repair my torn ACL had me doing all kinds of hamstring work and lot's of stationary biking.
    Fast forward more than a decade and I had to rebuild the strength in the surrounding muscles with lots of emphasis on the hamstrings. Took about 2 years before my knees stopped clicking and I've got some bone on bone in my right knee.