Knee issue

I can't do leg press either, because of knee problems

How well do you do at free weight squats? Back squats, front squats... you might like goblet squats.

Lunges are an option, though I hesitate to suggest them because they can really be hard on your knee, depending.

Mebbe start with wall squats to get used to the movement.

I wouldnt say you're at the end. I have a knee injury too, and so do a lot of others on here. I was doing Jillian Michaels 30 day shred, but then people informed me they got knee injuries from it and while I had mine prior to the exercise and saw an improvement in my knee's flexibility, I decided to just stop and change my routine as I was informed the workouts in the video weren't really good for abs and can make things worse for other areas.

I would talk with your doctor and physical therapist to get you set up for strengthening your muscles. I was recommended swimming, and other stretches I was given on a list to help my weak and injured areas, but again that is just for me. I don't know what kind of knee injury you have or know how much you can or can't handle, so I would highly highly suggest talking with your doctor and physical therapist.

If you don't have a pt, then your doctor is someone who can give you a referral to one. Best of luck!

sometimes knee stuff is a form thing, especially with squats. if you let your quads carry too much of the load, they put huge mechanical stress across your kneecap and it can make you think you've ruined your body for life.

so that's a possibility, and if so then the 'cure' is usually to shift most of the work into your hamstrings and glutes. it's an impossible thing to try to describe, and for me much more of a mental trick than anything else. i still get it wrong a lot of the time . . . but when it's right, the conceptual experience is like you turn your bum and your hamstrings into a kind of slingshot in your head. or a springy hammock. then when the cues say 'stick your butt out' and 'sit down' you want to make it feel to yourself like you're sitting down 'into' that slingshot formed by your own posterior chain muscles. sometimes it helps me to picture my shins as the 'stick' part of the catapult too. when i do that i anchor better and my knees don't drift out in front of my toes quite as much.

i also do this weird thing where i [mentally] stick a floodlight into the floor, shining straight up. it can be helpful to me to visualize which planes of my body the light's shining on, because those are mostly the ones that ought to be doing the work.

JulieSHelms wrote: »

@Lizarking

Lizarking wrote: »

Lunges are an option, though I hesitate to suggest them because they can really be hard on your knee, depending.

Mebbe start with wall squats to get used to the movement.

Are you recommending squats and lunges as a replacement to leg presses, or as something to build up knee strength?

@Bj0223

If possible, I would suggest you see your doctor and find out why your knee is hurting. Sometimes braces and wraps can make matters worse and weaken your knees.

I just happen to have an appointment tomorrow for something else, but he does joint issues too--thanks for the nudge--not sure it would have occurred to me!

Replacement.

Don't give up on squats. I could seriously not do 1 with just body weight when I started. But learning proper form, the best angle and slowly increasing weight, I now do 100# full depth squats and have virtually no knee pain.

nowine4me wrote: »

Don't give up on squats. I could seriously not do 1 with just body weight when I started. But learning proper form, the best angle and slowly increasing weight, I now do 100# full depth squats and have virtually no knee pain.

I hate to say this, but this is bad advice when there's no answer to the knee pain. Even with proper form, squats can worsen a knee problem depending on what it is.

Op, have you seen your doctor yet? Knee issues can be persistent once they start if they aren't properly treated. In my case, I began to run last year only to find distances longer than 6mi created pain. Fast forward a year later and I still have days that I can't walk, and that's after giving up running for now to rest. My pain is linked to the fact that my pelvis is misaligned and one leg is significantly longer than the other. I just never noticed until I began running, which really surprised my physical therapist due to the severity. It required a lot of physical therapy and may require surgery. Do not continue activities that worsen it without seeing a sports doctor. You could damage it further, especially if it's a cartilage issue.

JulieSHelms wrote: »

I am new to weight training (about 3 months now). I wasn't aware of having a knee problem previously, but once I started working I began to notice one was a little tender. Now there are certain exercises like a leg press that I'm afraid to go heavier on because of the pain in my knee, even though my leg muscles could definitely handle more weight. So am I at the end of the road on those exercises, or would a knee brace/wrap help?

if it hurts, don't do it...not worth it in my opinion. Do alternative exercises.

Barbell hip thrust is awesome for but and legs.

Since I have arthritis in my knees too, I started using KT tape on both of them. I sleep in it and then wear it for my morning workout. I sometimes wear it throughout the day. It really helps a lot. I also now know that I need to keep stretching out my knees once I'm done with a workout. We do a lot of squats and it actually feels pretty good.

I had ACL replacement years ago which lead to arthritis in my right knee. PT's and Drs all recommended strengthening the hamstrings and glutes (posterior chain) prior to doing squats or leg press. They had me on a bike 3x a week and increasing the resistance each week. Made a huge difference.

Also, after all the above I got excellent feedback on my form when I started squatting. It's taken a while to get to the point I could squat pain free but it took a lot of work getting the proper form down, even dropping back down to just the bar and working my way back up.