Struggling with Knee Issues

briscogun wrote: »

as @Mari22na said, swimming is the one basically ZERO impact activity that you can do.

Swimming is low impact...and can still be hard on one's joints. For example, the breaststroke kick can be very hard one one's knees, especially if there's already an injury, you're recovering from knee surgery, or have anatomical issues.

All of the suggestions that I would give, as someone with a long history of knee issues and who has had four major surgeries (I had my 30th day of PT for my most recent surgery yesterday), have already been given and dismissed. It is unfortunate that the OP isn't willing to actually spell out his diagnosis (as if there aren't people here who would understand the medical terminology), but even then - getting medical advice over the internet is almost never a good bet.

Calliope610 wrote: »

stanmann571 wrote: »

For example. MY runner's knee, is a glute/quad imbalance with hypermobility in my knee and tightness in my hip flexors.

For example. My patellofemoral pain and bone-on-bone grinding is due to patellar tracking syndrome. I find that consistent cycling strengthens the musculature surround my knee cap, stabilizes the knee and alleviates the pain.

Yaaasssss. Exactly. When I bike in the therapy pool, the stress is less but I still find relief. I get the drift that the OP is not interested in swimming, might be due to budget constraints. I get that.

I don't think anyone here is giving medical advice but suggestions. Swimming is low impact not zero impact. You know when you're pushing it to the razor's edge, your body tells you. I started ever so slowly and have worked my way out of not being able to get off the floor, unable to sit with knees bent for very long and unable to walk without that bone on bone grinding pain.

He's been to the doctor several times, duly noted. But if you can't afford PT and you're in pain, simply walking backwards in the pool is where I started. That's not going to throw anyone for a loop. You've got to begin somewhere or stay on the couch finding little improvement or relief.

I also have knee issues, I have chondromalacia patella in both knees and suffered a degenerative meniscus tear in February that I have been in PT for ever since. I was recently cleared to start exercising again, but it's challenging to find cardio that does not irritate my knee. The potential causes of knee pain are vast and varied, if you could afford at least one visit to a PT they could diagnose the root cause(s) of your pain and provide you with exercises you can do at home to correct your issues. I never would have been able to determine my issues and imbalances on my own and wouldn't have known what to do to properly care for myself without the assistance of my therapist. Also, the process of correcting the root issues is a slow process. Once you know what your issues are and have a good base of exercises to perform at home to correct the issues, you can then search the internet for additional exercises as you progress. Since you could cause damage that can lead to serious injury (and an expensive surgery) I highly recommend investing in at least one trip to a good PT.

stanmann571 wrote: »

Shadow87 wrote: »

Thanks everyone
First of all, I'm a girl

Ah, That's useful info. And explains why your maintenance is 500-700 calories lower. Your picture is ambiguous, so I apologize for not checking.

and it's not that I'm unwilling to say what the condition is, it's that I don't remember what it's called specifically since the last time I went for my knee was over a year ago, and I barely remember what I did 2 days ago. Add to that it was a complicated medical term that I had never heard before...Hence my saying its runners knee since that IS what I remember him saying-so I was also kind of hoping someone would say what they had and it would jog my memory as to what mine is called. I don't see swimming as an option not only because I can't afford it, but because I CAN'T swim, and where I live there are no water aerobics type things nearby that don't require an expensive gym membership. And as much as I'd love to see a PT again, I have 0 insurance and only work part time for a community college so can't afford to pay.

tbright-yes, I can EASILY gain weight on 22-2500 calories with little to no activity. When I was more active I could eat that and still lose, but it's not just the amount of calories that I was eating, but the fact that I was eating a lot of premade frozen foods with lots of preservatives and sodium and such. I know this was one of the biggest issues so I've been trying to change and eat more whole, real foods...as hard as it is. I'm doing better-already down 23 lbs since I changed my diet in April, but I want to strengthen my knee muscles as I lose weight, and build some muscle tone, cause I know having some helps burn fat as well.

As I said above, if you're certain there's no injury, get some good neoprene wraps, and walk/strength train(squats/deadlift)-Starting strength/Stronglifts style program. Be prepared for discomfort, Ice/heat after training for 15/30 minutes.

AND again, as above, if there is an injury, you're going to make it much worse, by working around it.

You can also try "flossing" prior to training, to temporarily reduce fluid/inflammation.

WickAndArtoo-I've tried Yoga, and I really enjoy it, but some of the poses still aggravate my knee and I worry that I may do more damage without someone to make sure I'm doing the move properly. But I would love to get back into it if I can at some point. And I'm so jealous, I'm trying to talk my hubby into signing up for BeachBodyondemand, but sadly, I have to refer back to money-or lack thereof .

I wouldn't recommend any of the Beachbody programs for someone with tricky knees

I'm sorry my post seems to be annoying people more than anything-I was just hoping for a bit of advice to keep me from giving in to despair since I feel like I'm at the end of my rope. But I will keep focusing on my diet as many of you have repeated, and hopefully one day I can say my knee is no longer an issue...

It’s beginners yoga, just stretching... not workouts

GaryRuns wrote: »

Since swimming is out how about spinning? You still need to either find a gym or buy a spin bike, but short of walking there aren't many zero-cost, low-impact, methods of exercising. And what about walking? If you're in pain just walking your options are going to be limited. There's also the hand bike and rowing machine, but, again, you'll only really find something like that in a gym.

Also, just thought of this, don't underestimate the impact on your weight loss things like body weight exercises, or just weight lifting exercises in general, can have. Push-ups, pull-ups, dips, sit-ups, etc. Add in a few inexpensive dumbbells from Target or Walmart and you have a whole host of further options, none of which impact your knees.

Rowing machine can be a problem for knees. Here again, it depends on the specifics of a diagnosis . . . but rowing machine is mainly leg-powered (plus some other parts, but the legs are the primary engine).
If OP can't cycle without aggravating her knee (I think she said she can't), there's a decent chance she can't row, either - same kind of straight-line hinging motion against resistance, just that the resistance is more circular and legs-below-body with cycling, and straight-line and legs-outstretched with rowing.

With my particular torn meniscus/arthritis diagnosis, cycling and rowing are the two main leg-intensive things I can tolerate, but I have a fairly clear visceral understanding of the respective stresses.

OP, think about upper body exercise. I know you aren't elderly/decrepit, but take a look at various forms of chair exercises for ideas (YouTube), think about doing upper body circuit-training type moves (lower weight, higher reps) as a form of cardio, etc. The push-ups, pull-ups, etc. that PP (GaryRuns) suggests can be good, too. Take a look at knee-strengthening exercise videos on YouTube (search for "knee pain" and that sort of thing), focusing on those by credentialed physical therapists. You may not be able to do all the moves, but look for some you can do.

Ice your knee after every workout (I do); it may help. I understand that you can't walk for exercise, but assume you have to walk some in daily life. How you walk, and how you climb stairs, can add to knee stress. Seeing a PT would be the best thing, but I hear that you can't afford that just now.

For me, focusing on glute engagement helps reduce knee stress when walking (thinking about contracting my butt muscles with each step). I did a bunch of PT for my particular issues as related to stairs, but a couple of key points were stretching out tight muscles around my pelvis daily (3-direction pelvic tilts on a ball, mostly); and thinking about pushing my weight up the step with my back foot rather than using my upstairs foot to power climbing. On the way down, straight leg as long as possible on the downstairs leg was a help. Since you're doing what you're doing, and have the problem you have (not doing what I was doing and having my problems ), those ideas may not help, but it's all I've got.

On the water exercise thing, I'm hearing you about not being able to afford a fancy gym and not being able to swim. Is there anywhere affordable you can get in a pool, lake, or whatever, without classes? For some people, just walking in water is a good exercise, and sometimes the buoyancy takes enough weight off the knees to make it less body stress than walking on land. If you have a place you could go, it might be worth a try.

Best wishes - hoping you can find a solution!