Category — Knee

photo from suksim

Yesterday was the most amazing day I’ve had in a while. No, I didn’t win the lottery and I’m not currently swimming Scrooge McDuck-style in a sea of money. And, nope, I didn’t win a free vacation to Bora Bora and I’m not currently sunning myself on the white sand beach. For people with chronic knee pain, there’s something even better: going to the grocery store.

You heard that right.

If you’re confused and think I’m nuts, read my full story here. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know that I’ve been dealing with knee pain for years. And over the past two years it’s been particularly bad. So bad that I haven’t been able do the amount of walking required of grocery shopping for quite some time. That job—along with, oh, 50 billion others—is left to The Man.

Except yesterday.

The Man and I made a trip to the gym post-work. It was a Friday night, which means the place was only a third as crowded as usual and I could complete a hard workout super efficiently. (You know, without semi stalking the people who claim certain machines for what seems like hours. For some reason, I’m always stuck staking out the leg press machine like an undercover spy since most people break for at least 10 minutes between sets. But, I digress…)

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photo by coba

Our bodies do some crazy things. Like how our eyes tear up when they’re hit with freezing wind. No sadness or loneliness there, just cold, raw air. Or how we sweat when we’re nervous. Isn’t sweat the body’s way of cooling itself? I’m never hot when I’m nervous. That brings me to the freaky if not completely annoying thing my body did this weekend. My knees—those ever-infuriating discs that continue to complicate my life—started playing games with me.

It began on Saturday when I was sitting on the couch doing some work. I was splayed out over the entire couch—legs reaching to the teensy corner The Man occupied. (Sorry, Man.) Anyhow, I spent a few hours in that position because I was on a role with an article I was writing and, frankly, it was really warm under the fuzzy blanket I draped over me. My point is, I wasn’t doing any exercise—no physical activity in any way, shape, or size. I was being a (hard-working) bum.

Then things started getting all Twilight Zone freaky on me. When I walked into the kitchen to make dinner, my knees were bright red and burning up. That’s how they get when I walk a ton a few blocks. And while I wouldn’t have been happy about it, I would have understood their flare-up had I been shopping or standing or even walking around the house. But no. No, no, no. They were inflamed by sitting! Sheesh.

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photo by deleted.scenes
What, you don’t wear this to work out??

Yesterday I gave you some tips for preventing killer knee pain. As much as I’d love to have a fellow chronic pain sufferer (it gets lonely here in Gimpville), I don’t want any of my uninjured readers to feel the crunch, crunch of cartilage damage. So I hope you really take the suggestions to heart.

As promised, I’ve listed some stretches and exercises that can combat too-tight or weak muscles. Or both. Next time you hit the gym or open road, don’t assume running or biking or ellipticalling (Is that a word? Now it is.) or doing any other cardio workout is enough. Those exercises work muscles, but not every muscle. By strength training them you can make sure you don’t miss any key muscle groups and create imbalances.

QUAD
Strengthen It: Try leg presses. Work one leg at a time to challenge each leg separately. Do three sets of 10 presses on each leg.

HAMSTRINGS
Strengthen It: Do hamstring curls. I wrote all about it here, so check it out.

Stretch It: Lie on your back with one leg stretched out in front of you and another lifted into the air. Loop a towel around the ball of your raised foot, and straighten your leg. (Men should slightly bend the leg.) Pull the towel toward you so you feel a stretch in the back of your thigh. Hold for a count of 30. Repeat three times, then switch legs.

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photo by yuan2003

I know what you’re thinking: “You’re broken and all, but my knees work just fine. How do I prevent hobbling around like you?”

Glad you asked. If there were one thing I’d go back and tell my younger self—you know, if someone built a time machine and I somehow got a turn in it—I’d force her to focus on preventive measures. Misery loves company, but I don’t want you to join me in my chronic pain journey. Instead, I want to help you thwart future pain in your knees. Here’s how:

Get to Know Your Feet
Normal arches are actually not that normal. Go figure. Lots of people are like me, with feet that roll inward thanks to low arches. (Some have too-high arches, which brings a host of other problems.) Flat feet can change the mechanics of your whole leg; when your feet roll inward, your knees follow. And a knee that rolls inward no longer tracks along its smooth path. If you have flat feet, prevent maltracking by getting a pair of orthotics. The shoe inserts will shift your stance and help re-align the leg’s position.

Wear Smart Shoes
It’s also important to wear proper shoes. As much as I’d like to believe all shoes—even cheapo Payless ones—were created equal, my knee pain has convinced me that quality matters. A good pair of shoes can give your foot the support it needs, whether you have flat feet or high arches. Plus, ill-fitting shoes can alter the way you run, which in turn puts you at risk for injury.

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id-iom

Hope you’ve all had a good week. I’m proud that I got back on the fitness wagon, and I’m vowing now to never let myself take so much time off again. (Hold me to it, will ya?) Before I get to my weekend activities—Christmas shopping, organizing the new apartment, and making a few trips to the gym—I thought I’d leave you with some health articles I enjoyed this week. Check them out when you’re bored at work before you sign off for the weekend.

I love Fit Sugar’s idea for sore feet: Roll your foot over an icy water bottle. I can’t wait to do this after I work out. I’m sure it feels just as good on tired feet as it does on aches.

The LA Times asked three Hollywood fitness pros to pick their top exercise tools. Here’s what they said.

Are canned foods dangerous? This story looks into whether you can ingest a harmful amount of bisphenol-A, a chemical with estrogen that’s been linked to a variety of health problems, by eating canned foods.

Vitamin G dug up a silly sugar ad from the ’60s. According to the makers, all kids need sugar to keep their energy going all day long. And I quote: “Play it safe with your young ones. Make sure they get sugar every day!”

The Center for Science in the Public Interest lists the 10 best health foods. But the best part of the list is the 10 worst foods. No. 5: Cheesecake Factory chocolate cake. One slice weighs in at ¾ of a pound (no joke) and has 1,550 calories. Yikes.

Wear and tear isn’t the only thing that will cause cartilage damage to the knee. This story explains why researchers say that other injuries, like ACL tears, can lead to early arthritis.

Think your chicken’s safe to eat? Read about a Consumer Reports study on the deadly bacteria it probably harbors, then be extra careful to cook it to an internal temp of 165. That, and make sure the juices don’t touch other foods. (I treat raw chicken like the Ebola virus, so I’m pretty sure my kitchen’s safe.)

My weekend’s starting now! What are your plans?

photo from reebok

My foam roller looks innocent. It’s lightweight and purple and reminds me of a yoga mat, which reminds me of deep breathing. It’s crazy how such a harmless hunk of foam can create so much pain when your muscles are crunched up into little knots.

If you’re a runner, you should know what I’m talking about. Weekend warriors can still be tight, for sure, but runners typically have those telltale trouble spots: quads, hamstrings, hips, and outer thigh. Because stretching can’t conquer muscle knots, it’s important to work them out by massage. A deep tissue massage tackles the knots and breaks them up.

As much as I’d love to get a weekly deep tissue massage (and I’d love to, so if you want to donate to my tension-relief fund, go ahead), it’s not practical for my lack of budget. Instead, I use my foam roller. It’s the next best thing.

After a workout, I roll my thighs, hamstrings, and IT band—that one sends shockwaves down my leg hurts the most. After that, I stretch. My foam roller helps my flexibility and eases knee pain when my muscles are especially tight. In fact, I can usually feel a difference in my knee right after rolling.

So, how do you, um, roll yourself silly? Below, I’ve listed three moves that’ll loosen knots…

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I would just like to start by saying … I did it!

Yep, I got my butt (and The Man’s) to the gym last night and broke my stretch of stupidity fast. I think the best way to get over a slump is to just do it. This afternoon, as my legs ached from strength training, I was reminded why I love the gym. And that made me excited to go again tonight.

So, what does a gimp do at the gym after being away for too long? Primarily, I took it slow. As tempted as I was to resume my workouts as I had been doing them before PRP, I decided it would be smarter to ease into physical therapy. Here’s what I did:

Warm up: 10 minutes on the recumbent bike. I was hoping to snag a regular exercise bike but, alas, those were all occupied. I set the level high because my gym’s bikes glide too easy, which—strange as it sounds—hurts my knees even more.

Leg press: I did two sets of 15 on each leg with 40 pounds on the machine. The right leg pressed like a champ, but the left was a wimp.

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photo by timtak
Maybe if I buy some supercool shoes I’d want to work out.

I’m not a liar. (OK, I lied to The Man about my love—or tolerance—of sports when we first started dating. But whatever.) My main point here is that I won’t lie to you. I started this blog to journal the ups and downs of living with knee pain. I wanted to mark the fitness and nutrition and emotional aspects of living healthy. I set out to chronicle my journey through PRP, PT, and whatever other acronyms come my way. But…

I have to admit: I’ve put off posting about my knees on purpose. That’s because it’s my fault they’re sore. I’ve skipped the gym for an embarrassingly long time. Sure, I had some good reasons at first: PRP, a chest cold, a 10-day headache, packing up my old place, and moving into my new place. But I haven’t gone back since moving even though I’m fully capable. Frankly, I don’t feel like it.

Back in the day—you know, summer of ’09—I looked forward to exercising after work. Whether I’d hit up the gym or the couch wasn’t a question; I came home, changed, then got The Man and myself over to the gym faster than you could say “dinnertime.” Now, after being out of practice, the motivation isn’t there. I’ve been meaning to get back to the gym for weeks, but somehow everything else in life has bumped the gym to the bottom of my Must Do Or Else list—things like unpacking boxes, organizing new drawers and cabinets, researching closet shelves, and, um, relaxing.

I’m hoping (crossing my fingers on both hands, which is making typing a little hard) this post will shame me into getting me to the gym. As in, I can’t face you tomorrow with a big, fat lie. So, I’m going tonight and I’ll write about my experience tomorrow. There—I’m locked in. (I hope.)

I hope I can kick-start my motivation simply by forcing myself to just go. But how do you get out of an I-don’t-wanna-exercise funk? Do you have any tips to get motivated?

I covet athletes’ bulging thighs. That’s right. You heard me. I don’t dream of having Gwen Stefani’s abs or Madonna’s biceps. OK, maybe a little. But what I really want is strong, muscular thighs. (Though I hope mine are a little less masculine than the ones in the photo above.)

A new study confirms something my doctor told me more than a year ago: Weak leg muscles contribute to Runner’s Knee, a layman’s term for the oh-so-fun cartilage condition I have.

If I didn’t hate my knees so much, I’d call them something like remarkable or incredible. If I were to call them that, I’d do it because these tiny disk-like bones are what allow you to walk, bend your legs, and lift heavy objects. See, without them your thighs would fall onto your shins, making it really hard to do things like sit. And making you look really, really, ridiculously funny.

So about those knees … They’re connected to your upper and lower legs by tendons and ligaments. I imagine them like rubber bands, connecting the whole shebang. You can think of them however you like.

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photo by leo.prie.to

I never was interested in stretching until my physical therapist told me a secret. Too-tight muscles can cause injuries. She gave me a few stretches to do each day after I exercised, and they quickly became part of my PT ritual. I won’t lie: I let my eyes roll to the far, far reaches of my skull when I realized stretching added another 10 minutes to my already long PT routine. But after the first couple times, my knees started feeling better. Loosened hamstrings and calf muscles made walking less painful. Now, if I don’t stretch I feel uncomfortably tight. And I believe the stretching helps prevent further knee pain.

So, of course you can imagine how stunned I was to read this New York Times article that says stretching is pretty much worthless. The study of college track and field runners found that those with tighter muscles have better running economy, which measures how much oxygen a person uses in motion. The researchers say tight muscles store and use energy better, making running easier.

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