Intense weight training to relieve knee pain has been debunked; do this instead.

Millions of people have endured medical solutions for knee pain resulting in procedures and rehabilitation regimens that are expensive and simply don’t prevent their knee problems from worsening over time.  Intense weight training for knee pain is one idea that has just been debunked.

Despite what we already knew about the knee, the American College of Rheumatology and the Arthritis Foundation routinely continued to advise strength training to improve symptoms. Rehabilitation facilities give these protocols to hundreds of thousands of knee pain sufferers without producing a positive result according to a new study in Jama. Other previous studies such as the  2016 British Medical Journal that showed many of the common arthroscopic meniscus surgeries made no difference in preventing further damage to the knee.  This was based on 40 years of data on these cases.

One of the most common reasons for knee pain is a tight or arthritic hip which cannot be diagnosed by looking only at the knee.  Many of these patients have had surgeries and injections or even knee replacements, only to find out the knee was never the problem. This is why a holistic approach to the body is preferable to our current evaluate the part or treat the part culture in medicine.

The healthcare system’s over-specialized approach may relieve the symptoms, but over time, history shows us knees worsen with improper diagnosis and a poor understanding of why you hurt.

For many knee pain sufferers, even with knee arthritis, seeing the right healthcare practitioner first can help you feel better non-invasively and avoid a knee replacement years later. It can also reduce your medical costs, medical risk and as many find out, other contributing problems will also improve. These contributing problems may be shoulder pain, foot pain, plantar fasciitis, sciatic pain, hip bursitis, and even frozen shoulder.

Why do you experience knee pain?

Knee pain is a result of poor function from the ground up.   The knee is merely a conduit surrounded by fascia, nerves, and blood vessels.

A properly functioning knee will allow us to take a step painlessly until we swing our other leg through so it can touch the ground.  It also depends on the upper body to swing back to act as a counterweight.

Moving a joint will lubricate it which is what happens with exercise. That same movement is what pumps blood back to the heart.  A properly functioning core or center section of the body stabilizes us as we take our next step.

We all adapt but unfortunately, many have painful knees from p[oor patterns of adaptation over the years.  This is explained in the book Cheating Mother Nature, what you need to know to beat chronic pain.  Poor adaptation results in pain, often in multiple areas of the body.  Do you have fibromyalgia, myofascial pain syndrome, back and neck problems, sciatica, shoulder pain, or plantar fasciitis? It is likely that these problems are later to how you move. Growing evidence shows pain is linked to how we move which is an adaptive response and scientists have called this movement signatures.

The forces placed on the knee with improper gait (how we walk) can damage the knee, ankle, hip, and even the lower back joints.

Who you see first can determine your quality of care, your risk, and your cost from the treatment as well as your results. Movement is holistic meaning it uses the entire body, shouldn’t your healthcare practitioner look at you that way?

Exercise alone is not a cure for knee pain.

Recently, the NY Times published an article regarding the benefits of strength training for knee pain.  Not surprisingly, commonly prescribed exercise protocols show no long-term benefit for painful knees according to a recent study published in JAMA, the journal of the American Medical Association.

As discussed in the article “Nearly 40 percent of Americans over age 65 have knee osteoarthritis, and tens of millions of patients have been instructed to do these exercises. Indeed, the American College of Rheumatology and the Arthritis Foundation routinely advise strength training to improve symptoms.”

Dogmatic belief systems are often disproven over time as we have known for a few years now. , There are better ways to keep your knees healthy. Degeneration of the knee may never cause knee pain if your feet, hips, and lower back work properly. Having these problems properly diagnosed and cared for earlier in life is a much better option going forward.

People who have had knee and hip replacements often function better with less pain since there is no longer a joint with nerves attached to it.   Many find themselves using a walker years later when their unresolved gait issues worsen over time affecting how they move, walk, and function.

A holistic approach years earlier can help prevent much of these problems and the joint damage that results from poor mechanical function.

Why visit a chiropractor first for knee pain.

Chiropractors are primary care for the musculoskeletal system. Chiropractors are a one-stop-shop for knee and back problems.  They will look at your knee and the other problems you may have experienced and find a solution customized to your problem.

Sports certified chiropractors have additional training to evaluate feet, hips, knees, and the body that is attached to them.

During your first visit, your chiropractor will

• Take a thorough history of your pain and then ask about other problems you may experience as well.   Looking at how you function is important when you evaluate painful knees.
• Perform a thorough evaluation including orthopedic tests, movement and flexibility screens, balance tests and a review of your feet since the way we walk determines how we function.   They will also look at your painful knee, the other knee, leg flexibility and determine the best and most efficient course of action.
• Treatment can include instrument-assisted soft tissue treatment, myofascial release treatment, manipulation of the feet, ankles, hips, and lower back to improve how you move. Rather than protocol-driven care, they will use active evaluation to decide what works and what doesn’t and customize the care to your specific needs. You need one doctor which is simpler, less costly, and gets the job done more efficiently.
• Exercises are provided to strengthen and retrain areas that move and function improperly. Rather than the current model of one size fits all, the doctor will give you maneuvers to specifically help your unique problem.
• Foot orthotics may be recommended if you are built asymmetrically or if there is an anatomical abnormality resulting in knee pain.

Who should you visit first for knee pain?  All roads lead to the chiropractor.   Click here to schedule your first visit.