13 Mar Is knee pain quickly smothering your grand planned winter ski getaway? 3 Actionable steps to ensure you are not just in the pub drowning your sorrows but charging the slopes even after the 4:30pm last run has been called!
DO YOU SUFFER FROM KNEE PAIN? CLICK HERE AND GET THE HELP YOU DESERVE TODAY!
The thought of that first day on the slopes for the Winter is an exciting one! It has been a long summer and despite the negatives of a fading tan, the thought of clipping in and jumping on the chairlift is nothing short of electrifying.
Unfortunately you hadn’t prepared for the demands that snowsports require and in a last ditch effort you have been killing yourself in the gym DAILY to bring yourself up to speed. What started as a fading awareness of something in the front of your knee, has since developed into a genuine discomfort, now worsened by all your efforts in the gym. A quick search of google reveals what you believe is Patello-Femoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS) or more commonly known as ‘Knee-cap pain’.
This is an all too common story that brings with it frustration and anxiety. Why me? Will it just go away with rest? What are the best ways to fix it? How long is it going to take?! The uncertainty is depressing and can leave anyone feeling hopeless.
Fortunately there are some immediate steps you can take to salvage what probably seems like an unsalvageable situation.
ACTIONS:
Avoid aggravating activities:
Pain and discomfort leads to us moving differently. Evidence supports changes in the way we recruit or switch on muscle groups around the knee and the hips when we have knee pain.
As a result we see a flow on effect, with increased loading of the knee joints and in particular the patello-femoral joint. Frustratingly we fall into a cycle of pain and discomfort (sometimes worsening) and the development of weakness in the muscle groups that we rely so heavily on.
Do we then only do activities that are pain free you ask? No, the focus need not be on only doing activities that are ‘pain free’. We need to be mindful that our symptoms do not worsen as we complete activity. If the symptoms settle quickly (i.e. 1-2 hours post) the activity, we can rest assured that we haven’t over done it!
Strengthen your knees and hips:
It is a no-brainer that we need to target the weaknesses that develop as a result of knee pain. Often there are pre-existing deficits in strength that lead to the development of the issues in the first place.
Strengthening your thigh and hip muscles will help to ensure load is dispersed during activities. Targeted exercises that strengthen the muscles around your knees and hips will go a long way to improving your symptoms.
See a Physiotherapist:
The understanding of the mechanisms causing knee pain and the key management strategies are what Physiotherapists do best!
Despite google providing us with unlimited sources of information on any topic, issue and news event, you could argue it doesn’t provide the ‘human touch’ required in order to correctly diagnosis and manage injury.
Seeing a Physiotherapist will allow all uncertainty to be eliminated. A plethora of treatment modalities can result in fast symptom relief, often within a single session.
The prescription of an actionable game plan addressing the above- activity modification and strengthening exercises, will result in you being well on you way to the tearing down that slope come you ski trip.
DON’T SUFFER WITH KNEE PAIN! CLICK HERE TO BOOK AN APPOINTMENT TODAY!
At Stride Physiotherapy and Health Group we consider ourselves as coaches. We strive to inspire possibilities with everyone we see. We quickly clear angst, provide certainty and give you the tools you need to get you back to the activities you love.
We would love to chat with you to see how we can help. Phone (03) 9370 0345 or email us at info@stridephysiohealth.com.au
