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Treat the Cause not the Symptom; Part 2


Knee Pain; Is your Knee the issue or is it the victim?


Well I can personally tell you that the knee pain I experience which going by the symptoms appears to be Patellar Tendinitis (which is pain just below the kneecap) and sometimes it is referred to as "Runners Knee."


I've experienced this knee pain from time to time since I played High School Football almost 15 years ago. The knee pain would feel like a mild discomfort while walking down stairs, squatting down or lunging and sometimes when fully extending or locking out my leg. If I sat for long periods of time I would start to feel pressure in my knee almost as if it was tightening up. Now before my training as a Flexibility Specialist my first thought would have been "what's wrong with my knee" or "I've done something to my knee"


Since my training as flexibility specialist I've learned to look at the whole body or the kinetic chain above and below the knee to see if there are imbalances in the muscles (over active & strong or under active & weak) as well as imbalances in the muscle and fascia tissue (short tight, long tight or loose). I've also learned that the knee is usually the victim caught a tug a war between the lower leg and upper thigh. Which ends up abusing the knee.


So taking this approach I've been able to alleviate 95% of my knee discomfort by working on my Anterior Tibialis (shin muscle) and I do this by using a foam roller to release the tension in the muscle.


About 4 years ago I had a client that was told by a few Doctors one of which was an Orthopedic Specialist that in order to reduce the knee swelling and pain that they needed to stop running or they would eventually need surgery.


I did an assessment on their body and discovered that their Psoas muscle (hip flexors) were to tight (due to being a track runner for many yrs) which was inhibiting the glutes from functioning which in turn caused their TFL & Glute Medius (hip abductors) to become over active. This caused the IT Band to become tight which started to pull on the knee joint.Solution - stretch the hip flexors, TFL and Glute Med ever day especially before exercising.

Results - 4 yrs later knee pain & swelling are still gone and they haven't stopped running.


Conclusion - don't get caught up in focusing on where the pain is. Scan your body above and below the area with pain. For a more thorough assessment call me or see a PT, Chiropractor or a FST Flexibility Specialist



Jon Lempke

480-388-6241

Certified Personal Trainer

Certified Flexibility Specialist

Teacher Assistant at Stretch to Win Institute

www.stretchtherapy-az.com

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