If your knees feel like they might explode every time you squat, don’t fret – MAXIM Gains Guru ALEXA TOWERSEY shares some tips on how to them back on track…
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Do your knees feel like they’re being stabbed with every lunge? If so, don’t worry – you are not alone. You’re not stuck with being an upper-body-only bro. And you don’t have to go through life with a couple of flapjacks for a butt. It might sound counter-intuitive, but if you’re experiencing knee pain the chances are it’s not about the knee at all. A good majority of the time, knee pain is a direct result of a structural imbalance occurring somewhere else in the body. At the most basic level – if the outside of your leg is super tight and the inside of your leg isn’t strong enough to hold its own, then this causes incorrect tracking of the knee, friction, inflammation and pain.
TOP TIP: Each joint complex has a specific function – mobility or stability. If one joint can’t do its job, the joint above and below is directly affected. In the case of the knee, both the ankle and the hips are designed to be mobile so that the knee can be stable.
TOP
- MOBILISE YOUR ANKLE AND STRENGTHEN YOUR LOWER LEG
The Tibialis Anterior runs up the front of your shin, and is a key piece of the puzzle when it comes to knee strength given it’s involvement in ankle dorsiflexion. To strengthen it, all you need to do is pull the top of your foot up towards your shins. You can load the movement with a band or cable but an easy and effective way to do it would be with ankle rotations pulling the foot up as high as you can through the top position – 20 rotations each way for each ankle is enough to feel the burn.
Strengthening your calf muscle will greatly benefit your hamstrings, provide your knee with greater support and stability and help improve mobility and strength through your ankles and feet. The key with calf work is to maximise time under tension. Hold the stretch portion of each rep for 5 seconds. And hold the peak contraction at the top for 3 seconds before lowering. Include single leg calf raises (on a step) at the beginning of your session. Aim for 30-45 reps each side to start. Do as many as you can on one side, switch to the other and repeat until you meet your TOTAL rep goal.
2. MOBILISE YOUR HIPS
Any tightness through the hips or glutes can alter the position of your leg during movement leading to an uneven distribution of force through the knee. Take that imbalance to the gym with you then add volume and load, and you better make sure you have a good physio on speed dial. At the bare minimum, foam roll the outside and front of your legs, trigger point your glutes and commit to at least 5-10 mins of both a dynamic warmup prior to training and a static stretching sequence after training. I use the ROMWOD app, but googling “tight hip stretches” will also work.
3. FIRE UP YOUR GLUTES
If your knee collapses inwards when you squat, lunge, run or jump, the chances are your glute medius is MIA. Try throwing in 20 x Banded Lateral Walks each way, 20 x Banded Glute Bridges and 15 x Single Leg Glute Bridges 2-3 times a week and/or before your lower body strength sessions.
4. STEP IT UP
Your Vastus Medialis (VMO) is the tear shaped muscle on the inside of your knee that acts as your main knee stabiliser. Performing a “Poliquin step up” with your weight on the ball of your foot dramatically increases recruitment of the VMO. Elevate one heel by standing on a slant board or weight plate. Bend that knee to take your other foot out to touch the floor in front of you (taking the knee over the toe), before straightening the leg and drawing the kneecap up. Aim for 2 sets of 15 reps each side.
4. CURLS AREN’T JUST FOR THE GIRLS
And your hamstrings aren’t just for hip extension. They also flex the knees. You experience roughly 800 pounds of force when you run and jump off one foot, and RIGHT at the point of impact is the question: can your eccentric knee flexion handle it? If you can’t, you most likely shift the pressure to the front of your knee, rather than using your hamstrings. The Nordic Curl is the gold standard for hamstring strength but it takes a while to work up to. Lying Hamstring Curls are a good starting point. Try the rest pause method. Do as many reps as you can. Rest 10 secs. And repeat for 2 more sets.
CHALLENGE: MAX WALL SIT
This is a challenging and “fun” way to end a session. Sit on the wall with your back flat and legs at 90 degrees. Hold for 15 secs then drop down 2 inches and hold for another 15 secs. Keep doing this until you either reach the floor or fall off the wall – whichever comes first. If you’re a sucker for punishment, do the single leg version.
5. PUT YOUR THANG DOWN, FLIP IT AND REVERSE IT
Sometimes you need to take a step back to continue going forwards – literally. Ben Atkins AKA Knees Over Toes guy advocates that a mere 10 minutes of walking backwards every day can cure chronic knee pain. This could be on a treadmill, with a sled or just up and down your driveway.
THE ARGUMENT FOR KNEES OVER TOES
A lot of research in recent years points to the concern around “knees over toes” in resistance training, being unfounded. We want to achieve full range of motion in our joints. We should be able to fully close the knee and fully extend the knee. And we need to create stability and strength in those end ranges so that we remain uninjured. Studies show that the vastus medialis is strongly recruited during exercises emphasizing full knee flexion. This means your hamstrings need to cover your calves in the bottom position. The popularity within athletic circles of the Poliquin Split Squat is a prime example of this.
For the full article grab the September 2021 issue of MAXIM Australia from newsagents and convenience locations. Subscribe here.
