Do you love to run or play sports, but find yourself struggling with knee pain? If so, you may be suffering from patellar tendinitis, a common condition that affects many athletes we see at Solutions Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine. They are all looking to beat knee pain just like you.
When you have patellar tendinitis, also known as jumper’s knee, you often have pain right on the tendon front of the knee. It’s an overuse injury that occurs when the the tendon that connects your kneecap to your shinbone becomes strained from repetitive jumping or running.
The pain can be localized to the middle of tendon, at the top of the tendon on the knee cap, or the bottom of the tendon on your shin bone. The damage to the tendon occurs when the tendon isn’t strong enough to handle the load or it is overstressed by poor mechanics.
The good news is, physical therapy can help heal patellar tendinitis. Here are 3 easy exercises you can do to improve your tendon strength and beat knee pain.
Split Squat
Quad strengthening exercises have been proven to help the patellar tendon heal when you have patellar tendonitis. The split squat is a great exercise to develop quad and patellar tendon strength. It also helps improve quad flexibility.
Make sure the hip and knee of your back leg stay in a straight line the whole way down. Your knee should not come in front of your hip. If you can’t do that, only go as low as you can while keeping that line straight. Try to go lower each time you do them.
Start with 3 sets of 10 reps and hold for 2 seconds at the bottom. Do these 2-3 days a week. As these get easier, add weight by holding a dumbbell or a kettlebell.
Single Leg Squat on Slantboard
This exercise builds strength in your quads while also improving your balance.
The knee of your foot that is on the slantboard should stay lined up with the middle of that same foot. Standing on a slantboard allows you you focus on strengthening your quad without ankle tightness limiting you.
Start with 3 sets of 10 every other day. As it gets easier, hold a weight to increase the difficulty. You should feel it working in the front of your thigh and sometimes in the side of your hip.
If you have some mild aching knee pain when doing these, that is ok. It should not be enough to make you grimace and should not feel sharp. If it is you should stop and see a physical therapist
If you’ve tried these and you’re still hurting, we can help you!
At Solutions Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine, our physical therapists in Alexandria and Springfield, VA are experts at treating knee pain and will develop a plan to help you stop it.
Call us at 703-299-3111, or click here to request and appointment.
A member of our team will schedule you an appointment with one of our expert physical therapists.
What happens if you don’t have a plan to beat knee pain?
- You stop exercising because your knee hurts
- You avoid playing with your kids because you’re afraid of hurting your knee
- You get out of shape and are more likely to get other diseases and injuries
But WITH a plan to beat knee pain you can live the life you want again.
The exercises above are a great way to get started. They don’t require a lot of time and are pretty easy to do correctly.
But if you want an expert to listen to your unique problems and guide you to success, a Solutions Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine physical therapist will create a plan specifically for you.
You’ll feel confident that you have the knowledge and ability to beat knee pain and do all the things you want.
Call us at 703-299-3111, or click here to schedule your appointment and start your path to healing.
Working to keep you living your best life,
The Solutions Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine Team
