7 Easy Tips For Stopping Knee Pain in Salt Lake City

This is an incredible time of year in Salt Lake City and the weather has been nothing short of phenomenal. It is simply to nice to be stuck inside with knee pain. Whether it is just the most common knee pain, back of knee pain, knee pain from running, or if you are just looking for knee pain relief. Check out our 7 easy tips for stopping knee pain in Salt Lake City.. [...]

#1: Choose Proper Footwear
We really like our shoes in today’s world. They come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Some interesting choices in footwear may include high heels, sandals, flip-flops, or shoes with poor support. All of these have been proven to ADD to your knee pain.
 
It is due to the lack of cushioning to absorb shock, as well as how these shoes may effect the angle of the ankle. This poor foot positioning may change the angle at other joints up the kinetic chain and take its toll on the knee.
 
If you can absorb some of the shock or change the mechanics by wearing shoes with proper cushioning or by wearing shoes that support a more natural angle of the ankle, then you could significantly reduce your knee pain.
 
#2: Avoid Sitting With Your Legs Bent For More Than 20 Minutes At A Time
There’s so much ‘gossip’ that surrounds knee pain. But this is FACT…you and I were not designed to sit. It goes against every basic, fundamental rule of the way we’re originally created as humans.
 
When you sit at a desk or in a chair with your knees bent underneath, your stretching ligaments and muscles and placing your knee in a position that is unnatural – and it really wasn’t supposed to be in for very long.
 
Limit the amount of time doing it and keep your knees straight whenever possible.
 
 
#3: Be Selective Of Where You Walk
Most people don’t know it, but being selective of the surface that you walk on is another way to ease knee pain. For example, walking on hard, uneven and “gravelly” surfaces is going to make your knee pain worse.
 
Contrast that with walking on grass or on the sand, and you’ll suffer LESS because the surface is so much softer and kinder to ALL your joints. Even walking on a treadmill can be more comfortable than any hard concrete pavement type surface.
 
#4: Use Heat
Heat is by far the best way to ease knee pain. My tip, use heat whenever you are feeling stiff, achy, or painful; it may work especially well if you wake up sore and stiff first thing in the morning. The heat increases the mobility of the muscles and may loosen things up. Apply a hot pack for 10-15 minutes as needed throughout the day.
 
And when to use ice – my tip would be to try ice if heat does not work for you. But realize that the ice simply is just “numbing” the pain through slowing the speed at which the nerve conducts. Recent research indicates that it may not be the great anti-inflammatory that we have been told. 10 minutes of ice should be plenty.
 
#5: Quit Smoking
Nicotine restricts blood flow to the joints that make up your knee and contributes to the decreased cushioning. This loss of cushioning and increased break down can contribute to knee pain. Cigarette smoking also prevents new bone growth and reduces calcium absorption, which leads to smokers being at an increased risk of having fragile, brittle bones and slower healing after bone fractures, which can contribute to knee pain. If you needed another reason to quit, knee pain is definitely one of them.
 
 
#6: Strengthen Your Hips
Of course it is important for the knee to have strong muscles around the knee, such as the quadriceps. But an often overlooked way to ease knee pain is to strengthen your hip muscles. These muscles help to control the femur bone which makes up the top portion of the knee joint. If these muscles are weak, don’t have enough endurance, or lack control it can very easily lead to knee pain. The science shows us that this is one of the most common causes and contributors to knee pain. It is best to have these exercises specifically tailored to your needs, that way you are not wasting your time and energy. This is where you may find the next tip helpful.
 
 
#7: Get Physical with Physical Therapy
There isn’t a faster way to END knee pain than by going to see a physical therapist. Getting to see a hands-on specialist physical therapist means you’re going to get very fast access to care that will soothe and relax those tight aching muscles, loosen and lubricate stiff, stuck and painful joints, and strengthen your body so that you can go back to doing the things that you love.
 
You can often leave a good physical therapist with concerns eased and physical pain reduced, in only a short time.
 
Combine all of the “tips” in this blog with a trip to see a hands on physical therapist, and you will see a dramatic drop in the knee pain and stiffness you are currently suffering from. ​