Tips to Prevent Knee Injury

Knee is the largest and most complicated joint in the body. The complexity of the design of the knee joint and the fact that the knee supports nearly the whole weight of the body, it is the joint most vulnerable both to acute injury and the development of osteoarthritis.

Knee injuries are very common, especially for people who play a lot of sports. Injury can affect any of the ligaments, bursae, or tendons surrounding the knee joint. Injury can also affect the ligaments, cartilage, menisci (plural for meniscus), and bones forming the joint. While running outdoors offers you excellent health benefits in addition to the wonderful feeling of the wind in your face, it is also an activity that is prone to the most hurt knees.

You can avoid knee pain and injuries by doing the following:

• Maintain a healthy weight to reduce stress on your knees: Staying slim reduces the forces placed on the knee during both athletics and everyday walking. According to some medical research, it also reduce osteoarthritis. Keeping your weight down also reduce the number of ligament and tendon injuries for similar reasons.

• Check those shoes: Having the proper gear is crucial. If your shoes are extremely worn and no longer provide the proper cushion, get rid of them. The cushion in your exercise shoes helps to absorb the impact of running, if there is no cushion that impact goes directly to the legs and knees. A great way to make sure you have gear that is in shape is to replace your shoes every 500 miles or 800 kilometers.

• Warm up: Before starting any exercise, warm up and then do stretches. If you stretch muscles in the front and back of your thighs, it decreases tension on your tendons, ultimately relieving pressure on the knees.

• Do low-impact exercise: At the gym, opt for a rowing machine or a cross-country skiing machine. Both offer a strong workout with low impact to your knees.

• Do flexibility exercises: Yoga, Tai Chi and similar range-of-motion exercises improve flexibility and balance. This helps the knees operate more efficiently and reduces wear and tear.

• Increase slowly: A common mistake is to increase your workout too soon. Jumping up too soon can add stress and strain to the knees, which can lead to injury. Make sure that you build it up slowly. It is suggested that you only add 5 to 10 percent to your running distance each week in order to avoid injury.

• Don't decrease your activity: A decrease in activity will lead to weakness, increasing your chances of injuries. Don't suddenly change the intensity of your exercise. Build up gradually to avoid knee pain.

• Weight train: Strengthen your leg muscles to better support your knees and avoid injuries by working out with weights. Strength training builds muscle and helps maintain bones. Exercises such as leg curls and leg presses, which strengthen the upper leg, are most beneficial for knee arthritis.

The knee is an amazing joint that can handle a lot, but there is a limit. After you pass the limit your knees can take then you will be battling knee pain for a long time. Eventually most nagging knee pains will need surgery, and that costs money and typically has a slow recovery. Take care of your knees. Whether you are experiencing knee pain now or you are planning ahead to prevent knee pain, follow the steps and take care of your knees. They are one of the most important parts of your body.