If you’re over 40 and dealing with knee issues – this might sound familiar: You’re getting ready for your daily walk – but wonder whether your knee can handle it. You hesitate before taking the stairs. You love gardening, but kneeling has become almost impossible. You pass on your favorite hike because the pain afterward isn’t worth it anymore.
Before you know it – you’re planning your activities around your knee. I see this all too often in my office. People aren’t looking to get their knees in marathon-running shape – they just want to enjoy their favorite activities without negotiating with an aching knee.
The typical advice is more of the same… Strengthen your legs, try lower-impact exercise, and rest or take medicine when it hurts. Some of that advice has its time and place. But it leaves an important question unanswered: What’s actually irritating your knee? Without understanding why it keeps hurting – you can end up managing the same pain month after month.
Your knee doesn’t function in isolation. Its job depends on how your hips and ankles move, how your muscles support you, and how much activity your body can handle. Pain at the knee can even originate in your back. Focus only on the knee – and you can miss what’s driving the pain.
I’ve been doing this for just over 24 years – and I’ve learned that it takes more than prescribing exercises or looking at where it hurts. You need the right movements, in the right order, and an understanding of how your knee pain responds.
For a more natural approach to addressing knee pain – here are six of my top tips:
- Look Beyond Your Knee for the Full Picture
Your hips, core, feet, and ankles work together to support your knees during walking, running, and squatting. When your hips aren’t providing enough support, your ankles lack mobility, or your feet aren’t handling the ground beneath you well – your knees may take on extra stress. Depending on what you need, improving that support might mean strengthening your hips and core, improving ankle movement, or building control in your feet. The key is figuring out where support or movement is missing – then choosing exercises that address it without repeatedly aggravating your knee.
- Restore Mobility Before Building Strength
Mobility before stability is one of my mantras. Stiff joints force your body to compensate – which can leave surrounding muscles and soft tissues irritated. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve helped someone with a diagnosed meniscus tear get full relief from knee pain simply by restoring their knee joint mobility. Sometimes, those deficits are small enough that you don’t realize they exist until a mechanical pain specialist takes a closer look. Before adding strengthening exercises – get your knee mobility assessed to find out whether it can bend and straighten fully and freely.
- Break Up Your Sitting Time
Prolonged sitting can leave your knees stiff and uncomfortable when you get up. Sometimes, knee pain stems from your back or hips – even when those areas don’t hurt. If sitting aggravates the underlying problem, you may feel it in your knees. Interrupt your sitting at least once every 30 minutes with a short walk or standing break. If your knees continue to ache during or after sitting despite those changes – a mechanical pain specialist can help assess what else might be contributing.
- Make Exercise a Regular Habit
Knees crave regular movement and load – and moving less can leave them less prepared for the activities you love. Been told you have arthritis? That doesn’t mean you should stop exercising. If movement or resistance is painful – don’t assume you have “bad knees.” Get help figuring out what’s irritating your knee and how to make exercise more tolerable. In our office, we sometimes use regenerative shockwave therapy and EMTT alongside a specific movement program. I’ve seen this combination help people with painful arthritis get back to exercising. The goal is to make movement possible – then build strength and capacity. You don’t have to force your way through worsening pain or give up on exercise.
- Pay Attention to What’s on Your Feet
Shoes that fit poorly, feel unstable, or are worn out can make walking less comfortable. Choose footwear that fits securely, feels supportive, and suits your activity. Your everyday shoes may not be the best choice for a long walk or uneven trail. More cushioning or arch support isn’t automatically better – pay attention to how comfortably you move in them. If changing your footwear doesn’t help – take a closer look at how your feet and ankles are functioning. Sometimes, the answer takes more than a new pair of shoes.
- Build Better Balance and Control
Working on your balance helps build control through your core, hips, feet, and ankles – all of which support your knees. Think about stepping off a curb or walking across uneven ground. Your body has to work together as you shift weight between legs. Standing on one leg near a sturdy counter or practicing supported yoga poses can help develop that control. Use support as needed and focus on staying steady before making it harder. The goal is to feel more confident during activities you’ve started avoiding because of your knee.
If you’ve been dealing with knee pain for a while, give one or more of these tips a try. Start with what you can manage and pay attention to how your knee responds. If pain keeps limiting your progress, a mechanical pain specialist can help identify the root cause and the right strategies. The goal is to get back to the activities you love – with a plan to get rid of knee pain and keep it gone.
Related Reading
- Four Reasons Your Knee Pain isn’t Going Away
- Four tips to Protect your Knees and Avoid Injury when Skiing
Are you local to Portsmouth, NH? Consider speaking with one of my specialists to see if we would be a good fit to help! CLICK HERE to request a free discovery visit.
About Dr. Carrie Jose
Dr. Carrie Jose is a Physical Therapy Specialist and Mechanical Pain Expert, and owner of CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth, NH. She also writes for Seacoast Media Group.
To get in touch—or to request a free copy of her guide, “7 Easy Ways to Get Rid of Knee Pain”— CLICK HERE.
Want more help with knee pain? Explore our physical therapy services or watch the Knee Pain Masterclass replay.
