in Joints & Muscles, Sports Injury, Yoga & Pilates
Can Pilates Help My Knee Pain?
The quick answer to this question is: Yes, quite possibly!
Most of us have heard that Pilates is great for back pain. However, when it comes to problematic knees, we less commonly think of Pilates to help us. And yet Pilates can make a huge difference to your knees.
Knee pain, as with any type of joint pain, can have many different causes. A sudden injury to the area would be an obvious one. However many of us have problems with our knees without ever having necessarily experienced an accident, or the moment of injury was many years ago and healing never quite happened. Many of us experience knee pain after walking for long periods of time or after doing some awkward movements, perhaps twisting and bending when gardening or cleaning, or climbing stairs.
The knee joint itself is very complex and there are many things that can cause knee pain. The first point of contact should always be your GP if you have sudden or persistent knee pain. Physiotherapy and Osteopathy can of course help in the recovery process. And there is a lot that you can do yourself to help your knee health.
The first question you have to ask yourself is, what is likely the cause of your trouble? If it is a diagnosed injury, caused by an unusual event the answer can be fairly straight forward. Specific Pilates on the supportive Pilates apparatus can be a fantastic help alongside rehabilitation, to help the knee heal and to gain back full range of motion, strength and stability. The Pilates apparatus, such as the Reformer, Combo Chair and Trapeze Table don’t just offer isolated knee or leg exercises, they equally offer exercises to support quality re-integration of the injured area into whole body movement. What is particularly great is that the equipment offers a lot of support, which means mobility and resistance training can easily be practised with low resistance to start the recovery at an early stage. This is also handy for those who suffer from knee arthritis or loss of cartilage in the knee. There are many non weight bearing exercises, that allow the knee joint to decompress while bringing oxygen to the area to help regeneration of the tissues and disburse inflammation.
“Footwork” on the reformer, among other things is a great exercise to practice squatting patterns in a supportive way with less than your body weight, meaning your knees experience a lot less force while experiencing quality movement practice.
Besides the specialised Pilates apparatus, there is another reason that makes Pilates a fantastic aid when it comes to knee pain, particularly for the wear and tear kind of knee issues.
Wear and tear that causes pain in specific areas of the knee or during particular activities are usually caused by inefficiency in our biomechanics. This means that somewhere in our body we are out of balance and the transfer of forces, as we move, can not flow properly. Instead, particular areas repetitively take a lot of strain and impact. The knee often is at the receiving end of this, causing pain. A large part of Pilates is about restoring efficient and balanced physical function. This means as part of a session we can look at the subtle ways you move, and identify why the knee is taking so much pressure. For example, the answer is often in the alignment of our legs. This means there may be an imbalance in our hips that then destabilises the knee. Just as often the imbalance is in the foot and also impacts the knee upwards. Pilates can identify such imbalances and offer you exercises that address hip and foot function. By focusing on ankle and foot function as well as hip function, we often find knee pain much improves.
The “Standing Leg Pump” can be performed in a variety of orientations to the Combo Chair. It is a simple yet complex exercise that works on hip, knee and ankle/foot function, while also providing a balance challenge.
Sometimes knee pain is even caused by something that is out of balance much further up in the body, like a shoulder problem. There are many possibilities for causes of knee pain and it is unlikely that we can pin point the reason of wear and tear in the knee joint with absolute certainty, just by looking at the body. However Pilates is a holistic approach with which we look at complete movement function of the whole body. This means, while we may be focused on specific areas in the body, where there is pain or limitation, we never forget that there is a lot more that is part of this person and we work with the whole body and mind, treating it as the organic, interconnected system it is. Therefore Pilates is likely to address the cause of the knee problems, even if the cause is unknown.
If you experience problems with your knees and you would like to use Pilates to help your recovery there are just a few things you need to consider. Mat group classes can improve hip function and to some degree knee function, therefore attending mat based group classes may help you. However they are not the most effective way to use Pilates for your goal of reducing knee pain. Mat based exercise is limited in its options when it comes to knee rehabilitation. The Pilates apparatus can offer you a lot more ways to make your knees feel good and make them more healthy. The other thing is that a group class will take you through an average exercise program, which may not address the areas you want to address at all, or it may do so only very briefly. The teacher will also not be able to give you the feedback and support you may need, in order to execute the movement in a way that will change and balance out your imbalances. Instead you would likely perform the movements the way you are used to performing them, which just adds to your wear and tear and reinforces the problem.
The best way to start is a private 1-1 session with a well qualified teacher and access to the Pilates apparatus. In these sessions you can use the full hour to focus on the problem you want to address. Exercises and support will be very specific to you and constant communication with your teacher will insure that you remain save and do not harm your knee further. The teacher will also be able to give you support to allow you to change your movement habits so that strain is taken away from the knee.
If you would like to speak to Kristin at The Body Matters about your Knee Pain to find out if Pilates can help you, please call 01702 714968.
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