Strengthen Weak Knees

Knee pain is caused by trauma, misalignment, and degeneration as well as by conditions like arthritis.

The most common knee disorder is generally known as patellofemoral syndrome.

Age also contributes to disorders of the knee.

Particularly in older people, knee pain frequently arises due to osteoarthritis.

In addition, weakening of tissues around the knee may contribute to the problem.

Patellofemoral instability may relate to hip abnormalities or to tightness of surrounding ligaments.

Physical fitness is related integrally to the development of knee problems.

The same activity such as climbing stairs may cause pain from patellofemoral compression for someone who is physically unfit, but not for someone else (or even for that person at a different time).

Obesity is another major contributor to knee pain.

For instance, a 30-year-old woman who weighed 120 lb at age 18 years, before her 3 pregnancies, and now weighs 285 lb, had added 660 lb of force across her patellofemoral joint with each step.

Knee Pain Video Guide

Common injuries due to physical activity

In sports that place great pressure on the knees, especially with twisting forces, it is common to tear one or more ligaments or cartilages.

An increasingly common victim to injury is the anterior cruciate ligament or “ACL”.

The ACL is often torn as a result of a rapid direction change while running or some other, violent twisting motion. The ACL can also be torn by extending the knee forcefully beyond its normal range.