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Runner’s Knee stretches
Body Part:
Foot & Leg
Equipment:
None
Level:
Beginner
Outrun Knee Pain with 6-Minute Runner’s Knee Stretches
Is runner’s knee keeping you from your favourite exercise or sport or causing pain when you walk? Our 5-minute stretches can help prevent runner’s knee pain, restore your range of motion, and get you back out on the track or field or simply take the “ouch” out of walking. Before we get into our stretching routine, let’s take a closer look at what runner’s knee is, the causes and the most common symptoms of runner’s knee.
What Is Runner’s Knee (Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome)?
Runner’s knee is an injury that is caused by the overuse of the leg. It’s also known as Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome and Iliotibial Band Syndrome. Research shows that ITBS is the most common injury to occur along the outside of the knee in runners.1) Although it’s called “runners knee,” the condition is not specific to runners; athletes, as well as anyone who regularly plays high-impact sports, may experience patellofemoral pain syndrome.
Along the side of your thighs is soft tissue called the iliotibial band. It runs from your pelvis to your knees, attaching your tensor fascia latae (a muscle in your thigh) to your glute muscles. The iliotibial band becomes thicker as it crosses your thigh bone. Repeatedly bending and straightening your knee causes friction between your iliotibial band and the bones and muscles underneath. This results in irritation and inflammation, which brings about pain around or behind your knee.
What Causes Runner’s Knee?
Any activity, especially high-impact sports like running, cycling, skiing and squatting, that overworks your knee can cause runner’s knee. It can also develop from remaining in one position for a long period of time (like sitting with your knees bent or standing at work.)
If you begin an intense or new exercise routine after a long break and do not warm up correctly or thoroughly enough, runner’s knee may strike. It can also develop if your kneecaps are improperly aligned, your thigh muscles are weak or tight, you have flat feet, or if you’ve had an injury to the kneecap.
What Are Symptoms of Runner’s Knee?
The most common symptom of runner’s knee is pain around or behind the knee after running, walking, taking the stairs, or going from a position of sitting to standing.
Additional symptoms of runner’s knee are that:
- your knee feels tender,
- your knee is swollen,
- your knee pops or grinds,
- your knee snaps when you bend or straighten your leg.
You may also notice pain or a tight feeling at your hips.
What Can I Do for Runner’s Knee Pain?
Regularly stretching can decrease knee pain. Our video will show you two stretches that target the hips and knees to relieve pain and swelling. The entire runner’s knee pain routine only takes six minutes, and it’s been developed so that you can do it on a park bench or with a chair
Stretch 1: Knee Stretch
- Stand facing a chair or bench.
- Keeping your left leg straight, raise your left foot from the heel and press the sole against the leg of the chair.
- Lean your hips forward and bring your right foot closer to the chair.
- Keeping both legs straight, bring your hips as far forward as you can.
- Arch your back and lean forward slightly from the hips.
Make sure that you don’t stick your buttocks out.
- You’ll feel a stretch along the back of your knee up to your buttocks.
- Increase the intensity of the stretch and hold for 2 minutes.
- Leave the stretch slowly and repeat on the right leg.
Stretch 2: Hip Stretch
- Stand on your knees and slowly sit back on your heels.
- With your hands on the floor behind you for support, slowly lean your upper body backward toward the floor.
- You’ll feel a stretch along the front of your hips and in your thigh muscles.
- Intensify the stretch and hold for 2 minutes.
- Come up slowly to finish.
Sources & Studies
- ↑1 van der Worp, M. P., van der Horst, N., de Wijer, A., Backx, F. J., & Nijhuis-van der Sanden, M. W. (2012). Iliotibial band syndrome in runners: a systematic review. Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 42(11), 969–992. https://doi.org/10.2165/11635400-000000000-00000.
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All gain. No pain.
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