Lets talk Knees

[ChrisAU]

So on our 4th day in the mountains for CO 1st rifle both me and my hunting partners knees hurt horribly going down hill and there wasn't much that helped other than not going down hill haha. Going uphill fine, but downhill just sucked. I've never had knee issues and I've been taking a glucosamine-chondroitin supplement for about 9 months now as part of a regular regimen. Wondering what if anything some guys here do to help strengthen and condition your knees?

 

[justinspicher]

I do a lot of single leg body weight squats. I try to Concentrate on full range of motion so my tendons and the joints get a workout As well.

 

[*zap*]

I think that full range of motion leg exercises are very good for fixing knee problems but it is not a fast fix....leg curls, leg extensions, back squats and smith machine leg presses done to full range of motion and slow negatives with a pause at the middle of the movement. My knees were very jacked up a few years ago and now are much better, I think one more year and they will be fully rehabbed. The Sartorius muscle is very important to knee stability.

 

[TCUHunter34]

Trekking poles help greatly. I’ve had the same thing for the last couple years after hunting season. Take it slower downhill as your knees get overloaded with weight. The above advice is great also

 

[*zap*]

Lower your posture (bend at the knees) and land on the ball of your foot when going downhill and trekking poles are very good as tcu said. Never land with your leg locked out.

 

[Fatcamp]

Squats, walking inclines/declines, and trekking poles.

 

[rino]

Ultralight gear...pack less. Is he overweight? All that stuff puts stress on knees. Trekking poles as mentioned.

 

[Ross]

Off season strengthening trekking poles and less weight on the body will go a long ways to helping but downhill plain and simple can be painful for all at times especially as the decades stack up.....good luck

 

[LaHunter]

Was the pain on the surface of your knee cap? Or was it more in the patella tendon? This would most likely indicate tendinitis. If the pain was ‘within’ the knee joint, that could be meniscus issues. Good advice above on training & strengthening. I’m 53 and been doing squats since I was a teenager. Never had knee issues other than tendinitis. Beware of leg extensions. They can start tendinitis. Weighted box step ups are good also. Trekking poles are worth their wt in gold imo. Also, when going down a steep grade, rather than pointing your feet straight down hill, turn at a 45, this takes some stress off your knee / patellar tendinitis
Good Luck

 

[ChrisAU]

Was the pain on the surface of your knee cap? Or was it more in the patella tendon? This would most likely indicate tendinitis. If the pain was ‘within’ the knee joint, that could be meniscus issues. Good advice above on training & strengthening. I’m 53 and been doing squats since I was a teenager. Never had knee issues other than tendinitis. Beware of leg extensions. They can start tendinitis. Weighted box step ups are good also. Trekking poles are worth their wt in gold imo. Also, when going down a steep grade, rather than pointing your feet straight down hill, turn at a 45, this takes some stress off your knee / patellar tendinitis
Good Luck

Interior of the joint. Granted we are flat landers and were around the 50 mile mark of hard hunting when we started having persisting down hill pain, but would like to mitigate it. Sounds like more leg days is the key!

 

[justinspicher]

I'd look at what your preseason workouts are as well. You might have overdone your workouts leading up to the hunt and peak before the hunt and now they just hurt from being used. It maybe that you're just getting older...…..

 

[Clifford]

I’d vote for back squats. Helps strengthen the support around the knee and hopefully take some load off. Downhill creates some shear force on the knee so at some point I’d imagine there may be a pack weight limitation to think about as well.

 

[amassi]

Might also look Into footwear. Some boots have such a tall heel and dont flex that the stress moves "uphill"

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

 

[TC406]

I have some serious knee issues, even as a young buck (by some of your standards). Lots of PT is helping, but that doesn't help once the season is upon you. 100% trekking poles, especially when packing meat and or going over lots of deadfall. Also always cutting angles when possible. I probably double the distance of my buddies going up and down hillsides because I'm always looking to go sideways rather than straight up. But I keep up because I can walk along rather than huffing and puffing every 10 steps.

 

[Dos Perros]

This year was the first year I've ever had knee issues and I can only attribute it to my training hikes being on asphalt rather than on wooded rocky trails as I have done in the past. Next year I'll go back to the wooded trails and also use a local lake dam to get in some sidehilling action.

 

[Poser]

The more You strengthen your quads, the less susceptible your knees will be to injury.
I’ll further quality this with the fact that high bar back squats and front squats both put more stress on the knees than low bar Backsquats, which have a much stiffer learning curve and generally require coaching to learn, particularly if you don’t have a background with Barbell training, but can deliver a better ROI for people with bad knees.

Ultimately, the best thing you can do for your body (knees, back, shoulders... whatever) in order to ensure longevity is to make it stronger. Period. People get hung up in the weeds on the best way to achieve that strength, but, I’ll propose that the idea itself is undeniable. Stronger legs tends to resolve many knee problems. A stronger back tends to resolve many back problems.

 

[Clifford]

The more You strengthen your quads, the less susceptible your knees will be to injury.
I’ll further quality this with the fact that high bar back squats and front squats both put more stress on the knees than low bar Backsquats, which have a much stiffer learning curve and generally require coaching to learn, particularly if you don’t have a background with Barbell training, but can deliver a better ROI for people with bad knees.

Ultimately, the best thing you can do for your body (knees, back, shoulders... whatever) in order to ensure longevity is to make it stronger. Period. People get hung up in the weeds on the best way to achieve that strength, but, I’ll propose that the idea itself is undeniable. Stronger legs tends to resolve many knee problems. A stronger back tends to resolve many back problems.

best answer to this thread and general strength training

 

[swampthing]

My knees are so bad I cant do squats or curls anymore. I just hike as much as I can, take glucose and use old man canes! Its a bitch getting old! I leave on a week long muly rut hunt in 3 days and am currently layed up with back spasms!!

 

[Donk]

I read most of your post and I have been drinking so trust me I have all the answers. The correct answer is you did not train for the down hill. Downhill is eccentric. Up hill is concentric. Total different use of the muscles.

I.E. a few years ago I started my pack training at the local college stadium. Went up and down the stairs for an hour strait. I could not walk down stairs for 12 days. I could go up the stairs no problem. Why? Because I did all the leg routines that we typically do calf raises, leg press, squats etc. That is why I had no problem going up the stairs a couple days later. I had not trained eccentric movements, think catch your weight as opposed to pushing your weight. It’s way different use of the muscles.

Long drunk ramble almost complete: do a crap ton of jumping squats or the MTI leg blaster workout.

Also read this description and you may want to try this workout as it addressed this.

Eccentric Strength Training Plan - Mountain Tactical Institute

• 7 Week, 5 Day/Week Strength Training Plan which deploys MTI's Eccentric Strength Training Progression Methodology. • Strength work focused on these exercises: Back Squat, Bench Press, Military Press, Bench Press and Pull Up • Eccentric Strength progression is one of our most efficient ever...

mtntactical.com

I feel your pain. I did not do my jumping squats this year and I paid for it.

 

[backcountryshaffer]

Surprised that no one has mentioned walking lunges yet. I've found that they are the single most helpful functional movement strength building regimen for my mountain endeavors. They really translate well into packing down slopes.