Ok, so last time I went over a few of the “lo-tech” strategies for dealing with knee pain so naturally today I will progress to the more “mid-tech” approach.

This means toys and tools.

Let’s take a look.

This is what we’ll call a foam roller.  It looks innocent enough doesn’t it?

This one is simply called “the stick”.  Not glamorous sounding but it will get the job done.

   And finally we have a plain old tennis ball.  Cheap and effective.

As I mentioned in the previous installment, knee pain is mostly a symptom of what is going on in the tissues above and below the joint itself.  Using these tools will help us penetrate and alleviate some of the overactive muscles associated with this type of pain.

I like self massage because it’s cheap and it allows you to do it more frequently than you would when dealing with a massage therapist.  The two types of self massage I will be going over are scanning/holding and basic full stroke massage.

1.  Scanning and Holding:  You’ll use this technique to scan your muscles for any “trigger points”.  A trigger point is essentially a knot that will prevent the muscle from performing its function normally.  You’ll scan the entire length of the muscle, once a trigger point is found, you want to hold pressure on that spot for no less than 30 seconds (this can be very painful).  Any of the three tools mentioned above can be used for this method.

2.  Full Stroke Massage:  Getting rid of trigger points can take several days or even weeks.  If you’ve eliminated all trigger points within a muscle it is then time for some tissue quality maintenance.  Here you’ll use either the stick or the foam roller to perform long smooth strokes from the top of the muscle to the bottom.  It’s best if you perform from 8 – 10 strokes.

If we’re dealing with knee pain the main muscles we’ll want to manipulate are the …

• Quadriceps
• IT Band (long sheath of fibrous tissue that runs the outside length of your leg)
• Calves/Peroneals

Quadriceps                                                      IT Band

Calves/Peroneals

Tips

• Trigger points often return.  Become aware of your trouble areas.
• Although the technique is expected to be a little painful.  Do not push yourself past your own threshold.
• The more often you perform self massage the better.  Frequency is key.
• Combine self massage before stretching for even better results.  (see first article)
• Try to incorporate some self massage before your regular workout routine.