Strenghtening Knees.

[red_fists]

Hi All.

I need your advise here.

Developed a condition that is not that good for my Ma practice, but luckily not preventing me from training.

Looks like I had it for some time, but my MA training showed/emphasized it.

I need some exercises to strenghten the outside muscles of my Knees.

The inside Muscles are fine and strong, but due to the weaker outside muscles my knees are pulled/fall inwards during some stances.

Anybody out there in E-Budo land that knows any remedies. I am told it is a fairly common complaint among sports people.

Thanks, in advance. :wave:

[WillyNinja]

Check out this guy, Matt Furey [won a Gold Medal in China for International Shuai-Chiao/Mongolian Grappling Championships]
He also has great training info on BodyWeight exercises such as the "Hindu Squats" which I would recommend for you.

here's a couple of sites...

www.mattfurey.com
www.combatconditioning.com
http://www.t-mag.com/articles/153combat.html
http://www.cbass.com/Furey.htm
http://www.combatwrestling.com/tip5.html
http://koreantaekwondo.tripod.com/articles/exercises.htm
http://www.geocities.com/funcfitness/revcc.htm

books and vids at mattfurey.com or combatconditioning.com ar all good. Feel free to e-mail him w/questions.

[WillyNinja]

you might wanna try some Feldenkrais exercises for your knees, you may have some parasitic tension that's causing some inbalance in the distribution of wt bearing for your knees.

http://www.feldenkrais.com/
http://www.feldenkrais.com/atms.html
http://www.nas.com/~richf/pastlow.htm

[red_fists]

Hi.

Thanks, for the links.

I will check them out a bit later.

The knees don't really give me discomfort or pain.

It was just something that my Sifu pointed out to me in class, and suggested some stance corrections as it would improve my Tai Chi.

And I was wondering if there were additional exercises I could do at home.

Thanks, again.:wave:

[WillyNinja]

Well, the Hindu Squats will definitely stabilize your knees overall. Just check out the links. :)

[Jason Carrier]

I know this sounds stuiped but Hacky Sack was made for knee exercise. Who know you may bring it back. I would also try the ball work outs I know it looks kinda woman like but they are great no impact workout I started when I hurt my knee.

Jason

[MarkF]

You are lucky, to some degree. It seems you are describing what most called "knock knee" syndrome. It is known medically as genu varum or genu valgum, depending on the muscles, if the miniscus is involved, or if it is painful.

This isn't my area, but you probably should go to a Physical Medicine doctor, a physical therapist, or both. It may not be serious at all, as there really isn't much except to be splinted or casted posteriorly (back of the legs, a full cast wouldn't help you anymore than partial spinting). The legs need to be splinted in a certain way. Also, look (or have someone look) to see if it involves both legs or only one. Most knock knee syndromes in a mild form start with muscle weakness in one leg, but still appear to be knock knee. It is, but unless you are sure, that may be important to treatment.

Housemaid's knee can also form, if you do a lot of bending at the knee for long periods of time. Duckwalking is a good exercise but some are just more apt to have these conditions. Avoid anything similar to it. In Housemaid's knee, it is an inflamtion of the bursa anterior to the patella, and fluid accumulation sometimes causes an off balance in one or both knees. Arthrotomy for a better look is sometimes useful, but it doesn't sound all that bad from your descriptions.

That said, I just don't know enough to recommend excercises to reduce the appearance of this condition. Sports Docs may be, though.

I'm just a clinical pharmacist.

Mark

PS: When you get into chronic pain, come back and then I can be of more help.:)

[yamatodamashii]

Definitely agree with seeing a sports doc, definitely disagree with bodyweight exercises. The higher repetitions you do, the more cotisol you produce, and the more your joints degrade.

[red_fists]

Hi MarkF.

Been to see the doc, he gave me some stretching exercises for now.

I was never in pain or discomfort, it simply something that my Tai Chi Instructor pointed out in order to make my stances stronger.

And I also noticed it during single practice when I checked my Forms & Postures.

Doc bassically said no real problem there, but it could develop later and keep going with Tai Chi and keep getting posture corrections.

I got a chronic lower back problem as well as one of my Knees & Ankle got knocked /squeezed badly by a Motorbike Engine
and a piece of Road.

Reason why I noticed it only now is because I have started to relax my leg muscles.

Gotta love those Chinese Doctors.
BTW, he is also a good MA.

Thanks, again to everyone that has provided Input.

[Fred Stakem]

I am not sure if it is a knee problem....but it is really hard to tell what you are doing over the internet. I have seen before quite a few people who practice internal boxing miss the alignment of the knee. People who even write books have gotten it wrong. What usually happens is that the person's knee does not align with the lower leg(what are they...the tibia and fibia??) and the knee falls a little to the inside of the body instead of over the knee. I am not sure if that is what you are doing but it is common. If it is, the problem is not with the knee, but usually the ankle. The person doesn't have the flexibility in the ankle and tries to do deep stances like their instructors tells them to. What happens is they compensate for the inflexibility in the ankle by going lower and misaligning the knee. I could tell you a good example of that, but I am not here to bash anyones book...I'll tell you in private if that is your problem.

Fred Stakem

[red_fists]

Hi Fred.

That could also be a part of the problem.

Some of the exercises I was given included stretching the ankle tendons as well.

I would appreciate any tips or Into you could give.

[Fred Stakem]

To be honest I don't have a good solution. The best advice I was given was to practice daily and slowly sink into the form. Naturally. I had an instuctor that could get about 30 degree angle between his foot and lower leg(most of us probably can't get any smaller than a 70 degree angle). He said that it was from constant practice...and 20 some years. I have been given lots of different ankle exercise....and they help a bit, but I think practice is the best way to get what you are after..I think it is the small things such as the way the body forms around the exercise that seperates the people who really have the time to dedicate to the martial arts and the rest of us.

Fred Stakem

[red_fists]

Hi Fred.

Thanks, again.

Actually I am about to hiit the park and do some practice. 2 Degrees Celsius and the Sun just rising with a chilling northern wind. ;)

Seeya later unless I get frozen into one Posture and become statue for the Park.