You run; you have knees; sometimes those knees hurt. Could that pain be runner’s knee? “Runner’s Knee” is an old, catch-all term for general pain on front-of-the knee or kneecap that often shows up in runners. Thankfully, we can most likely fix this running related injury at home with a few simple exercises! First, we’ll explain what causes runner’s knee, and then we’ll show you the best runner’s knee exercises.
What is runner’s knee?
Doctors often use the term “patellofemoral pain” to describe what we think of commonly “runner’s knee.” “Patellofemoral pain” simply means “pain at the place where the patella (kneecap) meets the femur (thigh bone)”. Recently the world’s experts on this condition have started referring to it as “anterior knee pain,” which more generally describes “pain on the front of the knee.” Runner’s knee pain doesn’t always show up at the spot where the kneecap meets the thigh bone. It can actually show up pretty much anywhere on the front side of the knee, including behind the kneecap.
What causes runner’s knee?
Almost every running injury is related to training load. When your body feels sore or painful from running, that soreness or pain is just a signal your nervous system sends your brain to let it know that the tissue is overworked. It does NOT necessarily mean the tissue is damaged. Interestingly enough, when doctors MRI athletes with new anterior knee pain, they don’t find anything consistent between cases and often find nothing unusual at all (review). If you have runner’s knee pain, your knee is just using the nervous system to politely say, “right now, I’m not strong enough for all this milage, pace, frequency of workouts, etc.” Because pain is a signal that a body part is overwhelmed, making the tissue stronger can help it stop sending that signal.
In short, the best runners knee exercises are the ones that make the knee stronger. Making the knee stronger will make it capable of tolerating more training load. If you make your knee stronger, you may may be able to run more pain free miles than ever before. Getting strong is always a good thing!
The best runner’s knee exercises
In order to fix runner’s knee or “anterior knee pain”, the world’s experts have looked over all the evidence and come to an agreement that athletes should strengthen both their hip muscles and our knee muscles (specifically the thigh muscles directly above the knee) (their consensus statement). Here is a routine of runner’s knee exercises that strengthen those muscles with minimal equipment.
Exercise 1: Lunges
Why it works: this exercise uses the full bodyweight to strengthen the muscles of the thigh. You can start with no weight, then add dumbbells as you gradually get stronger and reduce your runner’s knee pain
Exercise 2: Side plank with hip abduction
Why it works: this is the single best exercise for strengthening the hip muscles most relevant for running without any equipment! *yes, that is 2014 Boston Marathon Champion Meb Keflezighi (you can see more of him in our app!)
Exercise 3: SL RDL with or without weight
Why it works: This exercise strengthens the muscles of the back of the thigh and the muscles of the hip.
We’ve housed this routine, along with a few other key exercises, in the Recover Athletics app. The Recover App helps runners fix aches and pains and prevent injury. A year’s subscription costs less than one trip to physical therapist and we have an unlimited free trial. Give the app a try today!
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