FitMitTuro Fitness Podcast

Exercise your way to reduce knee pain

April 11, 2024 Turo Virta
FitMitTuro Fitness Podcast
Exercise your way to reduce knee pain
Show Notes Transcript

Join me on a journey to understand the vital link between ankle and knee mobility for athletes and active individuals. In this enlightening podcast, I'll share actionable insights and practical exercises to assess and enhance ankle and knee mobility, all while emphasizing the importance of managing knee pain through targeted exercises and mobility drills. From simple tests to identify mobility issues to personalized coaching services for tailored support, I'll cover it all, offering invaluable guidance for anyone looking to optimize their joint health and physical performance.

Follow along as I break down the complexities of ankle and knee mobility, providing expert advice and actionable steps to help you move with greater ease and comfort. Whether you're a seasoned athlete or simply seeking relief from knee pain, this podcast is your ultimate guide to unlocking the full potential of your body and achieving peak performance. Tune in now and take the first step toward healthier, happier joints with my proven strategies and expert insights.
If you have any questions, email me turo@fitmitturo.com or send me DM in my IG HERE

Join FitMitTuro Membership Coaching and get access to all my guides including Mobility Test Guide HERE


I had to always it's kind of same rotational movement and do that. I still have my mobilities from the other side there's a huge difference between left and right side so my other hip mobility is some area where I need to work and now I have been doing those like always when when I have this possibility to do some warm warm up school down shorts is that taking time time doing those simple exercises and it's got to say that it's improving especially my wrist mobility has improved drastically in the within the past two months when I started to implement the first step obviously was to know where that problem is or if I'm struggling with that verse. I never actually taught myself either that I have some underlying issues and it's the same thing with the ankle mobility. So So as this is a podcast, it's hard to explain. So the exercises, like I said, it's my mobility guide is the best way to actually know if you have if you lack mobility from your ankles, and when you know that okay, this might be an issue. Good other very simple test is to try to sit in a deep squat. So kind of like I know there are many, many different names but that you are able to sit there with your heels down on the floor that sing on the floor and you can sit there without feeling any discomfort or pain and that you don't need to compensate with anything else. So this is this is basically simple test and and other tests. What I what I love to use is just trying to in your kind of attorney on the floor and trying to go above how much you can go your knee above your toe. So it should be around 10 centimeters, what is above your dose and without that you have to lift your heels or you need to compensate with something from of yoga, it's going on a straight line and that you don't need to move your hips so so there is a great exercise what I have is against the wall and that was actually some of women also we were doing like they were saying that they obviously take a lot of running like I was past two weeks with the women's national team and we had a young young athletes there. And when they were saying that often they feel some knee pain and and especially if they are doing a lot of running and that's hurting, they love running, but sometimes knees are hurting and then we were actually looking at those angles, angles if there's lacking mobility and then surprisingly, or it was not such a big surprise that there we found that there were some areas that ankle mobility was not very soupy and most likely that is the reason what is then causing later on if you especially if you do more like running exercises or you feel like that your knees are hurting while you're running. So so this is often very it's how it's coming. And you might think that running is the problem. But the actually the problem is that lacking mobility from your ankles, so So this is just a simple fix how to actually first get recognized it very this and and then how to actually start to actually address those. So there are some the best exercises are for example, some ankle mobility if you don't know ankle mobility exercises, so it's the if you want to share it obviously I have those in my mobility guide. But then if you've just googled ankle mobility exercises or go to YouTube, you find several of them. One of my favorites is kind of duck or how to say that it's downward dog, I think so you're basically standing and it's kind of like your calf stretch. So you put your hands on the floor and moving with your hands so that your heels are staying on the floor. So going as close as you can, twisting your ankles at the same time. So it's all you you are actually and where it's feeling a little bit dense discomfort or you feel that it's not it doesn't feel that great. Ben, that is exactly the area where you have to be. And when you do that regularly on a regular basis, it's improving relatively quickly. So ankle mobility and those are kind of correctional exercises. So then, and then other lacking issue or problem what I see with so many people is that that that when you have obviously you think you have bad knees, your knees are hurting and that is causing you that you you are avoiding kind of all leg exercises like obviously squats or lunges or that kind of movements where you need to use your knees and bending your knees. So, so then you are kind of avoiding all kinds of strengthening exercises which are close to your knee wall or what are what you should be actually avoiding. But also here, like with a couple of clients who are recently verbal, we're currently on one on one basis to be said the routine on that kind of base that you obviously you have to start somewhere and strengthening also your muscles, your leg muscles and muscles around your knee. So, so exercise is obviously exercise selection that is very individual Amanda here I don't want to give too many exercise dips as it's more like you have to know what where you are struggling or what kind of movements are not hurting Gosha all exercises whatever you are doing, you should not feel any pain and you should be able to do pain free but then for example, Bulgarian split squats that if you like for example, this exercise could be one of the best exercises for knee pain or for strengthening your legs but that there are just a couple of tips for Bulgarian split squats that you've got to make sure that your toes are staying or your knees are staying behind your dose. And other way to lower that impact on your knees booting for example something some weight plate or or something below your dose. So it's a simple fix. But with this race, you are reducing the impact on your knee and you are using more kind of your glute muscles and and less that muscle on your knee. So, so those are four, it's just an example. So all all kinds of hip predecease which are also like glute dominating workouts but you also need your quads. So all kinds of all muscles from your legs but you are not doing you're not bending your knees or or this or this or some for somebody. It's just some static exercises like wall squats, which are not causing pain. So there are so many leg exercises what you can do without actually impacting too much you knew okay and and you should not be obviously if your doctor is telling that you should not do anything. Trust your doctor. I'm not a doctor or you're fishy if your physiotherapy therapist is telling you to avoid some movements. Don't do them because you hurt some guy talking to Rob was talking in a podcast that you should be able to do so always trust that advice but these advices are just a general advices that you can always and kind of making you think that you can always do something so often with these two things. When you are when you are able to able to do some kind of strengthening routine for your knees and all your legs and taking the mobility exercises obviously, there are some key mobility exercises what I highly recommend, obviously mobility exercises especially if you have your knees are hurting they should be always done within only rates of motion that you are able to perform without feeling any discomfort or any pain. At least maybe it might be a bit kind of discomfort. But you should not feel any pain so so this is something what I love to use dated if it's if you feel something it's okay go both slower, but you should you should never feel some pain like go mobility exercise is I like to do should be going up to a point that you don't feel any pain. So, so it could be like for example knee mobility exercises, assess the knee circles like I love to use them with a single leg like kind of one leg leg in the front starting with the leg straight are going as large circles as you want and often just four or five circles each direction as a larger process you are able to do without paying is more than enough. So so just doing those four or five circles each direction so you are mobilizing mobilizing your money and this is this helps to blood circulate better, and so on so you get some movement into your joint what is actually causing the pain so so these are just reminders, what kind of exercises so what I would do as someone who has knee pain and that is not something that you need to operate it or there is something more broken, what needs to be addressed. So with the doctor so so taking your mobility exercises and mobility from your ankles, your knees and even from from the hips, but often angle is the cause of kidney pain and then add in some kind of strengthening exercises. So so these are like targeting muscles around the knees or ankles. So, these are these are and what I mean by these exercises, you need to add some kind of progressive overload and obviously proper proper form where men are performing these exercises so so for example, squats if you are able to do squats like what I hear often from people that you can, I can't do squats, or do squats are hurting, but when you do it properly like in these exercises, the main focus is to lower that impact on your knees and this is something what you can be doing with just looking where your kidneys are arc knees on kind of straight line within your big toe, that or a second toe so it's not that the organ is going straight. It's not going left and right like what I see from many, many people. So this kind of squatting exercises are great, great. Obviously then some kind of lands movements, but lands movements they can be very painful. So there could be some kind of variations you are able to do. And at some point you might be when you want to avoid those in the beginning but then the goal is ultimate goal is to always it doesn't mean that if you your squats are hurting at the moment like that has happened so many with some of my clients that in the beginning that squats were no go but then starting with some other exercises and strengthening those muscles learning to make squats and starting with lower weights and progressively trying to increase that weight and then after a couple of months while that miracle have happened and you are able to do actually squats without having that pain so so these are these are just examples like that. There are not certain exercises you can never do. It might be at the moment you need to avoid them but the ultimate goal is always to get those the best exercises. So and then obviously, lick races are called racing sorry, are kind of exercises to strengthen your carbs and carbs are by the way so one of the most Miss forgetten exercise or muscle what most people are not that strength training properly and that golf races it's also often you work on the mobility improving mobility of your ankles so so at the same time so it's kind of a win win situation when when exercise and then some kind of there's obviously something like machines if you're pulling at a team like leg presses where you can change the angle or position with your legs and with that, you change the impact on the opening. So so these are these are just an examples of exercises but as I mentioned, Bulgarian split squats, hip thrusts and those are something I often recommend like to try first if you feel pain, then it's time to access those exercises and do not fight through the pain and all these these exercises as you said if you this got something that well this might be something I want to know how to actually do it. The opposite is that I have my like I said I don't have I would be selling that my mobility guy for example, which is I'm impressed how much it has helped my clients how much it helped me and all my athletes who I work with, but I don't have it in a sale. I'm not I have never showed it separately. So it's part of you get it for free. It's kind of an additional bonus for all my members. So if you want to join for in expensive membership coaching I will put a link to show notes so it's it's 99 euro for three months, and you can join from the link you get access to all my mobility workouts, all my strength training, strength training workouts, and if you are interested to get individual workout plan I have go for it too 150 euros for three months with the individual workout plan. And the email me to right fit me Turo as I haven't put it somewhere publicly. But that is something what just a couple of people asked me that they don't need that. Kind of teaches need to have individual workout plan with possible updates or assessments for exercises if they have if you are for example in situation that you you don't need someone to message you every single week because that's kind of one one on one coaching where that support bot accountability is done from my side, but then you just need that workout plan and updates and you know that you are doing the right things. So that's that's one option. I haven't put it publicly so it's only for my podcast listeners. So shoot me an email Turo at fit me turo.com or shoot me a DM in my Instagram. So I can get back to you on all those details. And that's just a small, small advertisement for my services as I don't as I don't have like to talk about the things that I sell. But as I said, shoot me email. DM me if you have any questions, and hopefully this episode was helping. So thank you for listening and talk to you in the next week episode.