Decrease Knee Pain

I love using Yoga Tune Up® therapy balls!

Knee pain affects 25% of the adult population.  Most knee pain is blamed on arthritis.  Arthritis is joint pain, stiffness, inflammation. But what causes that?  How you move and use your body every day can increase joint loads, friction, and compression at the knee, and can eventually lead to pain, stiffness and inflammation.  So, below is a series of movements to decrease the tension in the muscles surrounding the knee. This sequence is designed to improve blood flow and connective tissue hydration which can help decrease the tension in the muscles surrounding the knee and help to decompress the knee joint.
Save your joints and give yourself some quality ball time!

4 movements to release the muscles around the knee:

The last two videos don't show it, but you will want to continue to move the ball down the calf.  Repeat on both sides, or just on your side of pain.  If your knees are too stiff and painful to bend as shown in the last two videos, roll up a towel and place it on top of the balls and then sit back.
You can by the Yoga Tune Up® Balls and DVDs if you want to explore the amazing products from Jill Miller and Yoga Tune Up®.

Susan McLaughlin is a physical therapist who specializes in the management of pelvic floor and orthopedic dysfunctions. She is the owner of ALIGN integration|movement in Salt Lake City, UT.  Helpful tips and other self care strategies can be found at www.alignintegrationandmovement.com.