My Knee Hurts When I Go Down Steps
I hear it all the time…” My knees only hurts when I go downstairs, but not up.”
Immediately my clients starts to chime in and tell me why they think this is so. They may mention weak quads or arthritis , but when in actuality it’s many things. One of the main culprits being weak hamstrings.
Most people aren’t as familiar with what the muscle on the backside of their body do. They all know about their biceps, pecs, and quads, it seems as though out of sight out of mind applies to the body as well.
Photo Credit Randy Jacob
The Hamstrings function:
The hamstrings act between the knee and hip
Extend the hip ie. Romanian Deadlift
Bend the knee ie. Leg Curl
The hamstrings are responsible for the deceleration of knee extension.
Quick think how you usually walk down the steps. Many people lock out their knees upon impact. Meaning their knee in fully extended with no hamstring activation or contraction. All of your force goes right to the joints instead of your muscle acting like a spring and allowing for proper force distribution.
Others may have little to no strength or activation in their hamstrings so their knees shoots far forward beyond their toes. Their body is searching for strength and stability that the hamstring isn’t providing and usually finds it in the knee joint. It is never a good thing when a joint takes over the function of a muscle.
Your body is smart. It’s not going to use what it doesn’t have. If you have no hamstring strength your body knows it and you naturally change your mechanics to fit. It holds up for some time, but as you age and the repetitive stress adds up the parts of your body that are doing the compensating wear.
Stability ball leg curl are my favorite hamstring exercise. The stronger your hamstrings are the more you’ll move properly again. The steps will be no problem for you.
To Your Health,
Mark Radio