Knee pain from squats

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GiNormousMonstertobe

New Member
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I have been lifting for about 6 months. I have recently added squats and dead lifts to my routine because my legs are lagging and overall size is my major objective. I have read that these exercised are critical for gaining mass.
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I try to use good form and light weights, just 1, 45 on each end, I am 40 y/o, 5’9” 170 and have skinny legs, even relative to the rest of me. I am not very flexible, I may graze the top of my toes with straight legs fully warmed up, on my very best day, but usually cannot. I have been working on flexibility for a long time so I do not expect it to improve dramatically.

I don’t expect to get much from a doctor besides ibuprofen and “don’t do it anymore”.

If anyone has any experience or recommendations regarding it would be greatly appreciated.


GiNorm
 
Squats are usually preferred but if you have knee trouble (I went through this) you should be able to do leg press as a suitable alternative. Once you've done LP for long enough, you should be able to go over to squats even if only on an alternating routine (i.e. MondayLP, WedSQ, FriLP.). You may want to also give box squats a try during this time to help with form. Eventually with enough time, you should become flexible enough to do a full range of motion (quads parrellel to the floor). Don't know a quick remedy for knee pain though. Rather than a regular doctor though, you may want to go with a physical therapist who specializes in sports related injuries. Explain your situation and what you want to work to. Physical therapists are vastly underated in my opinion.
 
Thanks for the reply.
Goal,
I will take you advice about switching off with machine when I have to.
If you don't mind, I would like to get the full details of what your problem was and how you solved it.
I believe mine stems from hamstring stiffness which does not allow me to keep my knees behind my foot without putting my shoulders forward and getting a lot of low back into it.  Could also be partly swelling from a new motion, but I do not want to ruin my knees before I figure out that wasn't it.
I am working on technique but do not have a "box" at my gym.  I try to get this down at home without weight where I can use a foot rest or something.  Did you try feet set wider apart and feet pointed out a bit ?  Did it help ?  This seems to allow the knees to stay a little further back.
regards,
GiNorm
 
The tendon below my patella is not smooth. This doesn`t allow for proper sliding of the knee cap (sometimes). When this happens I get some swelling and it feels like my knee cap is going to explode right out of my leg! I don`t get this with leg press. I prefer squats though, so when the pain is gone, I go back. My stance is about shoulder width apart or a bit more. I can`t squat comfortably with my legs together any more than this. Next cycle I`m just going to try leg press to see how my body reacts. If you can only do leg press, don`t sweat it. It`s a heck of a lot better than doing nothing.
 
Thanks again, if I have that it's mild. I do notice that movie theater thing when it acts up, but it's not very severe.

I have had some luck working on technique, and having patience.

Not letting my knee travel beyond my foot is big for me, also a little wider stance, legs just outside of shoulders.

To get all the way down I must use a lot of low back, bend at the waist in order to keep my knees in place. But I think this form is correct, butt goes back like a box squat. I think form would be better if my hamstrings were more flexible.
 
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