Posted on 16th May, 2023 at 6:01:51 AM
It’s a well-known fact that walking for just 30 mins a day can significantly improve your health. Walking can improve circulation, heart health, and digestion, boost the immune system, and strengthen bones… the list is endless. However, for people who have been suffering from acute knee pain, long walks might not be beneficial. On the contrary, it might worsen the pain significantly over time.
There are many patients young and old who have been regular morning and evening walkers but still seem to be suffering from recurrent knee pain. They are at times unable to comprehend how they could have knee pain even with an active lifestyle. What they don’t understand, is that it is important to prepare the cartilages and tendons that hold the bones, joints, and muscles together, which can be achieved by including a thorough stretching exercise before and after a walk.
It’s important to understand that even though acute or recurrent Knee pain might occur due to a previous knee injury, it more commonly occurs due to
Ligament or Meniscus Tear: At times even a small twist or injury may cause injury to ligament or meniscus of the knee joint. These injuries generally result in sprain and commonly gets the home treatment. Sometimes, it remains partially treated. If unattended without professional care it can lead to Partial tear or complete tear..
Bursitis – which is the inflammation due to overuse or repeated pressure on the knee. generally occurs when one does an activity excessively after a long time like brisk walking, skipping, or squatting after a long break.
Osteoarthritis is caused due to degeneration of the protective cartilage. It is more common in people above 50 years but is recently have been seen in the younger population due to increasingly sedentary lifestyles.
Tendinitis -This is caused due to degeneration of the tendon leading to knee pain in the front of the knee which gets worse when climbing up or down slopes or stairs.
These conditions tend to slowly build up, catching the patient unaware, that the knee pain he or she has been ignoring all this while has led to more severe conditions. If anyone faces any discomfort while walking or the knee pain starts to creep up again, it’s important to stop the activity immediately and rest for a while till the pain subsides. If the knee pain does not subside even after 3 days or if it keeps coming back. It might be a sign of a more serious issue. At this point, it is highly recommended that you visit an orthopedic doctor to examine the knee pain and avoid taking recommendations from Dr. Google.
However, there are a few precautions that one can take to avoid the occurrence of knee pain. one has to have a proper stretching regime before and after a long walk. It’s always necessary to listen to the body and avoid overdoing any exercise. As the body ages the self-healing power tends to reduce, walking and other exercises put the body through stress, consequently requiring some downtime to recover from this. Hence, depending on the age it’s advisable to take appropriate rest.
