Many of you may think that people only see chiropractors for back and neck pain, but plenty of patients also seek treatment for their knee pain. Knee pain is something we all experience at some point in our lives, especially as we get older. Many athletes and fitness enthusiasts often experience knee pain due to injury, but everyday activities and movements can just as easily trigger pain and fatigue to anyone’s knees.
Before you go and decide to see a professional for your nagging knee pain, there might be some home pain relief exercises you can do when the knees start to hurt. In this article, we want to share with you some of the best exercises to relieve knee pain and strengthen them at the same time. We’ll also help you assess your level of knee discomfort so you will know when to seek proper medical attention.
The Best Exercises to Relieve Knee Pain at Home
When working the knee, we also want to target what’s above and below it – namely the ankle, calves, quads, glutes, or hips area. Frequently, there is a weakness in those regions that causes knee discomforts, and these exercises are meant to strengthen them.
Knee Exercise #1: Hamstring Stretch
This stretch targets your hamstrings, i.e., the muscles in the back of your thighs. To do this knee exercise, lay on the floor (preferably on an exercise mat). Straighten both legs, then lift one leg off the floor. Next, wrap your hands behind your thigh and gently pull your knee towards your chest until you feel a slight stretch (Note: Do not overstretch to the point where it becomes painful). Hold for 30 seconds and repeat with the other leg. Repeat the process 2-3 times.
Knee Exercise #2: Half Squat
Half squats are a fantastic way to strengthen your quads, glutes, and hamstrings without putting pressure on your knees. To perform this knee exercise:
Start by standing with your feet shoulder-width apart.
Place your hands out in front of you for balance, and while looking straight ahead, slowly squat down about 10 inches (this is roughly the halfway point to a full squat).
Hold the position for 3 seconds, then stand up by pushing through your heels.
We recommend doing 2 to 3 sets of 10 repetitions.
Knee Exercise #3: Calf Raise
Calf raises build up strength in the back of your lower legs or calves. For this exercise, position yourself next to a wall, a sturdy table, or a chair for support. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and start to lift both your heels off the ground. All your weight should then be on the balls of your feet. Next, slowly lower your heels back to the starting position and repeat the action 10 times. Do 2 to 3 sets of this exercise for best results.
Step-ups are perfect for strengthening your quads, hamstrings, hip flexors, and glutes. To do this knee exercise, use a large, sturdy stool, platform, or even a stair step. When you step your foot on it, your knee should bend to a 90-degree angle. Step up onto the platform with the right foot, followed by the left foot to stand on the platform. Return to the starting position by stepping down with the right foot first, then left. Do 15 repetitions starting with the right foot and another 15 reps starting with the left foot. We recommend doing 2 to 3 sets of this knee exercise.
Knee Exercise # 5: Hamstring Curls
As you can probably tell from the name, hamstring curls target your hamstrings and glutes. This knee exercise can also improve your core strength since you need to keep your upper body and hips steady when performing it. For this exercise, stand hip-width apart in front of a wall or chair for support. Lift one foot with your heels facing the ceiling, bend your knee, and raise your heels. Lift as high as you can while keeping your upper body still and hips facing forward. Hold for 5 to 10 seconds, lower down, and do the same thing to your other leg. Do 2 to 3 sets of 10 reps for each leg.
When Should I See a Chiropractor for Knee Pain?
If you’ve tried our knee pain relief exercises and you don’t notice any improvement with your knees, or worse, they hurt more or may have possibly stopped moving altogether, it’s probably time to go and seek help from a professional. Time is of the essence when you are dealing with knee pain – meaning, the sooner you get it examined and treated, the fewer chances of your knee pain recurring and lingering for much longer.
With the proper chiropractic care, you can address all the underlying knee conditions you might have and reduce pain, swelling, and increase your knee’s range of motion. Chiropractors can also help with that clicking sound you might be hearing from your knee joints.
So what are you waiting (in pain) for? Get up and try these fool-proof knee exercises, or better yet, schedule a consultation with your chiropractor today.
We’re Looking Forward to Helping You at Our Chiropractic Offices in NJ!
Are you suffering from severe musculoskeletal pain? Remember that pain is your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong. Is your back pain interfering with your daily activities and tasks? In this case, you need to find the right solution. Muscle pain is a common symptom of musculoskeletal disorders. Chiropractic care can help resolve this issue through effective adjustments.
Neck and back pain are common problems due to the busy working routines and poor posture. Are you aware that nearly 65 million Americans report back pain, whereas over 16 million adult Americans report consistent chronic back pain? Chiropractic care helps to realign and readjust the spine, providing relief and restoring its functionality.
What Is Chiropractic Rehabilitation? – The Importance of a Rehabilitation Center
Chiropractors have a pivotal role in rehabilitation therapy, readjustingmusculoskeletal disorders in an individual. There are various focal points during chiropractic therapy, targeting areas such as the spine, hips, back, shoulders, hands, and neck. The spine has discs, ligaments, and soft tissues, and the chiropractor focuses on resolving the related issues to provide relief.
A chiropractic rehabilitation therapist restores your motor function with manipulation techniques to gently realign your spine. They will use effective techniques to relieve pain in the back, legs, shoulders, hips, or other body parts affected by a mechanical disorder. Hence, by opting for chiropractic care, you can avoid expensive, invasive surgeries to correct your posture misalignment and reduce pain.
Multiple reasons, such as dislocations and physical trauma, can impact different parts of the musculoskeletal system. Besides, a sedentary lifestyle is the most significant contributor to chiropractic back pain. Other factors include:
Injuries
Accidents (that affect musculoskeletal joints, especially the spine)
Deformities
Disease
Sedentary lifestyle
Benefits of Chiropractic Rehabilitation Therapy
First, it will improve your physical function, providing unrestricted movement, painless motor functions, and greater flexibility. Second, in the case of an injury, chiropractic care helps slowly realign the spine with vital soft tissues and ligaments, helping you regain maximum physical function. For instance, targeted therapy may help you walk again after an accident.
Chiropractic rehabilitation therapy will minimize your body’s stiffness, joint inflammation, pain and improve your posture significantly. Overall, therapeutic massage plays a significant role in restoring your body’s physical functions.
Hence, you will be able to enjoy outdoor activities, sports, and social gatherings again. Plus, your work will not be impacted because of pain. As your body rejoins the soft tissue and ligaments while the bones realign with the original structure, your body will start to naturally heal from any musculoskeletal disorders.
Choosing the Best Chiropractic Rehabilitation Center near Me
Here are some factors to consider when choosing the best chiropractic center:
#1: Referrals Are Essential
The first thing to look for is referrals. Does the chiropractic rehabilitation center provide satisfactory services? Do the reviews suggest the same? Finding the right chiropractor for your needs starts with asking your peers, friends, and colleagues. Positive reviews anda happy clientele add credibility, laying the foundation of trust between patients and reputable chiropractor specialists.
#2: Extensive Experience Check
Experience is an important factor that you should not ignore at any cost. This is because several years of experience in the field are usually indicative of a higher level of expertise. Additionally, this will give you peace of mind when going for rehabilitation therapy. Thus, you should find a chiropractor rehabilitation near you that provides treatment for an extensive range of disorders.
#3: Credentials
Inquire about the credentials without any hesitation. Consider the quality of the services of the essential chiropractic treatments that a rehabilitation center offers. Do they have the proper license and certification to operate in your region? If they do, you will feel more comfortable trusting their experts.
Chiropractic Rehabilitation Therapist – How They Help
Search online for information regarding the best chiropractic rehabilitation center near you. Moreover, we have shared some information for your guidance regarding the expertise and extensive experience ofDr. Gregory Doerr, who is an SFMA-High Level Evaluating chiropractic specialist. It is best to chooseBergen Chiropractic and Sports Rehabilitation Center for different musculoskeletal disorders that disrupt your lifestyle.
Back pain, especially chronic, can become debilitating. Using a patient-specific approach, Dr. Doerr focuses on providing relief to patients and helps them lead healthy lives. From in-depth evaluation to using multiple techniques, Dr. Doerr provides superior chiropractic care.
Dr. Doerr helps his patients with soft tissue and ligament issues, highly sensitive parts of the musculoskeletal system. Using alternative disorder management and readjustment techniques, Dr. Doerr can help identify issues for healthy motor function in your body.
Years of Experience
Dr. Gregory Doerr has over 22 years of experience in the field. He has delivered lectures on chiropractic care in different countries and has won many awards. Furthermore, he has numerous achievements under his belt. Dr. Doerr can help you with vertebral misalignment, ligament adjustment, bone realigning, and various other issues.
Patient-Centric Team and Care
Note that in some cases, you need to consult more than one doctor for different problems. Bergen Chiropractic and Sports Rehabilitation Carehas a supportive team of chiropractors to help reduce pain significantly so you can enjoy your daily life. They utilize cutting-edge resources and the latest techniques to relieve leg pain, shoulder pain, spine dysfunction, neck pain, and injuries.
We’re Looking Forward to Helping You at Our Chiropractic Offices in NJ!
There is no doubt that pregnancy is a joyous and wonderful time for future mothers. However, for more than 50% of pregnant women, early pregnancy back pain can be one of significant discomforts due to hormonal changes. In addition, note that the burden placed on your spine and pelvis by the growing baby can also cause severe pregnancy back pain.
While pregnancy should ideally be one of life’s most extraordinary and most joyous experiences, unfortunately, the increased spinal stress and hormonal changes that occur as your baby grows sometimes mean that this time can be dominated by back pain.
Did you know that practically every part of your body is impacted by pregnancy? This includes a significant burden on your musculoskeletal system. In a few cases, pregnancy back pain can be debilitating and interferes with daily life, which is why relieving pregnancy back pain should be your top priority.
According to recent studies, approximately 70% of expectant mothers experience lower back pain, particularly during the later stages of their pregnancy, primarily the second trimester and onward.
As a pregnant woman dealing with back pain, you have a lot to consider regarding your treatment options to relieve pregnancy back pain. Some women choose to take over-the-counter painkillers for pregnancy back pain relief; however, this can be risky.
One excellent alternative, however, which is increasing in popularity with pregnant women, is chiropractic care.
The Causes of Pregnancy Back Pain
During your pregnancy, your growing baby and the increasing weight of your placenta, uterus, and amniotic fluid can shift your center of gravity forward, usually to the front of your pelvis. Keep in mind that this exerts pressure on your lower back, resulting in considerable lower back pain.
Did you know that half of all pregnant women tend to develop lower back pain at some stage during a pregnancy? This is because your baby’s head creates more pressure on your sciatic nerve, causing leg pain and lower back pain known as sciatica. The sciatic nerve is one of the largest nerves in your body. It starts in your lower back, runs down your buttocks, and then branches down the back of your legs to your ankles and feet.
Hormonal Changes
You may know that during pregnancy, your body produces a hormone called relaxin, which allows ligaments in your pelvic area to relax. It also causes the joints to become looser to prepare for the birth process. However, note that the same hormone also causes ligaments that support your spine to loosen, leading to pain and instability.
Posture Changes
Pregnancy gradually shifts your center of gravity. So, you may gradually start to adjust your posture as well as the way you move, resulting in back pain and strain. Your lower back will slowly start to curve more. Also, your shoulders might also move back a little in order to make up for the shifting center of gravity as well as your enlarging uterus.
Early Signs of Pregnancy Back Pain
For many newly expectant mothers, lower back pain is one of the early signs of pregnancy. Did you know that early pregnancy back pain is exacerbated by concerns about your baby and the pregnancy, as well as related stress, which may increase muscle tension, causing discomfort and pain? A sign of pregnancy back pain is pinching nerves.
How to Reduce Pregnancy Back Pain?
One of the best ways to reduce pregnancy back pain symptoms and pregnancy-related symptoms in your spine is to maintain excellent spinal function during your pregnancy. When necessary, you can easily do this with specific spinal techniques, like chiropractic care, to help maintain movement.
A professional chiropractor will first conduct a thorough and detailed examination to determine if chiropractic care is helpful for you. Also, keep in mind that exercise is an integral part of the process, and you should add it to your schedule at least thrice a week.
Chiropractic Care – An Excellent Relief for Pregnancy Back Pain
Rather than recommending pain medication or painkillers to numb your back pain during pregnancy, an Dr. Gregory Doerr espouses a drug-free approach to relieving back pain that leverages your body’s natural ability to heal itself. Bergen Chiropractic primarily focuses on soft tissue and muscle energy techniques that are instantaneously pain relieving for most patients.
Chiropractic treatment is helpful during pregnancy as it provides relief for pregnancy back pain by addressing the musculoskeletal problems associated with your pregnancy, like lower back pain and neck pain.
As back pain is often rooted in misalignments of your vertebrae, gentle maneuvers and movements that put your spine back in alignment are used to relieve early pregnancy back pain. However, did you know that for pregnant women, these vertebral misalignments can be even more pronounced? As a result, chiropractic care is both an effective and safe therapy for expectant mothers.
Help Ease Stress on Your Spinal Column
As your body gets closer to labor, it creates relaxin. This helps loosen ligaments and joints to ensure your body can deliver a baby. However, this phenomenon may impact stability and balance, causing lower back pain in the process.
The best thing about chiropractic adjustments is that they can help ease back pain associated with both flexible joints and ligaments and adapted posture. This eases pain and improves stability through delivery.
Eases Morning Sickness
You will be happy to know that for some pregnant women, seeing a chiropractor in the first trimester helps relieve nausea. The symptoms of morning sickness can range from uncomfortable and inconvenient to debilitating. Note that some women find that seeing a good chiropractor during pregnancy helps with nausea. Also, an adjustment will keep your back in alignment.
We’re Looking Forward to Helping You at Our Chiropractic Offices in NJ!
Overall, receiving chiropractic treatment is effective and safe at all stages of pregnancy. Chiropractic care is a gentle, safe, and drug-free way to keep your body, especially back, functioning at its best. Experiencing the various advantages and benefits of chiropractic care to encourage pregnancy wellness is genuinely fantastic!
The Gonstead Technique is a popular chiropractic practice method. For decades, it has been a trusted practice among a significant percentage of chiropractors. One essential component of this technique is the frequent use of X-rays for assessment and treatment.
As chiropractic methods have evolved, however, guidelines for X-rays began recommending a much more limited use since X-rays do not have the usefulness to justify the risk to patients of frequent use.
This raises serious concerns for us at Bergen Chiropractic. Here we will look into the Gonstead technique and the role of X-rays, explaining why we neither use nor recommend this technique.
The pelvic girdle (hip and lower back bones) is the body’s foundation. The spinal column is most balanced and stable when the pelvic girdle is level. Any misalignment pressures the spinal discs and compresses and inflames the nerves. Once all affected vertebrae are identified, alignments will focus on those discs to restore healthy motion.
Instrumentation: Using a Nervoscope probe, the Gonstead method chiropractor measures and compares temperature along the spine to detect inflammation and pressure on the nerves.
Palpation (Motion and Static): The chiropractor feels the spine while the patient is either sitting still (Static) or moving (Motion), feeling for signs of swelling and pain.
Visualization: The chiropractor observes the patient’s posture, gait, shoulders, and hips to identify potential problems.
X-rays: The technique uses full spine X-rays for accurate analysis of posture and identification of problems. It is a vital assessment tool of the Gonstead technique.
Our Concerns about the Gonstead Technique
At Bergen Chiropractic, we do not use the Gonstead method of chiropractic practices. Several aspects of the technique concern us greatly, especially the heavy reliance on X-rays to assess patients and guide their treatment plans.
In our view, this method is outdated. Chiropractic practices and guidelines have evolved since the Gonstead methods were first developed almost 100 years ago. The science has improved, and current guidelines recommend the use of X-rays only when necessary.
We believe that X-rays are not necessary to perform good manipulation and treat patients successfully. The X-rays expose patients to unnecessary radiation and additional expense. It’s not that the adjustments taught in Gonstead are wrong, but the X-ray evaluations have been highly criticized. We’re not moving a bone back into place.
To better understand our concerns, let’s take a more in-depth look at the use of X-rays.
The American Chiropractic Association’s current guidelines recommend against standard X-ray use. Instead, they should be used only when the chiropractor has reason to believe severe trauma or pathology is involved in the patient’s condition or when treatment does not lead to improvement.
What has driven the evolution of modern guidelines for less reliance on X-rays is that many of the patient’s concerns don’t show on an X-ray. Most patients can be easily treated with manipulation or mobilization. At Bergen Chiropractic, we choose to follow these modern guidelines.
When X-rays Are Inappropriate
For the majority of patients, X-rays are not medically necessary. They are not needed to detect soft tissue problems or neck and back pain. Using X-rays for general purposes, such as exploration or monitoring patient progress, is not helpful. Also, there is no evidence that X-rays can determine the location requiring spinal manipulation.
Guidelines say that X-rays should only be used when there is evidence of severe trauma or pathology as a cause of the patient’s condition. However, studies indicate this occurrence between 0.2 and 3.1 percent for pathology as a cause and between 0.2 and 6.8 percent for injury. Given these rates, it isn’t easy to justify the general use of X-rays.
X-rays should only be used after the chiropractor determines that manipulations and adjustments have not worked or when there is underlying illness or injury involved, such as scoliosis or fractures. These are cases where an X-ray can provide important information affecting treatment options. In sum, X-rays should only be used when they truly benefit the patient, and even then, they should be used sparingly.
We’re Looking Forward to Helping You at Our Chiropractic Offices in NJ!
The Gonstead technique has played an essential role in the growth of the chiropractic profession. It was developed at a time when X-rays were prevalent and deemed necessary in routine practice. However, the professional has evolved, and current, accepted guidelines recognize the limitations of X-rays and recommend its limited use. The Gonstead method runs counter to those guidelines.
We at Bergen Chiropractic choose not to use the Gonstead method. We owe our patients our best judgment regarding their health and safety. For that reason, we will continue to provide the services that produce the best outcomes and improve the quality of their lives.
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