In this video, I'm going to show you how to fix back of
knee pain in 30 seconds. Stay tuned.
Hey, everyone. Doctor Rowe coming to you from SpineCare in
St. Joseph, Michigan. In this video, we're going to focus on
dull, tight, achy pain at the back of the knee and I'm going
to focus on the three main instigators of this. That's the
hamstrings, popliteus, and calf muscles. To make this
easy, we're going to break the video up into three separate
parts. Each part will target the muscles just a little bit
differently. Go through all three parts and use what gives
you the most amount of relief. Before we start, I want to make
a note that this is for muscle and soft tissue tightness. It's
not for major injuries of the knee. If you're suspecting
something like a ligament or tendon tear, please consult
with your local doctor instead. With that being said, all of
these exercises can be done at home. They require no special
equipment and may give quick knee pain relief, even in as
little as 30 seconds. So, let's get started. In the first part,
we're going to focus on releasing soft tissue tightness
including muscle tightness, spasms, knots and trigger
points pretty much from the calves into the knee, and also
the hamstring. This one can be done pretty much anywhere and
we're just going to be using our thumbs. So, what I'd like
to do is start off by going right over the Achilles and
taking my thumbs and starting to explore the area, pushing
into soft tissue that is muscle. We kind of want to stay
off any bony spots because that can cause irritation but what
I'm going to do is just use my thumbs right here to do a
circular motion applying enough pressure in there to get a nice
self massage. And once I go over this area, I'll start to
notice that certain spots are just really tight and achy.
Like right over the back of my calf right here, I'm just
noticing a big tender spot. At that point, I want to stop and
really focus on that. Doing this for about 30 seconds.
Applying enough pressure in there to start to release.
After that, I'm going to take a little bit of a breather.
Notice if it has broken up that muscle tightness. If it has it,
you can throw in another set or two but you want to do that
whole process pretty much over the Achilles working your way
through the calf up to the back of the knee. To take this one
to the next level too, if you do notice that you have like a
muscle knot that needs a little bit more tension over the calf
muscles, you can start to raise and lower your foot like this.
It will help activate that muscle a little bit more so you
can dig in there and really target that muscle a little bit
more efficiently. So, let's focus a little bit more on the
popliteus which is right in the back of the knee. If you start
to feel right on the inside the leg, you'll that there's a big
bone right through here. That's the tibia. So, what we want to
do is trace the bottom part of that upwards towards the back
of the knee. Once we get to that point, what I'm going to
do is then drop down to the back of the knee and target
that area. This can become very very tender but this is the
area where that muscle tends to lie. So, I'm going to take my
thumbs and just start to press in there doing a nice circular
massage for about 30 seconds. Again, only to your comfort
level. From there, you want to relax, how it feels. If it
needs a little bit more, you can throw in another set or two
but I also try to work around the knee right here going on
the inside, the outside, and then also focusing on the
hamstring right through here but it's just an easy way to
really relax everything and hopefully get some quick knee
pain relief especially on the backside. One of my favorite
ways to target muscle pain at the back of the knee is using
the tennis ball method. I'm just going to start off on a
floor, take a tennis ball, put it right over the Achilles at
the bottom of the calf. So, with this one, I'm going to
take my leg and press down into the tennis ball until I feel a
deep, comfortable amount of pressure. From there, I'm just
going to use my other leg and arms to roll up and down very
very slowly. Feels like a very good massage over the Achilles
going into the calf but I just do this process over and over
again exploring different areas. Any spot that just feels
tight and achy like let's say right about here for me. What
I'm going to do is stop over that spot and do this for about
15 to 20 seconds. Gradually increasing pressure with my leg
to get a deeper self massage. You can also turn the leg
inward and do it. You can also turn it outward and do it but
explore the whole area, any spot that needs more tension,
throw some more reps in at that point. So, for the back of the
knee, you can do the same thing. Just pressing over it,
exploring the area by turning the leg outward and then also
inward. I would also recommend targeting the hamstring at the
back of the leg too because this all attaches into the knee
if we want to take this one to even the next level what we can
do is focus a little bit more on that popliteus muscle in the
back of the knee. So I call this one the nutcracker. I'm going to
take my tennis ball place it right in the back of the knee
and then I'm just going to bend my knee backward like this grab
in front of my shin and then press backward with my heel
towards my butt until I feel a deep amount of at the back of
the knee. From there, what I'm going to do is take my foot and
turn it inward as much as I can. You're going to notice
that it hits the muscles just a little bit differently and then
I'm going to turn it outward as much as I can. Just nice and
slowly. Hold that for about three to 5 seconds and do this
for about 10 complete repetitions. From there, you
can change the position of the tennis ball as needed and
repeat. In this part, we're going to focus on getting rid
of pain at the back of the knee by loosening everything up a
great stretching mobility exercise. We just need one
thing for this. A solid sturdy object that we can put our foot
on. A yoga block works perfectly. You can use a couple
hard cover books, a brick. If you don't have any of those, you
can also roll up a large bath towel or two. The chair right
here, the rolling chair, is optional but you might find
that it will take this one to the next level. So, if you have
one, grab it. I'm going to start standing and whatever
side that I'm having pain, let's say I'm having a lot of
right-sided knee pain. I'm going to take that foot I'm
going to put the ball of the foot and the toes up on the
block. My heel is going to rest on the floor. My legs are going
to be in a scissored stance with both feet pointing
straight ahead. I'm going to try to keep both knees straight
during this exercise. The painful side, the one that has
the foot up on the block. I'm going to take that foot and
then take it outward like this until I feel a deep activation
of the muscles in the back of the knee. This one's really
going to target that popliteus muscle. Once we feel that, what
I'm going to do is take my hands, put them on my hips just
like this and I'm going to start to lean forward by
pivoting through my hips and through my waist. I want to
keep my back straight during this exercise. I don't want to
round it but keep leaning forward. The more that you lean
forward, the more that you're going to feel a deep stretch in
the back of the knee. Once we feel a deep but comfortable
stretch, I'm going to hold this position for about 20 to 30
seconds. Just do nice, slow control breathing also. Let
that tension out. From there, you can come back up and take a
breather. On the next repetition, try to stretch into
it even more. Always challenge those muscles as much as you
can. You want to do this three to five times. To take this one
to the next level, you can use the support of the rolling
chair to get a deeper stretch. So, I'm going to put my hands
right at the edge of that chair, the top of the chair
right here and then, just roll forward. Go forward as much as
you can. I feel a lot firing into my hamstrings, the back of
the knee, into the calf. I try to hold this one again 20 to 30
seconds. Just roll back like this, take a breather, and then
repeat this one up to five times. If you not only want to
get rid of pain at the back of the knee but also help prevent
it, the best thing to do is to build strength and stability in
and around the knee. This first strengthening exercise, we're
going to need the edge of a wall. A door frame will also
work. So, let's start by taking the painful side. Let's say
it's right knee. I'm going to press my toes straight into the
wall or the door frame. From there, I'm going to take my
kneecap on that painful side, press into the edge also. Press
into it a little bit just for a stable anchor point so it
doesn't lift off. From there, you can take your hands and
then grip onto the door frame or the wall right here for some
more extra support. You're going to then take the other
leg and lift up just like this. The movement, what we're going
to do is rotate through our pelvis through our hips in one
direction. Go over as much as you can. You'll really feel the
muscles in the back of the leg start fire. This one again
targets that popliteus muscle. Once you can't go any further
and you really feel the muscles activate, hold this one
comfortably for about three to five seconds. From there,
you're just going to turn in the opposite direction and
repeat. You'll notice that it hits the muscles just a little
bit differently but I try to do this one nice and slowly for
about 10 repetitions in both directions. From you can relax
and take a breather. If you feel like you have a little bit
more energy, you can throw in another set or two. To take
this one to the next level, what you're going to do is take
your foot back very slightly and repeat this exercise so you
won't have the support of the wall with your knee. Your
muscles will have to work a little bit harder to stabilize
this movement. Give that one a try. To take this one to even
the next level, take your hands off the wall too and put them
on your hips and then repeat this one but through all of
those motions and use what is the most effective for you.
Here's a great strengthening exercise that's going to hit
the hamstrings, popliteus, and calf muscles all at once. I
call this one the super lunge combo. I'm going to have very
good upright posture. Take your hands, put them together into a
prayer position. Press in with your hands and tighten the core
at the same time to help build stability during this exercise.
So, what I'm going to do is take one big step forward and
then lunge my body forward. The back knee, I'm going to go down
with it but do not let it touch the floor. Let it hover about
an inch or two. You're going to notice that a lot of muscles
fire in the back, the butt, the hips, down the back of the leg
into the hamstring to the back of the knee. Everything that
helps build stability into that knee but I try to do this one
nice and slowly for about 10 to 15 repetitions on both sides.
You can make this one more challenging by holding the
exercise a little bit three to 5 seconds or you can throw in
another set or two. From there, I'm going to take it to the
next level by doing what is known as a side lunge. So, I'm
going to put my feet together and again, I'm going to get
back into that prayer position. Tighten the core. This time
around, we're going to take one big step towards the side and
then, we're going to lunge our whole body towards one side.
Keep this leg straight at the knee as possible. You're going
to feel a lot of muscles fire around the knee but a little
bit differently. Hold this for a couple seconds and then just
come back up and then you're just going to do it on the
other side. 10 to 15 repetitions on both sides.
Again, to make it more challenging, you can hold it
for longer or throw in another set or two. So, let's end with
one of my favorite strengthening exercises, the
wall squat. This one is perfect to do daily to strengthen the
butt, the legs, and the knees. We just need a smooth wall or a
door. I'm going to start with my whole backside for my butt
to my head flush against that wall or a door. My legs are
going to be roughly hip width apart, I'm going to place all
of my body weight on my heels and then take my feet and point
my toes slightly outwards, roughly about 10 to 15 degrees.
From there, I'm going to take my hands, put them on my hips
just like this. Before we start though, I want to note that
when we go down like this to pay attention to make sure that
your knees do not go pass your toes. If that is the case, move
your feet slightly more in front of you. So, take your
hands, put them on your hips just like this, tighten and
engage the core for a little bit more support. You're just
going to lower your butt down towards the floor as much as
you can until you feel a deep activation of the muscles in
the back of the legs, the hamstrings going towards the
knees. Really focus on feeling it in the back of the knees.
Hold this comfortably for about 5 seconds and then just come
back up and take a breather. You want to do this one nice
and slowly for about 10 to 15 repetitions. With each
repetition, challenge yourself to go down just a little bit
more until you get your knees at 90 degrees but don't go pass
because that can cause irritation to the knees.
Afterwards, see how you feel. If you have a little bit more
energy, throw in another set or two but go through all of the
exercises and I hope the bag gives very quick knee pain
relief. If the exercises help, please support the channel by
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have any comments or questions, please leave them below. I'll
get back to you as soon as I can. Thanks for watching!