5 Daily Habits That Can Help Alleviate Your Knee Pain
Your knees bear the brunt of taking your body from place to place. The joints are constantly in motion with almost every move you make, whether it’s standing up, sitting down, walking, climbing stars, or crouching to pick something up. Knee pain can make every motion a misery.
At The Spine and Sports Center at The Galleria in Houston, Sugar Land, and the Willowbrook/Cy-Fair area of Texas, Dr. Benoy Benny suggests lifestyle changes to mitigate your knee pain and provides noninvasive treatments to improve your mobility.
You can help reduce knee pain with these five simple daily habits:
1. Eat foods that support joint health
People who are over 65 or overweight, especially women over the age of 55, have the highest risk for osteoarthritis, which can cause severe knee pain that worsens with age. Eat fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy products, and healthy oils to promote joint health.
2. Exercise in small bursts
Exercise can help with flexibility and lower inflammation levels, reducing stiffness and relieving pain. Modified workout routines are low impact and can be done safely at home. Try to exercise for 10 minutes at a time, twice a day, to keep joints moving but not overworked.
3. Adapt your home
Put things you use often up where you don’t have to crouch down to reach them. Think about things like your most used pots and pans, which can be moved to a countertop rack instead of being stored in below-the-counter cabinets, or cleaning supplies, which can be stored on a closet shelf instead of the closet floor.
4. Give your knees a break
Pushing through the pain is something many of us have been taught to do, but when it comes to your knees, it’s a bad idea. The CDC says moderate pain means your body is asking for rest, so be kind to yourself and consider taking some time off your feet at least twice a day and don’t overdo the exercises.
5. Track your pain levels
Knee pain doesn’t have to mean surgery. Keep a journal of your pain levels from day to day accompanied by what you did and ate, and talk to Dr. Benny about pain-relief options. Hyaluronic acid gel injections or Regenerative medicine, including platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections, can help boost your body’s healing processes, improving your flexibility and mobility while reducing inflammation and knee pain.
Ready to be free from knee pain? Call our nearest location for an appointment or book a consultation online today.