Is Your Poor Posture Causing Your Knee Pain?
After back pain, knee pain is the most common orthopedic condition seen by medical professionals today. This problem affects nearly everyone, with millions of new patients searching for relief from their knee issues each year.
As is the case with any condition, there are many causes of knee pain. But in this article, we’d like to explore the influence of bad posture on knee pain. Let’s take a look!
Knee Pain and Posture
Pain in the knees can happen due to trauma, overuse, misuse, inflammation, or any number of other issues.
Interestingly, one of the major causes of knee pain is poor posture. So, why is this the case?
In short, poor posture forces our body weight in a direction that causes our knee joints to work harder than they should have to in order to support our weight. This is because bad posture throws our center of mass out of place, leading to excessive joint reaction forces throughout the entire body.
Let’s examine what it means to have poor posture, and outline some key steps you can take to improve your posture today!
Poor Posture Defined
Poor posture comes in many different forms. For example, some people employ a “swayback” posture, while others have a Dowager’s hump.
However, the most common postural deformity most people suffer from is Forward Head Posture, also known as FHP.
Forward Head Posture consists of forward-protruding chin, combined with rounded shoulders. This is the position many people assume while they work at a desk for many hours on end. In fact, most people fall into this posture while they are sitting for any purpose: eating, driving, or anything else that requires being seated.
Naturally, forward head posture can cause neck, upper back, and shoulder dysfunction. However, as was noted earlier, it can also cause downstream effects throughout the body, such as knee pain!
Therefore, seeking treatments that lead to improved posture can effectively reduce your knee pain.
How to Improve Poor Posture
There are a number of steps you can take to improve your posture. For instance, stretching, strengthening, and chiropractic care can all help to realign your spine and reduce postural deformities.
Strengthening Exercise for Improving Posture
Often, poor posture is a result of weak upper back muscles. Therefore, performing resistance training exercises designed to strengthen these muscles can often reverse many postural issues.
Some exercises that can accomplish this goal include dumbbell rows, shoulder blade retractions, and various other movements that tighten your upper back muscles and straighten out your spine.
Flexibility Exercise for Improving Posture
Much like weak muscles in the back can cause FHP, tight muscles in the chest can also lead to rounded shoulders and poor posture. So, by stretching these muscles out, you can take another great step towards improving your posture.
Linking your hands behind your back and opening up your chest for a few minutes a day not only feels great, but it stretches out your tight chest muscles. After performing this stretch, you will feel loose and flexible for the rest of the day!
Chiropractic Care for Improving Posture
Chiropractors are experts in dealing with the spine. By correcting misalignments in this area, your chiropractor can improve nerve conduction between distant areas of the body, such as the knees and other joints of the legs.
Even just a few chiropractic treatments can improve your posture, which can lead to decreased knee pain.
Looking for an easy, effective fix for your knee pain issues? Look no further than chiropractic care. Our qualified professionals at Anchor Health Chiropractic, your go-to Noblesville chiropractors, are here to help! Book your appointment now.
