Five ways to smash a knee

At the moment that the physicist, mathematician, philosopher and writer Blaise Pascal blurted out that all man's misfortunes come from not knowing how to stay alone and still in his room, the French scientist made it clear that this did not take its toll on him. knees.

But to other people it does;

and inactivity produces more than

.

It's not to make your day miserable, but you can ruin your joint without leaving the couch.

Although you most likely do it when you put your foot on the street, especially if it is to do sports or squat.

And more if you have already crossed the Rubicon of 40 years.

It is not as safe as Pascal's law for fluids, but the chances of ending up in trouble if you indulge in these vices or find yourself in the following common circumstances are not low.

Little joke.

Blame it on work even if you didn't go down to the mine

Age is unforgiving, and cartilage vanishes with each birthday candle you blow out.

The menisci, cartilaginous pieces with a semilunar shape located between the tibia and the femur that act as shock absorbers between the two bones, are no exception.

"But this deterioration increases if the knee flexes frequently to squat or bend down," warns Tomás Fernández Jaén, head of the Sports Medicine Service at Clínica CEMTRO.

Degeneration also occurs due to the habit of squatting for long periods of time, a common circumstance in professions such as cleaners, upholsterers, plumbers, miners ... In fact, medical jargon speaks of the “mining-type break ", which occurs when someone gets up quickly after having been in this position for a long period. It happens because

its functionality is reduced and it can end up fracturing.

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Among the symptoms that announce the dreaded injury are night pain when turning the leg, the one that appears when sitting or standing for a long time (so capricious is knee pain) and the inability to kneel or squat when the body he has already said enough.

Years ago, the remedy was a surgery in which the knee was opened and the torn meniscus was removed, but current interventions are much more conservative.

Fortunately.

Now they are carried out arthroscopically and only the broken part is removed, an operation known as a partial meniscectomy.

If the patient is young and the tear is located in the peripheral part of the meniscus, it is sutured.

Depending on the complexity of the case, you may be walking again after a few days or need a few weeks of rehabilitation.

Do you emulate Messi on Sunday?

Give thanks if you only look bad

The same thing were young the biggest

of football in your neighborhood but from 40, in a pachanga singles against only married there is

a CRAC worth: which make the knees of the unwary who think it's time to emulate Zidane's roulettes, Ronaldo's bicycles and Messi's feints.

Not due to lack of soccer skills, of course, is that over the years you have to learn to pass more and dribble less ... "As we get older we lose muscle elasticity and joint flexibility, not counting other degenerative changes typical of the advancing age.

The consequence is that we lose the ability to adapt, and any twisting or twisting movement can cause the menisci to tear ”, explains Fernández Jaén.

A veteran dribble meniscus tear is a classic worth avoiding.

The dynamics of the game promote this injury, but it is the consequence of a sudden twist of the knee when the joint supports the entire weight of the body, so other activities that promote similar situations also carry risk.

One way not to add more tension than necessary to the knees, apart from being very careful when changing direction on one leg, is to

, which are the muscles that run through the front and back of the thigh. of the body, respectively.

Working early with pelvic raises with your legs supported on a stool (hamstring work) and stretching your quads helps prevent injury.

Not believing you Messi in Sunday's pachangas also does his thing.

Look at the soles of the shoes, and run to the podiatrist

Anyone can have a career, but bragging about doing it for years without injuries, pain and forced stoppages is a matter for a few;

of those who run properly ... that is not so easy.

The podiatrist Víctor Alfaro, co-head of Podiatry and Biomechanics of the Royal Spanish Football Federation and author of the book

(Alienta Editorial, 2018), warns that “not wearing the right footwear for running, doing it on hard surfaces ( on asphalt, for example) or having had previous injuries are some of the main causes that can lead to knee injuries ”to fans of burning sole.

Another reason for injury is the unstable foot, which occurs when the foot does not rest on the ground as it should, causing poor cushioning that translates into excess pressure on the joint.

The good news is that detecting a bad footprint is easy, just take a look at the sole of some used shoes.

“If they beat to the sides or wear out more on one side of the heel than on the other, you are on the wrong foot.

It may even be that the wear of one shoe is different from the other, a sign that you support differently with one foot than the other.

slightly naturally when taking the foot off the ground to run (we rotate the foot inwards), and we supinate a little when supporting it (we rotate it outwards).

Making this gesture excessively or when it is not appropriate is a sign that the footprint must be corrected, ”explains Alfaro.

Otherwise, the knee ends up paying the price, and the list of horrors is long:

knee swelling, wear meniscus and patellar tendinitis, the bogey of the

.

"The main symptom is a sharp pain in the front of the knee during exercise, but especially when bending it."

In order not to end up hanging the shoes, the podiatrist suggests choosing

well

, making insoles to reduce the oscillation of an unstable foot and enhance the work of muscle and joint strength.

And always keep in mind the first rule of training: if it hurts, don't follow.

This is how women run

Some biological characteristics give them an advantage;

others, quite the opposite

On the other hand, taking care of running technique is important, especially among women because the female hips and pelvis are wider for

ensure space for gestation.

This peculiarity causes an increase in the angle formed by the femur and the tibia: in men the bones of the leg form a straight and vertical line, while in women they are slightly diagonal inwards.

Hence the

, causing misalignment of the leg.

"This misalignment favors the appearance of chondropathies (cartilage wear) in certain areas of the knee because they are subjected to a greater load".

The feature also requires special attention to delicate movements such as squats.

The heel elevates and outlines the figure, but it betrays you

Physiotherapist colleges have declared war on heels.

They do not have a mania for persecuting the shoemakers' guild, but the fact is that

that produces or aggravates pathologies such as osteoarthritis in the knees.

This deterioration of the cartilage that covers the knee causes pain or difficulty when walking, even standing, and can lead to a progressive deformity of the knee.

To avoid this, physiotherapists recommend wearing heels no more than 5 centimeters.

In the case of using platforms, better those with a certain cushioning capacity and a height with respect to the heel that does not exceed 3 centimeters.

Another tip is to change your shoes daily.

It is enough to have two pairs of shoes, and so much the better if one has a more moderate heel.

The explanation is simple: if one day you force the foot to rest badly, the next you amend it.

This way it is easier to avoid 'catching the habit' of stepping badly and this results in damage to the joints.

Pascal's mistake: without leaving home problems also arise

You can now get rid of the idea that sheltering in the living room without doing anything you are safe from injury.

Dr. Luis Sanz, head of the Orthopedic Surgery and Traumatology team at the HM Puerta del Sur University Hospital in Móstoles, warns of the danger of osteoarthrosis, the progressive degeneration of articular cartilage: "Inactivity generates a loss of muscle mass, and it is not necessary to forgetting that the muscles keep the joints and bones in their functional position, so any deterioration becomes a determining factor in the development or complication of various musculoskeletal pathologies, especially those that affect the joints ”.

Translating: if the muscles that support the knee or other joints limp because you don't exercise them, you end up stepping badly and rotating the knee at the right time.

Get in shape without moving a muscle

It's possible.

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In the draw for ailments from lying on the couch, the knee takes many ballots to go wrong, even before reaching 40. The risk increases exponentially among those who register a notable weight gain

“Being overweight puts an overload on the musculoskeletal system and

”, according to Marco Strauch Leira, head of the Orthopedic Surgery and Traumatology Service at the Hospital de Manises.

We are warned.