Knee Pain When Hiking Downhill? Hiking is a full lower body exercise, and your legs and knees are mostly affected by it. While it is a joyful activity, hiking can only be done by a person with stamina and endurance. It is why you need to train your muscles rigorously to survive on the trails. Building endurance is also necessary because the hiking terrains aren’t smooth like jogging tracks. Sometimes the terrains are up-hills and downhills climbs.
People who tend to hike more often also complain about knee pain. It can be caused if you’re a beginner hiker or you have done hiking on longer routes. Hiker’s knee is a common term that professionals use.
Hikers usually have pain around the knee joint, and it almost feels as if it is swollen and gets red. Hiking uphill doesn’t cause much of a problem because you are climbing, taking the support of the rocks.
While downhill hiking causes stress on the overall body because now you have to control your weight, balance yourself and avoid slipping from the rocks you took support from while climbing uphill. Knee pain when hiking downhill becomes intense because you are compressing the knee and bending it.
According to a research page, you put 8 times more body weight on the knee joints while hiking downhills. So, if you have any history of knee pain or knee injury, or maybe you have never exercised before. Whatever the case may be, some solutions can help you reduce knee pain when hiking downhill.
Causes Of Knee Pain When Hiking Downhill
Before telling you about the techniques and tips for reducing your knee pain, let’s discuss the reasons for knee pain. The causes are listed below, but if you feel severe pain, we advise that you consult doctors or seek medical help.
We will take you down through the symptoms you face because there are different levels of knee pain.
Swollen Knee
If your knee is red, swollen, and aching as if a hammer has hit you, you may have bursitis. You will feel pain in the inner side of the knee followed by a popping sensation below the joint. It mostly occurs due to friction between the bones and the joints. It’s a common symptom while hiking.
Burning Sensation In Knee
If you have a swollen knee with a burning sensation, you may have knee tendonitis. It is mostly caused due to excessive stress on the knee because your tissues get broken due to overuse of the muscle groups.
Twisting Your Knee
If you have accidentally twisted your knee, you might feel a sudden popping pain in the knee joint. Your cartilage may be torn because you have put your weight on the knee while twisting it. It may cause stiff knees, and you’ll experience sharp pain while twisting.
Inflamed Tissues
Due to the overuse of leg muscles, while hiking, the tissues get swollen or inflamed. You experience its outcomes outside of the knee. The pain extends to the hip tissue, and you will feel it difficult even to move. The condition is called IT band syndrome.
Knee Osteoarthritis
If you are an older person or have weak joints, labeled an arthritis patient, then hiking for such long hours is not good. It is a condition that camouflages the joints and can occur in all body parts. Try to make a routine with small hikes and then move on to the big adventures if you want to avoid excruciating pain.
Exercise To Reduce Knee Pain
Now that you have understood the symptoms of knee pain due to hiking, it’s time to discuss some good techniques that will help in muscle building and strength training. It is very important to train your muscles before hitting the terrain.
The below-mentioned techniques are for anyone, but if you have a history of knee pain or arthritis, we recommend seeking a doctor’s help.
Climbing A Staircase
Climbing on the stairs is very much similar to hiking uphill or downhill. If you are a beginner and want to protect your knee joints and legs from getting torn or stressed, then start climbing the stairs in your home.
It will put pressure on the knee joint but not much to tear the tissue away. The mild pressure will slowly produce endurance in the knee, and you will be perfect to go in the next step.
Stretch Your Knee
As much as it is important to warm your body up for a hike, adding stretches to your routine is also important. You need to warm and cool down your body through certain yoga poses, whether starting a hiking terrain or just finished and dripping in sweat. It will calm the muscles down, and you will feel relaxed.
Cardio Exercises
Cardio exercise is best for fat loss and weight loss. It is also good for building strength and training all muscles of the body. Various videos target a specific group of muscles, and you can try your luck with the lower body exercises. Adding these exercises to your regime will build strong leg muscles and lower to no knee pains.
While starting cardio, try to do modification mode, which is the beginner level of exercises. Don’t copy the fitness guru. They have spent an amount of time reaching the level they are now on, and you will be too, but at your own pace.
If you try to copy them, you might as well damage the knee joint.
Use Hiking Tools
Besides doing exercises and building a routine to strengthen your muscles, try adding hiking tools such as knee braces and hiking poles. These tools will reduce the stress on your knees by 25% approx.
If you have an injury or are a beginner, try these out for additional support you will need for longer terrains. However, the pro hikers can also use these tools to avoid getting a hiker’s knee or runner’s knee.
Be At Your Pace
We know it seems easy to climb downhills, but it’s not how it seems to be. Hiking downhills mostly injures the knee joints even of the pro hikers. That is why it is important to be at your pace, build proper stamina for the downhill hikes and then proceed with the long hour hikes.
Knee pain, while you are hiking downhill, can be traumatic and dangerous. You should take all the possible solutions and avoid any unfortunate circumstances.
Cures For Knee Pain When Hiking Downhills
Home Remedies
If you have mild pain in the knee or you’re trying to take the preventive measures to stop the pain or future lapses, then try out these home remedies:
- Take cold water or ice cubes and put the cubes in a plastic bag. Pace this bag onto your knees and relax.
- You can also use lukewarm water and repeat the same process. Place hot water in a container, and then dip your feet in it. The muscles will relax, and you will feel no pain in the knees.
- Try putting oil on the knees and then rub around the knees for few minutes. It will relieve knee pain.
Physiotherapy
If you want to seek physiotherapy, then it will be of great help to you. The sessions will help you regain your flexibility and recover the tender tissues that have broken due to excessive use on the hiking terrain.
Medicines And Knee Injections
If you are not feeling good even after the sessions or home remedies, seek the doctor’s help and consume the proper medicines for joint pain or relaxing muscles. Certain injections relax the muscles in no time.
Final Thoughts
Knee pain when hiking downhill is intense and can be draining. Hiking is a joyful activity, and you should enjoy it rather than be a nightmare. If you are a beginner, you should first try to build an exercise regime to avoid getting a swollen knee or broken tissues.
It would help if you had proper equipment and good muscle health to enjoy the overall hiking venture. That is why use our remedies and don’t let pain stop you!