18
Crunchy Knees?
This post was written by Vicki Hatch-Moen (ACE Certified), a certified GRAVITY instructor and the Group Fitness Director for ProRobics Conditioning Clubs in Seattle, Washington (www.prorobics.com), where she also teaches a variety of group fitness classes and personal train clients. You can email her at lastingfit@comcast.net.
Do your knees make crunching sounds or have pain when going up and down stairs or 
during standing squats and lunges? Many times that pain or crunch is associated with the knee not tracking properly with the foot and hip during movement. After checking with your doctor to rule out a knee injury that requires physical therapy or medical treatment, try the following progression on your Total Gym three times a week on alternate days.
Set your Total Gym at a low to medium height (level 4-6), squat stand attached & fully extended.
Bilateral Squats (2 legs)
Lie supine (face up) on the glide board with hips at the bottom of the glide board and feet on the squat stand shoulder width apart. Place your toes at the top of the squat stand. Start with the legs straight, but not locked. Glide down the rails (squat) keeping your knees in line with the shoe lace zone of your shoes. Stop the squat when you get to 90 degrees of knee flexion (bend). Lift your head to make sure your knees are not dropping inward toward your big toes or pushing past the ends of your toes. Perform 2 sets of 20 reps.
Unilateral Squats (1 leg)
Next walk your feet toward each other until they are a couple inches apart to prepare for a unilateral squat on the right leg. Bring your left knee above your left hip and hold it there, so now just your right foot is on the squat stand. Slowly bend your right knee to 90 degrees of knee flexion keeping the knee in line with your shoe lace zone. Keep pressure into the heel as you squat up and down. Do a visual check to ensure good knee & foot alignment. Perform 8-10 reps on each leg. Repeat with a second set and third set as you feel stronger.
While performing the bilateral and unilateral squats keep your spine and hips relaxed on the glide board and abdominals drawn in. Breathe out as you squat down. If squatting to 90 degrees of knee flexion (bend) causes knee pain or crunchy sounds, then don’t squat as low or try placing your toes slightly above the top edge of the squat stand. Work within a range of motion that is pain free.
If knees continue to be pain or crunch free, every 2 or 3 weeks raise your Total Gym up to the next level.
This progression has helped many of my clients have less knee pain and crunch with their other activities. Let me know if they help you or if you have any questions.
