What to do about bad knees

[craig]

It seems my knees are easily made very sore from canoeing and or work or both. I am wondering if there is a way to arrange outfitting in myboat to minimize harmful stress. I have my boats set up differently but it all seems to be the same result. Maybe some exercises or specific stretching routines? I know that using foot pegs makes it worse but without I lose some snugness of fit so rolling becomes less of an option. Any hints ?

[Sir Adam]

What part of the knee is most sore? Joint? Knee cap (Patella)? More info will likely help a bit from some excellent folks on here (thinking of KNeal among others;) )

[ezwater]

Also, are you troubled by knee pain mainly while you are in the boat?

Or is the problem that knee pain troubles you after you get home from the river, or at work?

My knee pain happens mainly in the boat, and is "ischemic", related to the restricted circulation and tissue squeezing that happens when the knees are flexed tightly for a while. It can build up when I paddle several days in a row.

Another source of pain I've experienced when in the boat is from the knee joint being pushed from side to side, inside that is, because there is insufficient outfitting to keep the upper leg and lower leg in line. What has worked for me is to install knee wedges inside of my thighs, and of course some sort of knee cups, so that the knee joint is not "worked" within from side to side.

Your noticing that foot pegs make knee pain worse is a hint, but the meaning isn't clear. If those pegs put your feet up on your toes, rather than your feet resting flat on their tops, then your knee joints will be somewhat more flexed. That would make ischemic pain come on sooner.

Doesn't seem like we should be kneeling for such long periods, but I watch my grandboys jealously. Like native tribesmen, they can kneel with their thighs flat squeezed on their calves, toes pointed behind them. I guess we should have started paddling much earlier in life and kept it up.

[Bob P]

Doesn't seem like we should be kneeling for such long periods, but I watch my grandboys jealously. Like native tribesmen, they can kneel with their thighs flat squeezed on their calves, toes pointed behind them. I guess we should have started paddling much earlier in life and kept it up.

When I was (much) younger, I meditated in a kneeling position, sitting on my heels or on a thin cushion. Even so, it took a couple of years to be comfortable paddling on a low seat, with the tops of my feet flat against the hull. But, after 35 years of paddling, I'm still happily using a 4.5"-5" seat height.
You just have to break yourself in slowly.

[craig]

I think EZ is close to the cause. After paddling my knees seem to be " looser" maybe because they are getting worked while in position. They seem to feel like there is a small swollen pocket on the back side where it would be tightest when sitting on my heels with toes pointed behind. It can take days to go away especially if I paddle a few days in a row. 2 weeks or so after ALF this year. My job as flooring contractor doesn't help but that by itself doesn't cause issues for the most part. It almost seems like I should not use pegs and lock down my thighs safely somehow

[kaz]

Double straps.

[the great gonzo]

Craig, I agree with what Kaz said. Thigh straps are the solution. My right knee has some damage that makes it pretty much intolerable for me to use foot pegs. I have now a combination of either double straps or a short bulkhead to hold my knees and thigh straps in my boats. In conjunction with a relatively high saddle back (slightly higher than my tail bone), which keeps me from sliding back without the foot pegs, this keeps me in my boat securely enough to allow me to roll, but still allows for quick exit if need be. This is also the way my Prelude in Costa Rica is outfitted and it works pretty well for me.
Without having my feet constrained by footpegs I can keep moving my lower leg around a bit, which seems to help reduce stress on the knee. Not having to push on foot pegs seems to take a lot of stress of it in general. It takes me a tad more time to get iinto the boat as I have to attach my straps every time, but it's a tradeoff well worth it for me.

TGG!

[ezwater]

Craig: "They seem to feel like there is a small swollen pocket on the back side where it would be tightest when sitting on my heels with toes pointed behind. It can take days to go away especially if I paddle a few days in a row. 2 weeks or so after ALF this year. My job as flooring contractor doesn't help but that by itself doesn't cause issues for the most part. It almost seems like I should not use pegs and lock down my thighs safely somehow"


That might be a "Baker's Cyst". You might google and read up on it. I get a bit of a lump back there, and it goes away later. Serious interventions seldom necessary.

[KNeal]

Baker's cyst was the first thing that came to my mind, too, but may not be the only "culprit" for that discomfort. Definitely worth using thigh straps and avoid the pressure the knee can receive from pressing the feet back against the foot pegs. Also work on the thigh and lower leg muscles with stretching and massaging. I use one of those runners' massage sticks on the quads, calves, and Achilles' tendons. The legs feel fantastic after I get through working them over with that device.

[craig]

After reading about a bakers cyst it is likely the primary cause. I paddled today for about 3.5 hrs with no pegs much less pain Thank you all for your tips