How To Fix Inward Knees

Knee Braces & Orthotics

Some doctors will suggest that patients with knock knees try a knee brace to help alleviate some of the issues associated with the condition. While you can buy knee braces over the counter at many pharmacies, its generally best to discuss your options with a specialist physician first.

Another treatment option for some adults with mild knee valgus is orthotics. This is particularly useful for some adults whose knee valgus is caused by osteoarthritis. While orthotics are also available over the counter , its usually best to first consult with a podiatrist or orthopedist about custom options.

Natural Treatment For Underpronation

1. Loosen Susceptible Muscles

Supinators should do extra stretching of the calves, hamstrings, quads and iliotibial band. See above for recommended leg stretches and foam rolling tips, plus add some of these routine:

• Ankle rolls
• Crab crawls to stretch the ankles
• Foam rolling the lower legs
• Massaging the fascia in the underpart of the feet with a tennis ball or your hand

2. Strengthen the Mid and Upper Legs

Leg exercises to help reduce muscular weakness in the legs include:

• Squats
• Lunges, including side lunges, lunge dips or lunge twists
• Calf raises
• Burst training or sprinting

3. Make Sure Your Shoes Arent Worn Out

Signs of underpronation will show up in your sneakers or shoes, usually causing the outer edge of the shoe to become flimsy more quickly. Replace your sneakers regularly, especially if you exercise often. To see if youre due for a new pair, place your shoes down on a flat surface and look for the outer edge to tilt outward. Experts also recommend trying more flexible, lightweight sneakers for underpronators who spend lots of time on their feet . Lightweight shoes can withstand more foot motion, especially those with flexible inner edges.

Precautions Regarding Pronation Treatment

Final Thoughts

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How Will You Fix It

First, try cues to fix the position

• Keep your knees out
• Sit back
• Round your low back a little

If this works, the exercise may fix the dysfunction. Keep using it and be diligent about technique.

If this doesnt FULLY fix the problem, look elsewhere:

• If their feet are messed up, help them get the support they need.
• If they cant fix their position, put them in another position that will help them feel where they need to be, i.e. corrective exercise.
• If the weight is too heavy, slow down, lower it the weight, or do fewer reps.
• If the athlete is too fatigued, tell them to keep it together or increase rest.

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Knee Pain Fix #3 How To Keep Knees From Hurting When Bending Exercising And On The Stairs

Many people don’t “lift with the legs” to prevent back pain, because it hurts their knees. Bending knees properly should not hurt, but help fix and strengthen. A major cause of knee arthritis is weak thighs. Good bending will save your back and exercise your legs in healthy ways at the same time:

Healthy squatting for daily life strengthens legs, hips, and knees. Bad squatting can hurt. It is no mystery. Instead of thinking of squats as an exercise to “do” 10 times, use it for real life. Real built in exercise, both back AND knee pain prevention, and knee strengthening.

Duck Feet Caused By Externally Rotated Hips

Duck feet can be caused due to externally rotated hips. In other words, the whole leg is pointing outwards due to the position of the rotated hips which gives the appearance of duck feet.

Externally rotated hips are usually the result of tight glutes and weak hip internal rotators.

To fix duck feet caused by too much hip external rotation you would need to lengthen the glutes and strengthen the hip internal rotators so that the rotation of the hips is pulled more internally rather than externally.

You can test if your duck feet are rooted in your hips or not by lying flat on the floor on your back.

Relax completely, and look down at your knees. If your kneecaps are facing outwards along with your feet, then your hip alignment is the culprit.

We will provide stretches and exercises below to fix duck footed posture caused by eternally rotated hips in a later section.

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Train The Fundamental Movement Patterns

You also need to devote time to training the fundamental movement patterns i.e., the squat, hip hinge, lunge and hip lift.

These moves are at the heart of most movements we perform with our lower body. If your form is off on any of these key moves, its kind of a no-brainer that youve got knee pain.

Devote time to training these moves until your form is spotless. And in the meantime, youll be building strength and working on your range of control.

Symptoms Of Knock Knees

If someone with knock knees stands with their knees together, their lower legs will be spread out so their feet and ankles are further apart than normal.

A small distance between the ankles is normal, but in people with knock knees this gap can be up to 8cm or more.

Knock knees don’t usually cause any other problems, although a few severe cases may cause knee pain, a limp or difficulty walking.

Knock knees that don’t improve on their own can also place your knees under extra pressure, which may increase your risk of developing arthritis.

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Do I Have An Internally Rotated Femur

Basically, if you place your feet under your hips and point them straight ahead your knees should also be pointing forward. If your knees point inward you have internally rotated femurs.

My personal experience with this is that if youre not used to pointing your feet straight ahead and then change this one variable in the system, everything will feel strange.

Walking with my feet pointed straight ahead felt unnatural to me and it was only through tensing the gluteals that I could manage to point my knees straight ahead.

If all this sounds familiar to you and you also determined that you have anterior pelvic tilt, chances are you have internally rotated femurs.

By now you have also done the Thomas Test as described in the previous post. If your result pointed towards a short tensor fascia latae you have one more clue towards internally rotated femurs.

Growth And Development In Children

A common concern for parents, bowlegs and knock-knees are primarily due to the childs normal growth and development. However, only a very small number of children need treatment. Understanding how a childs legs change as they grow is important in understanding these conditions.

During growth, the majority of children normally go through a period of being relatively bowlegged or knock-kneed. Physiologic bowlegs and knock-knees will not affect a childs ability to crawl, walk, run or play. Some children may walk with their toes pointed in, trip more or appear clumsier than other children their age, and, children at the extremes of the normal growth curve may have bowlegs or knock-knees that often look severe. However, these are symptoms of bowlegs and knock-knees seen in most children, which the child will typically outgrow.

The following is the normal growth and development for children, from infancy to the age of 10:

• From infancy to 18 months, a childs legs are initially bowlegged , causing toddlers to often walk with their feet wide apart.
• When the child is between 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 years, the legs have usually straightened.
• Finally, by age 8 to 10 years, the childs legs have settled in to what will likely be their adult alignment.

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How To Fix Knock Knees

Many parents wonder how to fix knock knees or bow legs, but if your child has one of these conditions theres no need to worry about. Just keep things under control.

Only if the situation doesnt improve or tends to get worse with growth, it is better to see a specialist.

Knock Knees also called valgus knee, is a condition when the knees touch each other and the ankles are widely separated. On the contrary, bow legs or varus deformity is when the knees are separated from one another and the ankles are close together. Both attitudes can be considered normal only at certain stages of a childs life

When should we worry?

The direction of childrens legs varies a lot until adolescence. During gestation the position of the fetus is curled up and this explains why the knees are physiologically varus at birth. Around 18-20 months the knees often become knocked.

This process continues up to 5 years, when the knees tend to realign. Around 10-11 years, they take the final position that will persists in adulthood.

However, there may be cases in which Knock Knees and Bow Legs do not correct themselves with growth, but they may worsen, instead.

Bow Legs that worsens in the first 20 months of life could indicate an underlying disease.

Anyway also the childs weight can determine this condition: a chubby baby, who starts walking early, around 9-10 months, is often bow legged because his/her weight, burden on the knees and pushes them outwards.

What causes Knock Knees and Bow Legs?

Good Knee Positioning For Stairs

When going up stairs, keep your weight back toward the heel of the foot that is stepping up. Most people don’t step this way because their leg muscles are too weak. They throw their weight forward, stepping up onto the toe. This transmits body weight onto the knee joint in a vicious cycle of weakness and pain. Keep weight back and knee pain will disappear.

When going down stairs, keep the knees back in the same way, stepping down lightly, ball of the foot first . My books have more. Send your own success videos and photos in so I can post them here on my web site and everyone can benefit – see the Projects page.

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Can Knock Knees Be Corrected In Adults By Exercise

Whether or not exercises and stretching can help treat knock knees in adults depends on the cause.

Knock knees are a normal part of the growing up process for some kids.

In fact, a lot of toddlers have knock knees when theyre first born and as they get older the deformity corrects itself without interference.

However, if a child hasnt grown out of their knock knees phase by the time they reach the age of 8 or 10 it may be time to see a doctor and get a diagnosis.

Knee Valgus: How To Fix Knock Knees

Have you ever noticed that your knees bend inward?

Youre not alone.

Knee valgus, knock knees, or genu valgum all indicate the same thing: when someones knees bend inward toward the middle of the body.

For many people, especially young children, knee valgus isnt a huge cause for concern. However, if you or someone you know has knock knees, then its essential that you have the information needed to decide if treatment is right for you.

Contents

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How Is Knock Knee Treated

For mild cases of knock knee in children or adolescents, bracing may reposition the knees. When this does not work, or if the patient is an adult at the time of diagnosis, a knee-realignment osteotomy is done to prevent or delay the need for .

If knock knee is caused by an underlying disease or infection, that condition will be addressed before any orthopedic correction begins. Treatment for mild cases of knock knee in children or adolescents may include braces to help bones grow in the correct position.

If a gradual correction does not occur, surgery may be recommended. In the growing child, guided-growth minimal-incision surgery may be used to encourage the leg to gradually grow straight.

Cstrengthening Of The Quadriceps

Weak thigh muscles do a poor job at stabilizing the knee joint. This leaves the knee susceptible to Knee Valgus!

Instructions:

• Lie down on your back.
• Lock your knee by flattening it onto the floor.
• Make sure you can feel your quadriceps muscles engaging.
• Lift your locked leg up/down.
• Repeat 30 times.

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How Are Knock Knees Diagnosed

Health care providers do an exam and ask about the child’s medical history. They probably won’t do any tests if the child is 24 years old, feels well, and both legs tilt inward to the same degree. Instead, they’ll watch to make sure the knock knees gets better as the child grows.

Some kids might need to see an orthopedic doctor if:

• The legs dont get straighter on their own.
• One knee turns in more than the other, or only one side turns in.
• The child also has pain, limping, weakness, or trouble running.

Kids might get an X-ray to look for healed fractures or rickets. If rickets is suspected, blood tests can help make that diagnosis.

Exercises To Fix Internal Rotation Of The Femur

The topic of this post is the rotation of the femur and specifically you will read about internal rotation of the femur, since this is a usual side-effect of anterior pelvic tilt.

If you havent yet read the article on anterior pelvic tilt you may want to do so now, because the knowledge will come in handy.

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How Long Does It Take To Stop Knee Pain

Don’t wait. Stop causes of pain starting right now.

If your pain comes from mal-positioning your knees, hips, ankles, and / or feet, you should feel the pain stop or lessen when you reposition to healthier ways. If you’re not feeling better right away:

• If it hurts you ARE doing it wrong. Stop and assess. Check what you are doing compared to what is presented above. None of this is “exercises” to “do” but retraining drills to learn to stop doing what hurts and learn healthy movement instead.

• Are you over compensating? Are you pushing too hard the other way? Are you straining to “hold straight” which is just as painful, in many cases, as slouching into poor positioning.

• Are you fixing one segment and leaving others still in painful positions? That does not mean that these methods do not work, just that you have not identified and fixed all needed.

• Are you tightening or clenching muscles?

• Are you doing bad exercises that lean on or twist the knees? Many conventional “knee” exercises are not healthy. Several commonly done yoga poses twist cartilage and grind knee joints. My page on Healthier Yoga tells how many posses were never meant for health, which poses hurt the back, which the knees, what to do, and more. Make sure you can understand the simple basics of healthy movement before using any exercises.

Some Lab Research on the Topic

Some of my work in this area is summarized in my Lower Body Revolution Class Syllabus.

How To Fix Your Knees From Your Overhead Squat Assessment

Welcome back to our overhead squat assessment breakdown. If you havent read the first post about corrective exercise find it here:

Hopefully you have read it, youve got a few classy videos of yourself doing a squat, and we can move on to step one. Your knees.

Take a look at the front view of your squat and check out your knees. They should be moving in line with your feet, your hips, and your back. They SHOULD NOT collapse inward, or push outward. If you see either of these even a little bit, LETS FIX THEM!

Your knees are designed like a hinge. Yes, like a door hinge. Door hinges open and close on a pretty strict path. You can either push a door open, or pull it shut. You CAN NOT push a door UPWARD or pull a door DOWNWARD. It wont move in that direction, and if it does move that way, youre wrecking the hinge, maybe the door frame, whatever. Something is BROKEN. Your knees are the same way. They are designed to extend and flex, NOT ROTATE. If your knees collapse in or push outward they are actually rotating, which puts pressure on your knee that its not designed to take. If you chronically squat with your knees in or out you will wear down your knee joint which will lead to discomfort first, and arthritis later.

So what do you do?

IF YOUR KNEES COLLAPSE IN:

IF YOUR KNEES PUSH OUTWARD:

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How We Care For Knock Knees At Boston Childrens Hospital

As a national and international orthopedics referral center, our Orthopedic Center has vast experience managing all aspects of knock knees. Our Lower Extremity Program offers comprehensive assessment, diagnosis, and treatment for children and young adults with conditions affecting their lower limbs. We have extensive experience treating disorders of the feet, ankles, knees, legs, and hips. Whether the patient is an infant, child, or adolescent, our goal is to help our patients live full, independent lives.

Natural Ways To Correct Overpronation

1. Improve Your Posture & Form

Improper form when standing, exercising or especially running is one of the most common underlying reasons for foot, heel and leg pains. This can lead to dysfunctions that causes symptoms to reappear again and again, even if you begin gradually and then rest enough in between sessions. When it comes to exercise-related injuries, many of the most common are due to fallen arches and flat feet.

Look for any of the signs below that indicate youre using incorrect form:

• Not rolling arches upward , which means stepping causes your arches to collapse
• Having the heel strike the ground too abruptly without rolling it evenly forward. In other words, youre pounding the foot too much.
• Not lifting the toes, which can cause you to trip often

Try to have the foot/heel make contact with the ground from the outside. Experiment with landing closer to the midfoot if youre a heel striker and aim for a softer landing. Most runners naturally land more lightly when they dont lead with the heel. Slightly increase cadence the number of steps you take per minute. Avoid having only the toes do most of the pushing during lift-off. This might take some time to improve, but with training and practice it will become easier.

2. Stretch Your Legs More

3. Visit a Soft Tissue Therapist

4. Wear Firmer, Supportive Shoes

5. Treat Calluses & Bunions

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