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Today, I am sharing with you 10 things to do for knee pain that work soooo good!

It has been 25 years since I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis.

So, I guess you can say I am kind of an expert in the field of knee pain.

As an investigative chemist, I have spent over a decade of researching, testing, and trying everything possible to combat knee pain effectively.

Here are my top, very helpful tips you can do now for your knee pain.

10 Things To Do For Knee Pain That Work SO Good!

The way I am listing these tips is from quick or instant relief down to long-term treatments. There are so many types of pain relief solutions, and each one has certain benefits. These are all the things to do for knee pain that help me live successfully and happily each day.

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1. Quick Heat

The first tip is the quickest tip. If you have knee pain that just won’t stop (if you have knee issues, you know what I mean), then finding a quick heating source is the best thing to do. I have this little microwaveable heating pad that I throw in the microwave for 1 minute and put on my knee. It immediately soothes pain, and can get your mind off of it. You don’t have to plug it in and think about it, just a quick zap in microwave and you have some relief. I highly recommend anyone with chronic knee pain get one of these pads and keep it handy all the time. I have purchased this heating pad for everyone in my family now too lol! They don’t have the color I chose anymore, but this is the same one. Moist heat is the best option, so any type of moist heating pad is good.

2. Heat Therapy

You have quick heat like we talked about in tip number one, but there is also the amazing aspect of heat therapy. I absolutely love my infrared heat lamp as a long-term therapy. This was something I started using for my chronic elbow pain, but after knee surgery, I discovered how beneficial it was for knee pain of all types. I recommend reading this article we have about it, and thinking about investing in one. There are many benefits to this type of lamp, but it is also so helpful for knee pain!

3. Topical Treatment

Another quick knee pain relief option is using topical treatments. I will say, I have tried dozens of topical treatments at this point. 90% of them don’t help at all. The best thing I have used is potent CBD cream. I keep one on my night stand for quick relief, and I keep this one in my gym bag for using before working out or after if my knee acts up. Side note, the CBD cream I used to use is no longer being manufactured due to the pandemic 🙁 I am so sad about that. I have also used this CBD roll on in the past, and it was good quality too.We also have a DIY joint pain cream readers really love, and it is great for knee pain.

That covers my instant, quick relief tips. Now, we are going to move on to more long-term tips that work quickly, but also continue to work more as you do them every day or every week.

4. Foam Roll

I can’t recommend foam rolling enough! I started this in 2007 or so when I went to PT the first time for RA knee pain I couldn’t get relief from. After knee surgery, the importance of foam rolling is even more crucial for dealing with knee pain. I also did airrosti treatments back in the spring, and they recommend foam rolling all muscles of your legs two times a day for treating knee pain. Some knee pain completely stems from tight muscles! You would be amazed how much it helps. Even though my knee pain is from an autoimmune disease, I foam roll every day and it is great! I use the 36 inch one for getting all areas of leg muscles. I bought it in 2009 and still use it everyday!

Here is a video from Airrosti where I did treatments last year:

5. Hip Hook

I discovered this hip hook after knee surgery. In PT, they would dig into the muscles around my hips. When I did the arostti treatments, they unlocked all the muscles inside my hip area, and they said some knee pain is caused 100% from the tight muscle connected to the hip. I saw this hip hook, and realized it does the same thing! And wow, it does! If your muscle around the hip is super tight, this will be a little painful at first. The more you do it, the less painful it gets. I do it every couple of days know to keep up with that muscle, and it doesn’t hurt now. I recommend anyone with knee pain think about investing in one of these hip hooks. We did a full blog post over the hip hook this past summer. This hip hook is a little pricey, but you will have it forever. And they do monthly payment options as well. Readers love this hip hook too! Here is a recent success story with it:

6. TENS therapy

If you have gone to PT for knee pain, they used TENS therapy. It is proven to be one of the best treatments for knee pain. We did this blog post in early 2020 over TENS therapy, and everyone really enjoyed it. I use two TENS devices. One is the regular TENS unit, and the other is the one specifically for the knee. The cool thing about the knee device is you can use it while you move too. So, if you suffer from knee pain when you walk (like I did for more than a year after knee surgery), then I would recommend the knee TENS machine. Either one works great for constant knee pain.

You can do TENS treatments every day! I do it a few times a week now, and it is really helpful after exercise or anytime I have overworked my knee.

7. Trigger Point Ball

Along with foam rolling and the hip hook, I also have great success using a trigger point or massage ball. I will take the ball and press it down with my hand on my IT band area and all the way up to my hip. It is a nice, small thing I can do just about anywhere at anytime. I have found this to be really helpful after exercising when my muscles are tight. I keep one of these hard balls in my gym bag!

8. Turmeric Liquid

I have tried so many different natural pain remedies. Most of them do not help in anyway for me. But I have had luck with using turmeric liquid. My friend recommended this brand to me during the summer! It helped dull my aching knee pain! I take it everyday now just for overall inflammatory fighting benefits, and I like it!

9.  Pilates and Barre Exercises

We have mentioned this before, but one of the best things I have done for my overall knee health and knee pain management is doing Pilates and Barre exercises. In 2019, I started reformer Pilates at the Fit Lounge, and it was the first time in my journey of having rheumatoid arthritis that I could successfully work out! I am in the best shape of my life now, and it is due to finally learning how to do beneficial moves for joint health.

Reformer Pilates, mat Pilates at home, and teaching Barre class have been so helpful. I developed the Barre class I teach specifically for those with bad knees! You can try out Barre workouts for bad knees in this post.

10. Physical Therapy

Lastly, one of the best things I have done is go to PT for knee pain. This tip is especially great for those who might not be familiar with exercise. I went to PT for the first time in 2007 for arthritic knee pain I couldn’t get relief from. I learned many valuable tools back then I still use today. Foam rolling, TENS therapy, and heat therapy were all things they shared with me. The best thing about PT, is you can take what you learn there in the 6-8 week period, and use it forever.

Sometimes, I go back to the basics of PT when I haven’t done any knee strengthening specifics in awhile. I also did PT again for arthritic knee pain in 2019, and then again in 2020 after knee surgery.

If you have constant knee pain, I highly recommend reaching out to your doctor about getting into PT. They also have some neat tools you don’t have at home to help your knees.

Always Check With Your Doctor First!

If you have never gone to the doctor for your knee pain, it is really important to get checked out first! Many times, knee pain can be an injury. Getting an X-Ray or MRI can be crucial to your knee health. If I had known I had a small meniscus tear, I could have avoided my terrible knee injury. I just assumed my knee pain was from arthritis.

It is a good idea to rule out injury. Once you do that, then you can really deal with knee pain correctly and make sure you are doing the best things possible!

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