Squats vs. Bad knees

[Biscuit]

Hey guys, I hope you can help me out with this one. About two years ago a drunk driver t-boned my truck. I was driving about 30 mph when he hit me and my knees hit the dashboard pretty bad. After the accident I had some huge black and blue bruses on my knees and some swelling. I had a doctor check them out and she said that my cartiledge was brused on both knees, and that cartiledge does not heal.

Two years later (now), I've been having arguments with my new boss. He's your average "I jogg 12 miles a day" type of guy and he says that because of the accident I SHOULD NOT attempt to do squats. Keep in mind I have a home gym and I realize that if I do leg extensions all the time that I'll stale out and not enjoy the benefits of squats.

I need your help guys, squats or no squats?

My knees do ache, but I couldn't compare to before the accident. Another thing I've noticed is when I get to the bottom of the squat that I feel uncomfortable in the knees so a usually don't go all the way down (I know I should). Any help is greatly appreciated.

[AllenP]

i am not a specialist or something like that but in my opinion whenever you feel pain when lifting, it is a sign of something bad. Because you should not be feeling pain at all when you are lifting except for that Lactic acid kind of pain which you can ignore sometimes though it is not good as well. You should focus on rehabilitating your injured knee. And of course the only way of doing this is through exercise and weight training is one way of doing it. You have to take it slow and easy. Work on the range of motion and flexibility and then strength. So just start with something you can handle without feeling much pain and from there you gradually move on. The one thing you will have to avoid is sudden and jerky movements on the injured part when trying to rehabilitate it, because it can cause harmful tear that might just worsen the situation. Hope this helps

[Gatecrasher]

Leg extensions are worse for the knees than properly perfomred squats. Just make sure that your knees DO NOT move throughout the movement and to sit back as you go down.

[Buff_Daddy]

if you are hurting during the exercise, then simply dont do it, remember, first you must heal, then you must train, dont train through injury!

[Biscuit]

Thanks guys, I appreciate all your answers.

[Dorian]

Here is a idea that may help out. Do box squats this will help you do the proper form on the squat and it will build some mass. Go to louie simmons site and look for it.

[AllenP]

How do i get the link to his site Dorian?

[Dorian]

I think it is called west side barbell club.

[masswithclass]

I can sympathise with biscuit, i too had sorta the same prob, but i was sitting in a car and my dad was driving when an idiot ran a red light and smashed almost head on, my knees hit the dash and actually had deep lacerations, so could'nt train legs for a couple of weeks, but yeah my knee cartilage also are bruised and if i actually bend them they make a slight scuffing sorta noise, sound familiar biscuit?

Anyhows, basically u gotta train and better your injury, i did squats for high reps with low weights also u might wanna take your girlfirends old stockings and cut em up to fit around your kness as this will keep the blood in the area warm and also give a tiny bit of support, not pretty but it works...

As for the guy who reckons leg extensions are worse than squats, mate what planet are u from? Why the hell do pros and any other serious bodybuilders use leg extensions as a means to warm up for squats if they are worse for your kness????

Squats are the king of all exercises in my opinion and i can't believe guys are telling you not to squat, u gotta give it your all bro, a little bit of pain does'nt kill anyone, trust me i know through experience....

Peace.

[Andrew81]

Hey man, I can sympathize, I've had three ACL reconstructions and the worse thing that you can do for your knees are extensions! Squats were my only saving grace when I was recovering from my operations, b/c my quads turned into jell-o. Leg extensions put unwanted stress on the knees, so you want to avoid them at all cost! Squat all you want!

[maxskyscraper]

I'm looking for a video that shows the perfect squat technique. I'm afraid of knee injuries as well as back. In other words, how far down do I go, am I leaning too far forward, etc. It would be good to see a video. Guess I could always Google it :)

[Caperjay]

Hey guys, I hope you can help me out with this one. About two years ago a drunk driver t-boned my truck. I was driving about 30 mph when he hit me and my knees hit the dashboard pretty bad. After the accident I had some huge black and blue bruses on my knees and some swelling. I had a doctor check them out and she said that my cartiledge was brused on both knees, and that cartiledge does not heal.

Two years later (now), I've been having arguments with my new boss. He's your average "I jogg 12 miles a day" type of guy and he says that because of the accident I SHOULD NOT attempt to do squats. Keep in mind I have a home gym and I realize that if I do leg extensions all the time that I'll stale out and not enjoy the benefits of squats.

I need your help guys, squats or no squats?

My knees do ache, but I couldn't compare to before the accident. Another thing I've noticed is when I get to the bottom of the squat that I feel uncomfortable in the knees so a usually don't go all the way down (I know I should). Any help is greatly appreciated.
MY knees have always bothered me, Until I started to squat deep. I used to stop just short of parallel. but why would you stop yourself from doing a full rep, man up and bottom out, its like bench press but its your ass touching the floor instead of the bar touching your chest.

[Kirra]

http://startingstrength.com/resources/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=129

Go there and ask Rip.

[G8GXP]

http://www.youtube.com/user/johnnymnemonic2

Check these out and learn how to squat properly before deciding if you can really do them.

I find running to be much harder on the knees compared to squats.

[BruceBruce325]

i'm in the same boat man. tundra ran a redlight and t-boned my durango... totalled it (loved that car). anyway... accident busted up left knee and that was when i was 18... im 25 now and still feel it when i workout. if you can squat then do it but never ever attempt to push it when you're concerned. if you think something is wrong trust your gut and stop. there's always other wo's you can do to get your legs in shape.

[ThickAsABrick]

Hay guise. this thrad is from 2001. he's probably figured it out by now one way or the other.

[BruceBruce325]

Hay guise. this thrad is from 2001. he's probably figured it out by now one way or the other.

LOL had no idea!

[G8GXP]

LOL had no idea!

Damn, then NEVERMIND

[bigtallox]

I'm looking for a video that shows the perfect squat technique. I'm afraid of knee injuries as well as back. In other words, how far down do I go, am I leaning too far forward, etc. It would be good to see a video. Guess I could always Google it :)

In general, there is not "perfect squat technique" because there are many different types of squats and every body's body mechanics is not the same. A powerlifting squat will not look like an olympic squat, etc, it doesn't mean one or the other isn't "perfect".

[Ace28]

I tore my maniscus in my right knee and had surgery. 1st time I went in for a mri I was told no damage just a bone bruise. 2nd time same thing, 3 time I felt my knee pop went in and the mri confired a torn maniscus. I don't back squat anymore, I front squat on the smith and do leg press. Not ideal, but it's the best I can do without having to use big weights. Want to be able to walk when i'm 60. Not sure how your home gym is equipped.