How to prevent knee injuries?

[redsix]

Knee injuries seems to be most common thing among wakeskaters. In order to progress, you gonna fall a lot, and one of those falls may be the one that put you out of action for months.

Although my knees are still injury-free, my question is, will wearing knee braces help to prevent those injuries when you fall?

I know wearing braces is so "uncool", looked like you belong more to a nursing home rather than shredding it on water. But if it does not stall your progression and not to mention avoiding those expensive surgeries plus hours of therapies, why not.

My next question is, as a preventive measure, if you could afford it, which type of braces gives better protection; the simple neoprene type or the proper hinged CTI-like braces?

My profile: my body is not that young anymore and I'm still progressing wakeskate slowly. I ride weekly mostly at cable parks and hit obstacles regularly.

[Hitinitdaily]

To my knowledge, Wearing knee braces to ride will only make your knees weaker. They will begin depending on the Brace and you will lose most of their durability. The one effective way to avoid Knee injuries, is to Stretch well b4 you ride and most importantly, Work out your legs!! The stronger your Quads.. the Stronger your Knees will be. If you have experienced Knee issues in the past then a brace may be right for you but It shouldn't be worn until directed by a doctor.

Disclaimer: The info stated above is from my personal experiences and from consulting with my close friend and renown Orthopedic Surgeon. Everyone's body is different and may require different care.

[RxSkater]

[Kay-Kay]

I'm no doctor or physical therapist or have an credentials whatsoever but I've mulled over the issue in the past and I think it comes down to improving hip mobility. The knee isn't supposed to have a great deal of range of motion, but when the range of motion in your hips is restricted the knee is forced to take up some of the slack. So start stretching out those hip flexors and improving your external rotation.

[-=AlexXx=-]

dont fall.

[TTUFAN24]

redsix, i think it's about freedom. wakeskating i mean.

[LemonWake]

My knees have been screwed up pretty much since childhood, i wore knee braces for sports but realized it only made my knees weaker and dependent on them when i didnt have a brace on. So now i dont wear one unless its a severe problem. Stretching and working out your legs is the best option.

[BB]

You can wear certain knee braces to protect from re injuring a specific injury. But if you are not hurt than don't bother wearing one. Just stretch, work out, and learn how to fall. If you get hurt than it happens. It is the price you pay for participating in an "action sport".

[electricsnow]

I agree with hitinitdaily. And part of it depends on the knee injury. Using ACLs as an example, if you have a graft or reconstruction, you will be using a knee brace. But I actually had my ACL in tact and it just needed to be pinned back into position (it was torn out with a chunk of bone, if you can imagine that). And since I had my original ACL, I just needed to work on strengthening the muscles around my knee. This should also include strengthening your hamstrings.

But yeah, I've heard that using a brace when you really don't need it is bad because your knees will not respond the way they normally would.

So definitely exercise and definitely stretch to keep yourself flexible. That's basically what I try to do because I'm still strengthening my previously injured leg, and I stretch pretty much every time I go out on the water.

[Alex Lirio]

any tips on preventing shoulder dislocation?

[scott a]

Get in the weight room and work out. Along with stretching, it's the best thing you can do to avoid injury. You don't have to drink a bunch of protein shakes afterward or anything like that, but if you can keep the muscles and tendons in your body conditioned then the risk of injury decreases.

[redsix]

Thanks for such helpful replies. Is there any supplements that I can take that will help me strenghten the knee joints hence minimize the above-mentioned injuries? I know bodybuilders take some supplements that prevent their joints to wear out due to all those repeated pumping.

Any tips on what kind of exercise to strenghten the knee muscles?

[zip]

Not exactly knee muscles but surrounding muscles.
Squats ( either using smith machine or free weights) , lunges use dumb bells to add extra weight allthough your body weight will prolly be enough for your first few sessions), leg press.......and heaps of stretching of quads hamstrings calves and hip flexors too
ps your legs will be smoking sore the following few days after working them out but after a few weeks they will get used to it...

Good luck and happy dancing

[Raven]

pop your tricks.......and when you catch them, they'll be caught hi and if it's not there......kick it away. trying to pull out of a sloppy trick is a good way to get hurt and pretty much looks like dung anyway. riding fins i think helps too, when you land you are either going to stick it or eat it, there ain't a whole lot of sliding around on your landings where the damage is usually done........be smart, be appreciative, respectful, and take things slow. slow is smooth and smooth is fast.

[scott a]

redsix, I don't know of any supplements that you can take that will strengthen anything by just swallowing the pill. They all require that you spend time working out and/or adjusting your diet in some way. Honestly, I'd worry less about supplements and more on getting into the weight room and finding a good workout.

[ollieshuvitz]

you guys are making this WAY too complicated.

just get the metal leg operation. it's risky, but totally worth it

[electricsnow]

the one thing you can take for cartilidge and such is glucosamine. But I can't think of anything that actually "strengthens" the joints.

[cblee91]

hears the dealio...

a brace will help... but in the long run its bad for you. same logic as taping your ankles for soccer or whatever. muscles get weaker so in time your worse off with the tape then u were before

i'd reccomend u wear when ur going really hard or learning new stuff where you think you could take an awk fall, but other than that let you knee stabalize itself and keep those muscles up and running

[redsix]

Extracted from EVS catalog:

"Why wear a knee brace?

The most common mistake that a rider makes is to think that a knee brace is only for the "old" or those with knee injuries. A knee brace should be thought of in a similar way as a helmet. You don't wear a helmet once you get a head injury, you wear it to prevent that from happening. Does a helmet guarantee that you will not get a head injury? No. In the same way a knee brace cannot guarantee that your knees will not get injured, however it will reduce the chances of a knee injury. Most knee injuries may have been prevented if the rider was wearing a knee brace. Considering the pain, expense, and the long term effects a knee injury can cause, it only makes sense for anyone who rides a dirt bike to always use a knee brace.

...Another major function of a brace is to prevent injuries from happeneing in the first place. The hinges on the sides of the knee brace allows the kness to bend and straighten while providing support to the MCL and LCL. A knee brace will prevent your knees from bending or extending beyond its natural range, thereby significantly reducing the risk of damaging yor ligaments and other structures of the knee.

A knee brace can also absorb some of the impact from a crash or fall reducing the shock on your knee. This ability to absorb impact and the ability to keep your motion range under control will keep your knees protected so that you can continue to enjoy the things you do for FUN!"

EVS-sports is a protective gear company mainly for motorcross sports and its knee braces are suitable for water sports. The statement may sound like a business pitch but I think wakeskating uses more knee movements than those of MX riders who extend their knee mostly during cornering.

[electricsnow]

I would say that if you're still confused, contact a physical therapist because they will either agree and help you get fitted for a brace, or they'll say no, and can give you some exercises that will focus on motion (keeping your knee over your foot as you absorb impact from landings) and strength.