The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › Injuries, Restrictions, Ailments, Pose Modifications › Injuries › other knee injury
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i have been doing bikram for about 2 months and i think somehow through this pose i have injured my left knee. when i started, i kept my knees far apart and went back, but just about everytime i notice that my left knee sends a sharp pain through it and when i open them wider, that doesnt seem to help. should i just avoid this posture all together until my knee heals? The instructors i talk to seem to think that the reason for my pain is that i have had bad knees for a long time… and now by reversing the damage i have done, there will be some pain. any info you help will help. thanks.
Lisa.Gabrielle’s reply from other forum:
Hi Lisa
I really don’t think you need to avoid this pose altogether. You do need to avoid going back from your upright position for a while. Would you be willing to modify the kneeling position to gain some stability, restore some function and mobility and remove the trigger of pain?
Try sitting with knees, heels and toes together in a classic kneel. Sit upright with hips on heels and don’t let the heels fall out to the side. Many are tempted to move their hands behind them in this position and lean back, but don’t do that. Just sit there upright and allow your knees to benefit.
In the meantime, see if any information in the forum is useful. You will find I have recommended the above position before. And also feel free to post a question about your knee. If you can please check into it during practice and work out exactly when, where and how it hurts. For example: Does it hurt on the inside of the left knee only when x happens.
The kind of thing I would be asking you (and please go to the forum because it attracts more viewing of your question for you) is how often you practice, what other poses your knee hurts in and how long has it been like this because you imply that it didn’t start out like that, and that you could distance your knees in the beginning and it didn’t hurt then, but it does now…
FWIW: that story that ‘having bad knees and you’re reversing the damage you have done is causing the pain’, is an oft-quoted one-size-fits-all answer. It could be the answer (and on occasion actually is) and it could also be that it is one that allows the person to avoid targeting the real answer. We can’t know for sure til we look into it more closely.
Looking forward to your forum post
Namaste
GabrielleThanks Gabrielle! i will try to just do the classic kneel for a little while.
So from what i have noticed so far.. this fixed firm position is when i first felt any pain in my knee and it hurts on the left side of my left knee. It was only hurting in the posture and sensitive in a few others. but now in the past few days it is sensitive on a regular basis to the point where i have almost been having trouble putting too much pressure on it to walk.
I have been practicing 3-5 x a week for the last 2 months. My knee also hurts now in Standing head to knee when my left leg is locked as well as in Camel pose and not as bad, but a little discomfort in standing bow pose only when im standing on my right leg, kicking my left foot up, do i feel a little tenderness in the left knee (mainly when i bring it back down) i am careful to go very slow out of this position.
Thanks for your help.
Namaste.
Lisa.Hi Lisa
Thanks for copying all that from the Pose Gallery.
What I think might be best is for you to do as you said, and kneel in Supta Vajrasana. In the meantime I would like you to focus on a few things so you can come back here with more observations:
>> lift up through your ankle in Standing Head to Knee and make sure you are not sinking in toward the midline. Probably for the moment, unless you are proficient at it, stay in the first part and don’t kick out. Let me know if you need the link for my video on alignment.
>> In Standing Bow I don’t know how deeply you go into this pose but do the same as described above and work on solid hip and leg alignment and don’t be concerned about the depth at all. Kick back and up preserving your hip alignment. I have a feeling your left hip may be rotating.
>> I am not sure about what is going on in Camel. But as this next week to 10 days is about noticing I am pretty sure you will find some more distinctions for us both to focus in on. Sometimes all you need is a conservative approach, that restorative kneel and to look after yourself in terms of good alignment to get back on track. You can determine in time if you need to have it further investigated professionally to rule out torn meniscus, ligament problems etc.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂 -
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