The patellar tendon connects your kneecap to your shinbone and helps your muscles extend your lower leg during activities like walking, kicking and jumping. Patellar tendonitis is the condition in which your patellar tendon becomes inflamed. In addition to rest, common stretching and strengthening exercises are often prescribed as treatment. This type of tendonitis is most common in sports that require a lot of jumping, so the condition is commonly referred to as jumper's knee.
The Eccentric Alternative
Most traditional strengthening exercises rely on the concentric portion of the activity to engage the targeted body part. However, eccentric-centered exercises can be just as productive, or even more productive than concentric exercises given the same workload, because exercises stress the muscles and tendons more, forcing them to work harder.
Decline Eccentric Squats
Stand with your heels elevated on a 3-inch platform. Shift all of your weight onto the injured leg, and slowly squat down until your thighs are at a 45-degree angle to the floor. Shift half of your weight onto you uninjured leg, and use both legs to stand back up. Repeat for three sets of 10 repetitions.
The Underwater Alternative
Underwater training options enable injured athletes to exercise damaged joints while protecting them against excess force. Pool rehabilitation also is practical because it allows therapists and trainers to devise sport-specific movements, drills and exercises which use the density of water as the source of resistance for these activities.
Underwater Knee Extensions
You can perform underwater knee extensions similarly to resisted knee extensions, using the the resistance of water instead of a resistance band. Stand in a pool of water that is between waist- and chest-deep. Lift the foot of your injured leg off of the floor of the pool. Hold onto the side of the pool for balance if necessary. Bend your injured knee to an angle of 45 degrees. Then, slowly extend the lower leg completely, keeping your thigh muscles tight. Repeat this motion for three sets of 10 repetitions.
References
- MayoClinic.com; Patellar Tendinitis; January 2010
- Tendonosis.org: Current Treatments
- Summit Medical Group: Patellar Tendonitis (Jumper's Knee) - Rehabilitation Exercises
- IDEA Health and Fitness Association: A Knee Up to Play; Mary E. Sanders, Ph.D; 2006
- Arthritis-Treatment-and-Relief.com: Sports Rehab Patellar Tendonitis
