Stair Climbing
Once used primarily by athletes in training, stair climbing has become popular with exercisers who take step classes in gyms and with aerobic enthusiasts who use the outdoor stairs at beaches, hills, and high school or college stadiums. A lot of them end up limping into the doctor’s office with knees that just can’t take the strain. With stair climbing, the knee moves quite a bit and is under a great deal of pressure. The more the knee is flexed, the tighter the patellar tendon is stretched, pushing on the patella. When the tendon stretches out, the area where it attaches becomes inflamed, and tracking of the patella goes off course. It drifts, slips, and tilts, resulting in patellofemoral syndrome (runner’s knee) or, in more extreme cases, chondromalacia patellae (wearing out of the cartilage on the back of the patella). Extreme wear and tear on the cartilage and menisci (the cushioning discs between the femur and the tibia), over time, roughen the glassy cartilage surface and decrease the protection it and the menisci offer. Eventually, bone may meet bone, causing painful arthritis. Stair climbing may increase the force of the patella on the femur up to four times body weight. To help keep the exercise as safe for your knees as it is good for your metabolism and cardiac function, take care to give your knees a rest (don’t do the same exercise two days in a row), alternate stair climbing with other types of exercise, reduce your speed while climbing, and pay immediate heed when your knees start to ache or swell.
Once used primarily by athletes in training, stair climbing has become popular with exercisers who take step classes in gyms and with aerobic enthusiasts who use the outdoor stairs at beaches, hills, and high school or college stadiums. A lot of them end up limping into the doctor’s office with knees that just can’t take the strain. With stair climbing, the knee moves quite a bit and is under a great deal of pressure. The more the knee is flexed, the tighter the patellar tendon is stretched, pushing on the patella. When the tendon stretches out, the area where it attaches becomes inflamed, and tracking of the patella goes off course. It drifts, slips, and tilts, resulting in patellofemoral syndrome (runner’s knee) or, in more extreme cases, chondromalacia patellae (wearing out of the cartilage on the back of the patella). Extreme wear and tear on the cartilage and menisci (the cushioning discs between the femur and the tibia), over time, roughen the glassy cartilage surface and decrease the protection it and the menisci offer. Eventually, bone may meet bone, causing painful arthritis. Stair climbing may increase the force of the patella on the femur up to four times body weight. To help keep the exercise as safe for your knees as it is good for your metabolism and cardiac function, take care to give your knees a rest (don’t do the same exercise two days in a row), alternate stair climbing with other types of exercise, reduce your speed while climbing, and pay immediate heed when your knees start to ache or swell.
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