Knee Pain? 4 Areas You Should Massage

This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in August of 2022. For the original video go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKtQJrWSW5k

Bob: All right, these are four muscles, if you have knee pain, you should massage these areas.

Brad: We're going to tell you which muscles, how to do it. Everything you need to know.

Bob: Okay. Let's go. The first muscle, Brad, is a tiny muscle, an itty-bitty muscle. You wouldn't think it could give you any pain, but it does. It can flex the knee and twist the knee.

Brad: And, like a lot of small muscles, it's hard to pronounce. So we're talking about the popliteus.

Bob: Right, very good. Popliteus. So to find it, you're just going to take your fingertips, go behind the knee, on the inside of the leg.

Brad: Yeah. Not the outside of the knee.

Bob: Right, the thick portion is on the inside. So, rub across the fibers, which will be side to side.

Brad: I'm doing it right.

Bob: East to west, right. Now if it's tender, that's a sign that you should do this. If it's not, you'll probably be fine. Go onto the other muscles.

Brad: You can still massage it if you want.

Bob: Sure. All right, let's go down to the second area. All right, the second area I want you to consider is some of the hip flexors, and the ones that run vertically. Like the rectus femoris, the IT band, the sartorius even.

Brad: Now the sartorius, that's one that's nice to know about.

Bob: Right. So, you can do this with your hand too. But it's going to be a lot easier with the massage gun.

Brad: Right. If I’m going to do these, you could work the rectus, and mine's a little sore today because I was doing some biking the last couple days. I could feel that, and I might want to work it on the side of the ball head. I know it's going to be difficult to see with black on black. Hopefully, my hand there will help.

Bob: So, this is a powerful gun.

Brad: Yeah. We want to get the adductors, the muscles of the inner thigh.

Bob: That's another group, Brad.

Brad: Oh, I'm sorry. I jumped the gun. We're only on number two. So the sartorius.

Bob: And the IT band.

Brad: Yep. Right where the white stripe is there is exactly where the IT band is. I can work it there. Just be careful on the IT band going directly in, it may hurt if there isn't a lot of muscle there. So, you may want to go sideways with the massage gun.

Bob: You really can't massage it, but it could be bound down, so you can help loosen it.

Brad: I mean, you can try to massage it. When you massage these large muscle groups, you need both hands. They are going to get fatigued after a few minutes unless you really have some strong hands.

Bob: Strong, like bull hands

Brad: Strong, like bull hands. Maybe you work with your hands for a living.

Bob: All right, let's go on to number three. All right, what Brad already gave us a little preview to is the inner thigh. That could get very sensitive. It could develop trigger points.

Bob: So, you want to hit it with the massage gun.

Brad: Boy, I've had abductor strains, and I'm telling you they're not comfortable.

Bob: Well, it often happens if you're not using your glutes right, your glute maximus right.

Brad: The buttocks. The largest muscle in the body kind of deal.

Bob: And a lot of people aren't.

Brad: So, you want to get this muscle to relax in this position. I think in a recliner, lift the leg up is a good way to allow it to relax. I like to flip it out, so the toe points out and you can get into that muscle. And again, this should feel like a good massage.

Bob: Hurts so good.

Brad: Yeah, exactly. So, spend a few minutes on that.

Bob: We'll go on to number four, it’s simple, it is the calf muscle. Also known as the gastric/soleus muscle.

Brad: Yes. It moves.

Bob: It moves. And it crosses the knee joint. So that's why it can give you trouble.

Brad: Yep, that gastroc muscle. That's the one that crosses the knee joint. And again, you could work on this manually if you want. You're going to get a tired hand. It's a large muscle. I always use my thumbs if I do, but my thumbs get tired quickly.

Bob: And if it's tight, it will affect your knee. It will cause increased pain.

Brad: And this is a muscle, regardless of if you have knee pain or not, is a nice one that if you're a walker or a runner it’s good to keep loose.

Bob: Right. Good for your feet. Good for plantar fasciitis.

Brad: Yep. This muscle crosses the knee joint and connects to the calcaneus, which is directly connected to our plantar fascia and the toe extension. So it's one chain.

Bob: It’s a really important muscle to keep loose.

Brad: Yeah. That's good.

Bob: All right, we can finish up there. We can fix just about anything.

Brad: Except for.

Bob: A broken heart.

Brad: But we're not going to get it with the massage gun.

Bob: Right. Thanks.

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