at the age where you need knee pads for clubbing should you wear them for running

From apes to upright humans, the normal physiological structure of our knees has evolved from being bent to straight. This is a major characteristic that distinguishes our knee joints from those of running animals (imagine the hind leg structure of cats, dogs, even leopards, and tigers).

For humans who walk upright, every movement wears down the knees! Actions like walking, running, jumping, and even kneeling on a keyboard contribute to this wear and tear.

 

But we runners can't stand idle legs, and the gradual wear and tear on our knees is inevitable. Is there no way to protect our knees?

 

You must have thought of it, 'knee pads'!

 

Note, this is not an advertisement! Every toothpaste claims to whiten your teeth, but are your teeth really whiter? So, do knee pads really work?

Let's objectively evaluate how knee pads actually work on the human body:

The design principle of knee pads is to use elastic bands to limit the range of joint movement and reduce cartilage wear.

 

The first function they achieve is to immobilize the knee joint.

Looking at the knee joint diagram above, you can see that the knee joint is where the upper and lower leg bones meet. There is a meniscus in the middle, and the patella in the front. The patella is stretched by two tendons and is suspended before the meeting point of the leg bones, making it very easy to slide.

In normal life, without external forces or intense exercise, the patella can move within a small range in the knee area. However, during long-distance hiking, excessive pressure is applied to the knee, easily causing the patella to be pulled away from its original position, leading to knee joint problems. Wearing knee pads can fix the patella in a relatively stable position to prevent injury.

 

Secondly, the material of the knee pads can keep the knee joint warm.

The knee is not covered by muscles, so when we feel comfortable with leg heat dissipation, the knee is actually getting cold. At this time, if you are wearing knee pads, their warmth-retaining function becomes evident.

 

Lastly, knee pads can protect an injured knee joint.

The above points discuss the mild immobilization and warmth-retaining functions of knee pads when the knee joint is not injured. After a knee injury, using knee pads with strong immobilization can reduce knee bending, keeping the thigh and calf in a straight line, thereby protecting the knee joint from further aggravation.

 

From these three points, we can see that knee pads are quite effective. But if you are not injured, can knee pads 'cure diseases and strengthen the body'?

 

I solemnly tell you, this is a wrong concept.

Knee pads should not be worn for long periods! After exercising, you should immediately remove the knee pads!

Originally, the quadriceps, tendons, and ligaments around the knee are responsible for maintaining knee stability during joint activities.

When using knee pads, they replace part of the knee's natural stability function. Over time, the quadriceps, tendons, and ligaments will gradually degrade due to lack of external stimulation, causing the body to rely entirely on the knee pads for stability. Once removed, the knee joint may feel unstable.

Therefore, knee pads should only be worn during activities that heavily use the knees, and removed after running to avoid further degradation of the surrounding tissues.

 

For runners without knee injuries, it's best to avoid wearing knee pads and let the body adapt to external conditions, thereby strengthening itself. In daily running, instead of using knee pads to protect your knees, it's better to strengthen your muscles and ligaments, and enhance proprioception to protect yourself.

 

So, how can you strengthen the muscles around the knee,and protect the knee fundamentally?

Stay tuned for the next installment!