Begin with healing exercises designed to promote blood flow and facilitate cartilage regeneration without putting stress on the joint. Key exercises include backward walking uphill, backward sled pulls, and Patrick step-ups. These movements focus on short ranges of motion, are low-intensity, and use high-repetition volume.
The primary goal is to stimulate blood flow through diffusion, which helps nutrients reach cartilage—a tissue that lacks direct blood supply—thereby supporting its repair and regeneration.
Address tightness and limited range of motion by introducing lengthening exercises. Specifically, targeting chronically tight quadriceps can reduce undue pressure on the patella, which is often pulled into sub-optimal positions by muscular imbalances.
By alleviating this tightness, you create more space in the joint, which can reduce cartilage wear and tear and slow the degenerative process. This phase is vital for improving overall knee mechanics and joint health.
Focus on building strength in the surrounding muscles to protect the joint from further stress. Stronger knee support muscles redistribute forces that would otherwise target the cartilage, thereby reducing further degradation.
Strength training ensures the joint is better equipped to handle daily activities and more dynamic movements, supporting long-term joint resilience.
This three-phase approach directly tackles the symptoms of osteoarthritis (pain, stiffness, and reduced mobility) while addressing the root causes (cartilage breakdown, tightness, and muscular imbalances).
By integrating healing, lengthening, and strengthening into a cohesive system, the joint is restored to a healthier state, preventing further degeneration and improving function over time.