Common Causes of Knee Pain When Squatting
There are a few key reasons why you may be experiencing knee pain when squatting:
Improper Squat Form and Technique
Using too much weight before you have proper squat form is a common reason people develop knee pain and injuries. Here are some specific form mistakes that put pressure on your knees:
- Allowing your knees to collapse inward when squatting. This allows your knees to travel past your toes, placing excessive shear forces on the knee joint. It also causes medial knee displacement, which strains ligaments like the MCL and ACL.
- Not going deep enough into the squat movement. Partial squats don't allow you to engage larger, stronger muscle groups like the glutes and hamstrings. This places more pressure on the quadriceps and connective tissues around the knee joint.
- Squatting too deep and allowing your butt to dip down. Letting your hips dip too low shifts weight back onto your heels. This makes it difficult to keep your torso upright, causing you to pitch forward. The resulting shear forces across your knee joint lead to patellar tendonitis and other overuse issues over time.
Here are some visible squat form mistakes that can cause knee injuries:
- Buckling knees
- Heels coming off the floor
- Excessive forward lean
- Rounding through lower back
- Knees passing over toes
Shoot for 25-50 perfect bodyweight squat repetitions before adding load. Gradually increase weights by no more than 10-15% at a time. This allows your body to adapt joint structures over time rather than overloading tissues.
 |
| Advertisement |
Muscle Imbalances Around The Knee
Our quads, hamstrings, glutes, and hip flexor muscles all work together during squats to stabilize our knees. If some muscles are weaker or tighter than others, it can alter knee tracking and put uneven pressure on knee structures during the movement.
Some common muscle imbalance issues are:
- Tight hip flexors and weak glutes. This combination pulls strongly on the front of your femur from both above and below the joint. Over time, the constant tugging strains structures like your ACL, MCL, and patellar tendon.
- Overdeveloped quads. When quad strength dominates, your stronger quads forcefully take over movement. This places excessive compressive loads on your knee joint surfaces rather than sharing forces evenly between muscle groups. It also pulls harder on connective tissues, heightening injury risk.
Tight hip flexors also ante-tilt your pelvis, restricting how deep you can squat with a neutral spine. Limited depth puts more stress directly on your knees to achieve depth.
Lack of Mobility
Limited mobility in adjoining muscle groups affects positioning, loading, and capacity to perform an exercise properly. For squatting, restricted mobility in the ankles, calves, and hips can prevent you from hitting proper squat depth with a neutral spine.
Restricted ankle range of motion means you lack the requisite dorsiflexion to squat adequately without leaning excessively forward and internally rotating your knees.
Limited hip extension mobility makes it nearly impossible to sink into a deep squat without your low back rounding.
Two key areas where inflexibility impacts squatting biomechanics are:
- Ankle dorsiflexion. You need at least 10-15 degrees of dorsiflexion range of motion for appropriate squat loading and depth. Without it, poor dorsiflexion shifts weight excessively forward on your feet. This makes it difficult to squat adequately without leaning forward and internally rotating your knees.
- Tight hip flexors. When hip flexors are tight, they prevent you from sinking comfortably into a deep squat, even with heel elevation. Excessive anterior pelvic tilt from tight hip flexors also pulls strongly on the front of your pelvis when you squat, tweaking knee tracking.
Existing Knee Injuries
Pre-existing knee injuries like runner's knee (PFPS), previous ACL or meniscus tears, arthritis, tendonitis or Osgood Schlatter's disease can all cause achy knees when squatting. Why? The combination of compressive, shear, and torsional loads placed on your knee joint during the squatting movement pattern may aggravate these sensitivities.
How To Correct Knee Pain When Squatting
If your knees hurt when doing squats, take these corrective steps before returning to heavy loads:
Improve Squat Form
Regress to bodyweight squats first to hone form. Master the following keys:
- Shoulder width stance with feet slightly turned out
- Hinge first at hips, not knees
- Maintain weight predominantly on heels
- Keep chest lifted and core braced
- Go just below parallel on each rep
Also film your squat with both front-facing and side angle views. Compare to standard proper form examples online and adjust your movement patterns accordingly.
Strengthen Hips and Glutes
Many knee issues arise from weak external rotators and abductors. Counteract this with targeted hip and glute strengthening 2-3 times per week:
- Glute bridges
- Hip thrusts
- Fire hydrants
- Side-lying hip clam shells
Perform 2-3 sets of 10-15 reps of each exercise, focusing on perfect form and a full range of motion.
Improve Ankle and Hip Mobility
As mentioned, tight tissues alter normal squat biomechanics. Prioritize daily mobility work:
- Calf stretches against a wall
- Deep lunge hip flexor stretches
- Use the bodyweight squat itself as a mobility drill. Pause at the bottom position for 5 slow, deep breaths.
Also address limitations like poor ankle dorsiflexion with devices like resistance bands or dedicated stretching routines using blocks or rails. Focus on positions that replicate the squat pattern specifically.
Let Injuries Heal and See a Physical Therapist
Rest existing knee irritations for at least 2-4 weeks before attempting to squat again, heavy or not. After several weeks off, ease back in very slowly with limited range of motion and light loads. If pain persists or returns, consult a physical therapist for imaging tests and customized corrective rehabilitation.
Use Assistance Equipment
Taking stress off injured knees while re-patterning proper form reduces risk of further damage. Useful tools include:
- Box squats. Sitting back onto a box helps reinforce appropriate depth and form.
- Resistance bands. Bands wrapped above or below knees cue proper knee tracking and strengthening.
Also consider heel lifts, weightlifting shoes, knee braces, and specialty squat bars to eliminate pain triggers while learning better movement habits.
Conclusion
Knee pain when squatting usually boils down to poor movement patterns - both in the squat itself as well as limitations in adjoining joints and tissues. Addressing weaknesses with targeted strength and flexibility work can eliminate discomfort over time. Proper form should always take priority over loading when squatting to reduce injury risk. Be patient, start very light, and don't ignore chronic knee pains - see a professional to correct the imbalance. In time, you'll be squatting pain-free and safely progressing to new personal records.
