squat technique with a busted knee

[uNOwho]

close to 1.5 years ago i had an accident at work where i had my leg pinned underneath 800 lbs. of steel, nothing broke or tore (or so they say) all i did was bruise the muscle's underneath my kneecap....still to this day it hurts like a bitch on just about every other day, so i haven't done any legs in a long time. i want to get back into it but i am really guite fearful of doing squats and going down too far and just busting my knee again. what would you all suggest i do to get myself out of this fear factor?

i have done hack squats and machine squats on occassion and both times it hurt like a little midget kicking me in the nutz, but i still went on. any ideas?

phil

 

[Stryc-9]

Whatever you do - go slow!! Sounds like you're leg is really buggered up....

Try easing back into things with weightless squats and see how you feel from there....

...remember, there's "good" pain and there's "bad" pain - and as soon as you feel that bad pain - get the hell out of the gym!!

 

[Thaibox]

I blew my knee pretty good about a year ago. I just started doing moderately heavy squats again after finding just the right position of my legs. Just try different widths and such on the smith to see if anything works.

 

[uNOwho]

what about foot positioning? should they be wider apart so as not to put too much undue stress on my knee? that's my main concern, and I hate being so apprehensive about it. I hit everything else with a wild crazy attitude excpet my knee. I did a crazy pyramid on the squat machine three weeks ago and I swear I could barely walk for that whole week. It sucked!

Thanks for your input, also!

Phil

 

[DaCypher]

I posted in a thread earlier about how my physical therapist had me doing smith machine squats. Try doing them with your feet out in front of you so when you reach the bottom part of the lift (don't go below parallel at first) your knees don't go beyond your toes. Try this with very little weight (or not weight at all) just to get the feel for it, and to see how your knee reacts. Also, you might want to try some leg extensions (with light weight) to possibly strengthen that troubled area. I don't say this often, but you might want to stay away from barbell squats for a little while to ease your knee back into lower body training. Anyways, good luck...

Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor/physical therapists, so be careful.

 

[uNOwho]

believe me when i say, i am quite careful when training my knee...i don't want to be gimped up for another period of time.

thanks for the input.

phil

 

[gymtime]

Even with perfect form, foot/leg position, squats are extremely taxing on the knees. I would listen to that little midget. He just might be trying to tell you that you need to quit doing squats for a while.

 

[musclebrains]

I had a similar experience, UnoWho. I was in an auto accident that didn't break anything but left my knees hurting for a good year too.

I laid off for a LONG time and finally resumed but in the same way DaCypher is talking, on a Smith Machine so I could avoid moving my knees beyond my toes. My gym also has some pussy squat machine -- I can't recall the brand -- that allows you to position your feet far enough out front to avoid stress too.

I guess I wonder if squatting this way is any more effective than using a leg press machine, where you can easily avoid stressing the knees.