Tennis Blog Series: Knee Pain

Knee Pain In Tennis Players

Knee pain is a common ailment that many tennis players experience throughout their careers. Whether playing recreational or competitive tennis, a lot of stress and strain is put through the knees with constant sprinting, lunging, and jumping.

The typical “ready position” in tennis has players in a squat and on the balls of the feet, ready to split step and sprint for the next oncoming shot. The trunk is upright to maintain balance and optimally see the court. This position is incredibly functional, especially in tennis. It allows players to move and react quickly. However, with repetition and fatigue, the ready position places a lot of load on the quadriceps muscles. This can lead to the muscles themselves to become tight, which may pull on the tendons that attach to the knee. This extra tension may irritate tendons or other parts of the knee joint, causing knee pain while playing. This irritation may carry into other parts of daily life like squatting or walking up or down stairs.

Muscle Imbalance

In this scenario, there is often a “muscle imbalance” between the quad muscles and the muscles surrounding the hip, the gluteal muscles. Because tennis players are constantly in the “ready position,” they often become very strong in the quadriceps, relying on these muscles for all of their movements throughout the day. One way to help distribute the load more evenly and balance out the leg muscles is to strengthen the gluteal (“butt”) muscles and stretch out the quads. A thorough examination from a physical therapist can help pinpoint the parts of the knee that need to be stretched and the muscles that should be strengthened.

Keeping the leg muscles strong, flexible, and balanced will improve performance, decrease pain, and increase longevity in tennis. Work with a licensed physical therapist to find out how to specifically work to get rid of that nagging knee pain!