Treat Your Own Knees: Simple Exercises to Build Strength, Flexibility, Responsiveness and Endurance Kindle Edition

I bought this for my 97-yr-old uncle (can you believe it?!) to help him with the occasional buckling of his right knee. Though he's just had the book for 2 weeks, he loves it! He says that it is very informative, and he has learned so much about the structure and workings of the knee. He's even tried some of the exercises, and he hasn't experienced any buckling since! Of course, he cautions that it's still too early to tell, but thus far he is so pleased with this little book! I've bought him several other books but this one really impresses him!

I'm 63 & had restarted strength training10 months ago after 20 years of doing aerobic exercise only. I was feeling great with the new training except I felt like I had "an old man's" knees. It got bad enough that I was considering stopping the strength training.But after 4-6 weeks of following the exercises prescribed in this book I'm feeling much better. My knees no longer feel old & I'm continuing with the strength training. Thanks to the author for helpful book!

I'[ve been working on stretching my leg tendons for about 2 months now, knees are feeling better. I didn't know it but the reason people end up all stooped over as they age is because the tendons keep shortening. Yoga is good for the problems, but this book tells you specifically what to do for healthy knees. I had not been able to kneel back on my feet for years and years, and now I'm getting close. I didn't think it was possible, but I can see that it is.

Jim Johnson is an experienced Physical Therapist with a keen ability for writing. "Treat Your Own Knees" is a small but very effective book with advice for exercises and scheduling of a knee treatment regimen that I have found personally very effective. I am a on again-off again runner due to knee issues, but I have found this book to be very beneficial (and in general agreement with physical therapy I have done), and think if you have knee problems that buying this book would be of benefit. I have read several other books on the subject, but this is the only one I keep in my bookcase for quick reference. I highly recommend "Treat Your Own Knees" and thank Jim Johnson for his sage advice.

Answering the criticsFirst, let me say that I was having almost constant low-grade pain in my left knee for about five years. Occasionally, I would gently twist my knee by accidentally dragging the ball of my foot on the ground which would result in two or three days of acute knee pain. Getting in and out of the car was a real chore. And sometimes my knee simply felt loose like it might come disassembled. I could feel stuff moving around in there.I bought this book, read it, did exactly what it said, and in about a month I was 95-98% pain free and my knee no longer felt "loose". For more, see my comments under Brian Hurler's 3-Star review. I feel I am qualified to review this book by answering the critics.The complaint is made that the book doesn't discuss specific treatments for specific knee disorders. Johnson spends a lot of words explaining why that's usually not necessary. If you can restore function by strengthening the knee support system, then the specific cause of the pain and disability is irrelevant. Johnson also tells you when you should see a doctor to seek specific diagnosis and treatment.Yes, all of Johnson's recommendations could have been put on one sheet of paper but then the reader might not be motivated to try the suggested regimen because he/she would not understand why those particular exercises were recommended and why they might be effective.One commenter complained that there was nothing about strengthening knees to prepare for playing tennis. The book is for people who have painful knees that need treatment. Nowhere is the book billed as an all-purpose comprehensive preparation for strenuous athletics although I believe the exercises in this book would be a good place to start - They build strength, flexibility, stamina, and proprioception. Then you can find more strenuous exercises that work the same muscles. Get the Men's Health Big Book of Exercise for some ideas.The complaint is made that there are only 4 exercises and those could have been obtained from a good chiropractor or a good PT. One of the things I like about Johnson's books is that he only gives you the minimum of exercises that will do the job. You don't waste your time doing redundant exercises and you don't waste your time doing exercises that haven't been proven to help the problem. It's very efficient. What is the cost of a chiropractor or a PT? And how do you know you have a GOOD one? How do you know if the exercises they give you will be as efficient and effective as these proven ones?One commenter recommends that you hire a personal trainer to train "all your muscles back to good form while using proper positioning to reduce further injury." In my experience, the exercises in this book are explained thoroughly enough that proper form can be executed; the exercises are effective at building the necessary strength and flexibility to reduce or eliminate knee pain; and they are certainly gentle enough that they aren't going to cause further injury.Effective, as advertised, for the problem and efficient of your time - I don't understand the complaints. Personally, I don't want to spend my life exercising or at the gym or at the chiropractor's - I just want to have a pain-free knee.

At age 59 I started a new workout program which included a lot of strength training. Lunges, deadlifts, squats... the works. 6 months later my knees hurt so much I could no longer jog. Went to my doctor. She had no suggestions. I could do the strength training, but it was painful to walk or climb stairs. A few weeks later, I bought this book. The first day I did the exercises I started to get relief, and my knees are better every day. Today, I was walking around as pain free as I used to be. Wow! The exercises are simple, well-explained and only take a couple of minutes to do. Five stars and then some for this little book.

I've been searching for a way to make post-op nerve damage in my knee more livable. Post-op physical therapy restored most function.Following the guidance in this book for 7 (almost 8) weeks: my strength and flexibility has improved, and the bouts of nerve pain have been reduced by 75%. I call that a big improvement, although the unpredictability still frustrates me. Beginning with heat treatment and ending with relaxation has been helpful. I think I'm easier to live with now. I intend to continue, since the program is not particularly time consuming and I can increase the intensity of the exercises.I think this would be more helpful (or produce more benefit) for people who begin with less-functional knees than my starting place. I think nerve damage is just hard to resolve, and the best way I have of dealing with it is to ignore it and disengage my emotions from it. Horror doesn't help. Knowing that my knee is (knees are) showing improvements in flexibility and strength is a good intellectual counterbalance.Give the book a try. It won't do you any harm.

Though it doesn't claim to be, there's nothing even remotely groundbreaking about this book. It's mostly just a consolidation of what the literature suggests and what's been proven to work by rigorous scientific evidence. It's really basic information you can find with a quick search.To save you the trouble of reading, the suggested exercises are:quad sets to strengthen the quads (every other day)quad and hamstring stretches (daily)standing on one leg for balance (every other say)light cardio (20 - 30 mins every other day)improve your mental health (he suggests the relaxation response technique daily)That really is all you need to know. The author makes it seem so quick and simple, which I think is why the book has the level of appeal it does. From my experience, the reality isn't quite the same.I would find it far more interesting to hear about what he's learned over the years from his own experience as a physiotherapist instead of regurgitating what's already known in the literature and so readily available all over the web.That said, if you're new to tackling your knee pain issues and want a place to start, it's quick and easy to jump into and quite an interesting read. It's also written in a very reader-friendly manner.

Great book. It's a small book, pocket sized but packed with lots of interesting information about knees. I loved the clear explanations and how the information was also backed up by research studies etc. The exercises appear to be very simple but never confuse "simple" with "easy." I had a very painful knee injury, it was swollen and very tender to walk on. I have done the exercises and built up the timings etc over the last month and it has made a difference. I will continue the exercises, even when my knee is better because I want to keep it healthy longer term and they only take 5 minutes a day.

If you're problem is weak inner quads then that's about all this has covered. But this book only really covers part of the problem if you have this common problem of kneecap tracking going out.There's nothing here you won't find on the internet quite easily but I'll add a bit of my own info for free after having dealt with a problem to a fairly good end. Make sure you stretch your lateral reticulum or all your exercises to hit the VMO won't really take effect if the kneecap is still stiff. Break the LR and then do the VMO.

According to a knee specialist I apparently have the knee of and eighty year old... quite why this is I have no idea. I'm 58 and look and feel pretty good for my age so I'm assuming that it's my 'Ligament of Dorian Grey'.I really don't want to start going down the replacement route and I'd been appallingly lax with the pysiotherapy SO I decided to take some responsibility and this wee tome was the answer! Five mornings a week I do the little routine - meditation with hot pack on knee (always good anyway) brief knee massage then strengthening excercises and flexibility excercises folowed by a bit of propreoception!! It takes about half an hour and it really has made a difference! Not just psysically but mentally. I feel pro-active - I'm taking responsibility not just whinging on about 'me bad knees' and then handing my joint over to some knee surgeon to lob in a spare part or spending hundreds of pounds on therapists that will usually make it feel ok for a bit and then it will sieze up again. Also I now understand more about what a knee joint is and how it works. And all thanks to this book. If I could afford it I'd buy loads and hand them out to all my mates with knee probs! Unfortunatley it's quite a pricy book so they can just make do with a hearty recommendation from me!

Simply but convincingly written, the author explains the research that backs up his techniques (and also the provenance of the research). There is no sense of self-promotion. He clearly explains a few techniques which I have now found very effective - despite having done some fairly similar things at the gym but, I now realise, not quite correctly and outside of a balanced program. Everything is straightforward to do at home and requires no equipment. Given the effect of knee problems on one's life I think this book is a small but worthwhile investment.