Meniscus and Squating

[tilden]

I'm 54 YO male who hasn't lifted in ten years. In that time I have gain weight and done limited workouts, which included heavy rope, TRX and some kettle bell work.
About a year ago I went to an orthopedic surgeon due to some knee problems. The x-rays should my left outer meniscus is close to bone on bone. The right is fine.
My question is what are your thoughts on squatting with the meniscal in this condition?
Thank you.

[boot29342342]

First, I would recommend getting some knee sleeves, like it says in the book. Rehbands is what I have, and they work well.

Keep an eagle eye on your form and shove them knees out. Also be vigilant about knee position to avoid knee slide; that particular form flaw makes knees hurt like a mofo if you have a knee injury. Squatting should make your knees feel better, though, because you want to keep the muscles around the knee strong and flexible.

[tilden]

Thanks tobo, I happen to have a Rehband knee sleeve.

[freddie75104]

I'm 50 and i've had 40% of my meniscus removed on the right inside of my knee in jan. of this year,that left me with a bone on bone issue, the physical therapist told me that loading the joint was gonna cause me some pain.
But after completing PT I felt like I wanted to at least try and see what would happen when I loaded it and it actually felt better as I progressed. tobo above is exactly right about knee position and for me its more about foot placement and stance, the injured side foot is turned out slightly more the the uninjured side, my stance is also wider than what most hard core SS guys would call optimal, but thats what makes me able to train, so thats what I do. I also wear sleeves for some extra support.
I would also like to say that I feel some pressure in that area at my heavier (squatting) weights, not really pain but definitely noticeable. I've been going pretty strong for about 6.5 months with no real problems in that area. Im at the advanced novice stage now and scheduled for a set of 5 at 325 on mon. for my squat progression (5'5" 165 lbs.) I started with the bar right after PT and never looked back. So IMO it is possible to squat without much trouble if you really want to.

[Gene61]

Tilden, I also have cartilage thinning issues. While my knee hurts some the day after squatting, in general it hurts a lot less than it used to. There have been some studies quoted here on this forum that resistance training actually causes some regeneration of cartilage, not a lot, but some. This may be the reason. Stronger and looser are also probably helping.

The points about form are critical. If I make a mistake and shoot my knees out, or have them collapse inward. I pay for it in pain the next day.

For some reason, no matter how careful I am with form, I can't do heavy dead lifts without causing a lot of pain in that knee for several days after. I've had to give them up, even though I love them.

[Dave Klopp]

I think you will be fine but watch your form as tobo stated and monitor how the joint feels during and after workouts. I had arthroscopic surgery on my right knee and approx 30% of the meniscus was removed to address medial and lateral tears. Surgery was in April 2013 and joint is still tender if I force the ROM. I have been squatting with no problems including hitting appropriate depth. I have been fanatical about knee position and also use knee sleeves. Interestingly enough my knee feels better (more stable) when I am pushing the prowler about once/week.