Can Using the Treadmill Too Much Hurt Your Knees?

Mercy’s Dr. John-Paul Rue specializes in the prevention and treatment of injuries related to sports and exercise. He treats patients of all ages, serving athletes ranging from the casual jogger or weekend warrior to competitive and collegiate athletes and beyond. In this article, Dr. Rue examines of the issue of whether too frequent use of a treadmill may cause knee problems…

The question about the relationship between walking or running and arthritis is often debated. There’s no evidence that moderate exercise, whether it’s running or walking, causes arthritis.  In fact, the old adage that “motion is lotion” holds true.   It’s important to remain active and walking is a big part of that.  Walking can help you maintain a healthy weight, which can decrease the amount of stress on your joints and actually lessen the amount of pain and stiffness you feel from your arthritis.  Walking on a treadmill offers many advantages to people who live in colder climates, or live in areas where walking outdoors just isn’t feasible.  

There are some key points to remember, however about walking on a treadmill. Make sure that you do a proper warm up and stretch, and choose a treadmill that is well maintained.   It’s also important to wear appropriate shoes and maintain your posture.  Slouching can cause other areas of your body, such as your back, to hurt.  Walking on an incline may be more of a workout, but be careful about doing this too much because the constant “uphill” forces can cause ankle pain, or other areas of your body to hurt from additional stress.

--Dr. John-Paul Rue, Orthopedics, Sports Medicine 

Orthopedics & Joint Replacement at Mercy

Mercy’s Dr. John-Paul Rue focuses primarily on treating injuries of the knee, shoulder and elbow, from ACL tears, meniscus and cartilage injuries to shoulder instability and rotator cuff injuries. He also sees patients with injuries such as overuse tendonitis, ankle sprains and fractures. Dr. Rue works closely with colleagues and rehabilitation specialists to guide patients through the recovery process, recommend related strength and conditioning exercises and offer return-to-play insight and guidelines. He is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy and served as the head team physician for the Naval Academy before coming to Mercy.