Patellar Tendon Pain When Lunging: How to Lunge Pain Free
7 min Read
Do you ever get that nagging pain in the front of your knee when doing lunges? It’s a sharp pain that goes away as soon as you are done with the lunge. Right at the bottom and front of your knee cap. It’s enough that it keeps you from doing lunges and probably most lower body movements for that matter!
I hear this a lot from my active adults and athletes!
“How do I get rid of this?”
Great question and one that has a relatively easy fixable answer.
Knee Pain Rarely Starts at the Knee
When you come to see me, first we do a full movement assessment. Why because most times knee pain doesn’t actually originate at the knee (Go read the last Blog is your hip pain being caused by your backor vice versa)
Next thing we check for is whether there is a nervous or visceral protection pattern in place (Read the Hierarchy of Protection to learn more about protection patterns and why they are important)
The liver,
kidneys,
diaphragm,
vena cava (big vein from your abdomen to your heart)
sciatic nerve (yes this can refer pain to the knee!)
Can all cause referral knee pain. So addressing these patterns first is essential!
How Organ Protection Creates Knee Pain
When the body is protecting pelvic or abdominal organs, this often shows up as:
Tight adductors
“Grippy” hip flexors
Limited hip internal rotation
Overactive quads
Decreased stability through the pelvis
All of these can change how the knee moves and increase pressure on the patellar tendon.
This is why addressing these deeper patterns FIRST is crucial.
If you don’t, your knee pain will return as soon as you start loading the movement again.
Once these protections have been assessed and addressed and there is still pain at the front of the knee we can now focus directly at this joint.
1. Release the Articularis Genu (The Secret Knee Muscle No One Talks About)
My go to is a release of the articularis genu. This is a tiny muscle that is actually below the quad muscles. It is responsible for lifting the Suprapatellar bursa (or fat pad) during knee flexion so it doesn’t get pinched. This muscle can get la,g particularly if there has been swelling in or around the knee joint.
To be honest this doesn’t feel great while doing this release but for many it relieves pain during lunges immediately!
2. Your Hamstrings (Your Brakes!)
If after the release there is still some knee pain during the lunge the next thing I look to address are the hamstrings.
The Hamstrings are your breaks!
If your hamstrings aren’t in control of your knee bending during the lunge, the quad is over compensating and excessively pulling eccentrically (contracting while lengthening, think biceps while lowering the weight) which will lead to pulling the patella (knee cap) into greater contact with the femur. This excessive force can lead to inflammation of the joint which eventually if left unchanged can lead to arthritis (READ Arthritis is it Just Inflammation).
In order to address this using a good hamstring curl exercise, may go to is usually Hamstring Curls on a Stability Ball.
If after doing a couple sets of these and then recheck the lunge and the pain is gone, this indicates that the hamstrings were slacking initially during the lunge. It is then my primer for them before they do any lunge or squats. They NEED to get the hamstrings involved to perform any of these movements.
3. Release Tight Adductors (The Hidden Culprit in Patellar Tendon Pain)
These 2 things clean up probably 90% of the people I work with! One last piece that contribute to the this type of knee pain are tight Adductors (groin muscles) For this using a soft ball and doing this release is my go to!
Again doesn’t usually feel great while doing this but afterwards everything just feels and moves better!
Why These Three Fixes Work So Well
Most people only stretch their quads or ice their knees when they feel patellar tendon pain.
But the real solution is about restoring:
Nervous system safety
Proper knee mechanics
Normal quad/hamstring balance
Hip mobility
Once we address these patterns, lunges feel smooth, stable, and pain-free again.
How to modify your lunge in the mean time.
There are several ways to continue to use lunges in your routine even if you have some lingering knee pain. Work in a pain free range of motion. This may look like:
Shorten your stance
Keep shin vertical
Reduce depth
Step backwards instead of forward
Add support (TRX, countertop, poles)
Switch to split squats temporarily
Elevate the front or back foot
Slow the tempo
If you are in Redondo Beach or the South Bay and struggling with knee pain….
I help active people of all ages and abilities get out of pain and back to their favorite activities!
Usually within the first 1-3 sessions there is a change in your pain…and that is the most important piece. Once your pain has decreased then we can work on increasing mobility and strength and all the things to keep you moving and feeling better!
This is exactly what we do during one of my Orthopedic session.
If you would like to discuss how I can help you! You can click the button below and schedule a FREE Discovery call.