Patellar tendon pain is a common injury to the knee, and today I want to share how this problem occurs, how to know if this is really tendinopathy and the first steps to fixing.

Your tendons speak the language of load. Depending on a number of factors (such as how intense you have trained throughout your years as an athlete, the medications you take, whether or not you have diabetes, etc.) your body will have adapted your tendon to a certain set point of strength called the “load tolerance” level.

Training loads placed on the tendon that do not severely exceeded this set level create a cellular response in the tendon (that can actually be seen by ultrasound) that will return to normal in 2-3 days given proper recovery methods (this is the normal time frame for the adaption “replenishment” process to take place).27 However, if the load placed on the tendon is too extreme or if there is inadequate recovery in the athlete’s training program, this balanced process is disrupted. When this occurs the process tips from being adaptive to pathological. A spark is lit and the injury process begins.

Young athletes (under the age of 30) who are involved in sports that include sudden explosive and repetitive movements of the knee are most susceptible to developing an injury at either the quad or patellar tendons. Movements that use the tendons of the knee as a spring (such as a jump) place significantly more load on the tendon than a slower movement like a squat. Historically, this is why sports such as basketball and volleyball that involve a high amount of jumping have such a high incidence of this injury (a reason why this injury is also known as “jumper’s knee”).

The teaching I present today is based primarily from the renowned work of professor Jill Cook. Check out this blog post for a more in-depth discussion on everything I discussed today along with more ideas for the rehab process: https://squatuniversity.com/2018/01/04/fixing-patellar-quad-tendon-pain/

Link for the Rogue Monster Bands: https://www.roguefitness.com/rogue-monster-bands/?a_aid=570d1d1a06b95

Buy my book: https://www.amazon.com/Squat-Bible-Ultimate-Mastering-Strength/dp/1540395421
Subscribe to this channel here: https://tinyurl.com/y2eq7kpr
Recommended products: https://squatuniversity.com/recommended-products/
____________________________________________________________
Big thanks to 3d4Medical and their app Complete Anatomy for the visual of the body today. If you would like to use their app at a discounted price, check out this link: https://store.3d4medical.com/application/user-kind?id=1&affiliate=true&promo=Zt83d843cA&clickId=bcf492a92e694ecd92ccd96866aff21e

Music credits
Opening & closing track by JookTheFirst: https://soundcloud.com/jookthefirst

Background track by Fox Beats: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvpD…

Connect with SquatUniversity:
Visit the website: http://www.squatuniversity.com
Like the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SquatUnivers…
Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/squatuniversity
Follow on SnapChat: @aaronhorschig
Follow on Instagram: http://instagram.com/squat_university
Listen to the Podcast on: apple iTunes, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Google Play and the Anchor App!

Special thank you to Evan Pierson Productions for his help in making this video!