Strength exercises to rehab Osgood Schlatter Disease
Strength exercises, performed correctly and with the right amount and at the right times, are an essential part of treating Osgood Schlatter Disease.
With progress at strength exercises athletes get back to playing sport pain-free - feeling stronger, faster, and more resilient than ever before.
Strength exercises are critical for treating Osgood Schlatter
When we experience pain and injury, the muscles surrounding the injured site become reflexively inhibited as a protective mechanism. The body’s intention is to shut down the muscles to protect and promote recovery.
With knee pain like Osgood Schlatter Disease, the muscle group affected most are the the quadraceps - a big, powerful muscle group on the front of the thigh. The quads are crucial in running and jumping, and they support and de-load the knee tendons.
As Osgood knee pain persists, the quads remain inhibited and gradually become weak and even atrophy (shrink in size). As a result, the tendons and joints take more of the forces from sport and daily life, increasing the Osgood pain further.
With well chosen exercises and a gradual progression plan we can undo this counter-productive quad muscle inhibition. Once they are no longer inhibited, they get back to absorbing force, protecting the knee joint and ultimately reducing Osgood pain.
The best strength exercises for Osgood Schlatter Disease
Knee isometric holds
Isometric holds (or ‘Isos’) are incredibly effective at settling down sore knees and strengthening the muscles required to protect and support the knee. We’ve seen athletes drop from a 7/10 on the pain scale, to 0/10 in 5 minutes with isometrics
Isometrics are a particularly great starting exercise for children or adults suffering from Osgood Schlatter Disease because they load the quad muscles without moving the knee through uncomfortable ranges of movement. Despite many common gym myths, we do not always need full ranges of motion to build strength in a muscle group.
Shallow Squats for Osgood Schlatters
Squatting, when performed correctly, is one of the most important strength movements for helping you beat Osgood Schlatters.
Shallow squats have many benefits but the key one is that they are a re-patterning exercise that help athletes switch from a knee dominant movement pattern (which overloads the knee) to a glute dominant pattern, which is better for your knee and more athletic. This translates to huge improvements in the jumping and landing technique.
The typical problem we see with squatting is that almost everyone performs them incorrectly; too deep, too wide, too knee dominant, caving in at the knees, bent and twisted spines. It can be a mess.
That’s why starting shallow and focusing on great technique with a smooth pattern, and never squat through pain.
These are just two of the exercises that we include in our online, seven-week Osgood Schlatter Disease Treatment Program. The exercises prescribed in the program are safe, effective and scientifically proven to be reduce knee pain and heal Osgood Schlatter Disease. And the best bit yet, is that they have the added benefit of making athletes stronger, faster and more resistant to future injuries.
Osgood Strength Training & Exercise Myths
I want to cover the most common question people have when it comes to strength training exercises for Osgood Schlatters, especially when being done by children and teenagers.
Myth 1: Weight training stunts growth in children
Never has a myth been more harmful to your chances of beating Osgood Schlatters!
One of the most common arguments we hear against strength training in children and adolescents is that the intensity of the lifting is too great, and their young developing bodies will not be able to tolerate the stress on their growth plates.
This myth is actually born out of some old research that looked at explosive Olympic Weightlifting in adolescents. While that study did show young weightlifters created damage to their growth plates, this is an extreme form of weight training, and it is not the style of weight training used in our Osgood treatment program.
The body of scientific evidence shows this is simply not the case. In fact, with age-appropriate training, the evidence points towards increased strength, lower rates of sports-related injury, increased bone strength index (BSI), decreased risk of fracture, and improved self-esteem.
Lifting weights won’t stunt the growth of children and teenagers – when programming in an age appropriate way. with over 20+ years of coaching experience and more than 3,000 athletes having successfully completed our online program, our first-hand evidence backs this up.
When used correctly and scaled for intensity and complexity, performing strength training movements can have the exact opposite effect than seen in the weight lifting study.
We talk more about this myth and where it came from in episode 54 of our Podcast.
One of the most common arguments we hear against strength training in children and adolescents is that the intensity of the lifting is too great, and their young developing bodies will not be able to tolerate the stress on their growth plates. Given sprinting, jumping and landing can put as much as 6-8x bodyweight in forces this far outweighs the amount of load that is used during strength training.
Strength training has another added benefit, increased movement skill. Learning great shapes and patterns with body weight, or a small amount of external load will help build robust and strong bodies capable of moving better in sport, and that can better cope with sporting demands.
Throughout our Osgood Schlatters treatment program, we utilise bodyweight movements and targeted exercises with no more than 5kg (12lbs) of external load to develop strength in the lower body and core, targeting the muscles that support and stabilise the knee and lower leg.
Myth 2: Rest is the only thing that can fix Osgood
One of the most pervasive and harmful myths about Osgood Schlatter Disease is that complete rest is the only way to cure it. This misconception often leads to young athletes being sidelined for months or even years longer than they need to be, causing them to lose fitness, fall behind their peers and even potentially leading to ongoing Osgood symptoms even as an adult.
Here's why long term rest is problematic for Osgood
- Muscle weakness: Extended periods of inactivity can lead to muscle weakness and atrophy, particularly in the quadriceps. This can actually exacerbate the condition by reducing the muscle's ability to support the knee.
- Loss of bone density: Lack of weight-bearing activity can result in decreased bone density, which is particularly crucial during adolescent growth spurts.
- Deconditioning: Extended rest can lead to overall deconditioning, making it harder for the athlete to return to their sport when the pain subsides.
- Mental health impacts: Forced inactivity can be mentally and emotionally challenging for young athletes, potentially leading to decreased motivation and self-esteem.
- Ignores the underlying issue: Rest alone doesn't address the biomechanical and strength imbalances that often contribute to Osgood Schlatter Disease.
The truth is, while some degree of rest and activity modification is important, complete inactivity is rarely the best approach. A more effective strategy involves:
- Relative rest: Reducing activities that exacerbate pain, but not eliminating all physical activity.
- Targeted strength training: Building strength in the quadriceps, hamstrings, and core to better support the knee.
- Flexibility work: Improving flexibility in tight muscles that may be contributing to the condition.
- Gradual return to activity: Slowly reintroducing sport-specific movements as pain allows.
Our 7-week Osgood Schlatter Treatment Program is designed around these principles, helping young athletes recover faster and come back stronger than if they had simply rested. By addressing the root causes of Osgood Schlatter Disease, we can not only alleviate current symptoms but also reduce the risk of recurrence in the future.
Remember, every case of Osgood Schlatter Disease is unique, and it's important to consult with a healthcare professional or a qualified coach before starting any treatment program. However, understanding that rest isn't the only (or even the best) solution is the first step towards a more effective recovery.
Myth 3: Squats are bad for the knees
A common misconception, particularly when it comes to Osgood Schlatter Disease, is that squats are harmful to the knees. This myth often leads to avoiding an exercise that could be incredibly beneficial for knee health and overall leg strength. Let's set the record straight:
The truth is, when performed correctly, squats can be one of the most effective exercises for building knee strength and stability.
Here's why good squats are actually great for your knees
- Muscle strengthening: Squats target multiple muscle groups including the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. Strengthening these muscles provides better support for the knee joint.
- Improved joint stability: The controlled movement in squats helps improve proprioception and stability around the knee joint.
- Increased bone density: Weight-bearing exercises like squats can help increase bone density, which is crucial during adolescent growth spurts.
- Enhanced movement patterns: Learning proper squat technique translates to better movement patterns in daily life and sports activities.
- Adaptable exercise: Squats can be easily modified to suit individual needs and pain levels.
The key to making squats beneficial rather than harmful lies in two main factors:
1. Proper squatting technique
- Keep your feet shoulder-width apart
- Ensure your knees track over your toes (don't let them collapse inward)
- Keep your chest up and core engaged
- Push through your heels as you stand up
2. Appropriate, partial range of motion
For those with Osgood Schlatter Disease, we often recommend starting with shallow squats. This means only lowering yourself a small amount - perhaps just 15-30 degrees of knee bend. As strength improves and pain decreases, you can gradually increase the depth of the squat.
By focusing on these two factors, squats can become a powerful tool in your Osgood Schlatter treatment arsenal. They help build the leg strength necessary to support the knees, improve overall lower body function, and can even help alleviate knee pain in the long run.
In our 7-week Osgood Schlatter Treatment Program, we guide participants through proper squatting technique, starting with very shallow, pain-free movements and progressively increasing depth and load as strength improves. This approach allows young athletes to reap the benefits of squatting while minimising any risk to their knees.
Remember, the goal is not to push through pain, but to work within a comfortable range to build strength gradually. With patience and consistent practice, squats can become a cornerstone exercise in managing Osgood Schlatter Disease and improving overall athletic performance.
Squats are so valuable for Osgood that we wrote an entire article about just this one exercise.
Strengthening will help heal your Osgood Schlatters
If you are currently experiencing Osgood pain, now is the perfect time to get started with sensible strength training.
Yes, even if you are currently experiencing knee pain!
When done correctly, certain strength training exercises will help relieve your knee pain while also building strength and endurance in the muscles, even if you are still experiencing Osgood Schlatter Knee pain then performing modified and specific targeted exercises you can speed up your recovery and return to sport much faster. These exercises form the foundations of our seven-week Osgood treatment program.
While you are taking some relative rest from sporting loads, use that spare time to start performing regular strength exercises to build the muscles and tendons of the lower body, helping relieve your pain and preparing you to return to full activity levels.
Professional Osgood Treatment Program
To make your strength training as effective as possible, you will need guidance on which exercises to do, how to perform them correctly and how many reps to do each week.
This is why we have built a seven-week Osgood treatment program that takes you every step of the way to treating your Osgood Schlatters pain now, and forever. Our program includes video demonstrations, an exercise workbook, pain log, and includes expert coaches and an online support group to support you every step of the way through your treatment journey.
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