What causes knee cracking when doing squats?

Squat is a common exercise, and many sports are based on this movement. The main purpose of doing squats is to activate the muscles in the body, stretch them well, and avoid muscle strain in subsequent exercises. Some people find that their knees make crackling sounds when they do squats. Is this normal? What is the reason for the knees to make crackling sounds when doing squats? Is it a disease?

Why do my knees make noises when I do squats?

If you do squats without warming up, your knee joints will become cold and tight, local muscle viscosity will increase, and blood circulation will be poor.

How to solve it: Warm up thoroughly before squatting or exercising, and move your hip, knee, and ankle joints to increase tissue temperature.

What does it mean when your knees click when you do squats?

Poor flexibility

How to ensure that the knee joint bears the maximum force during exercise? This all depends on the flexibility of the thigh muscles. Too many people do squats without stretching, which makes the bone joints too tight. As the muscle strength continues to develop, the joints will become tighter, unbalanced and deformed, thus making noises.

How to fix it: Stretch your muscles.

Pay attention to stretching the front, back, inner and outer thigh muscles. Stretch in time between sets and before and after training to relax the muscles and prevent joints from being too tight.

If the knee joint makes a popping sound when doing squats, it is usually not caused by any disease, but if the popping sound occurs frequently, you need to pay attention. The most common problem is a problem with the meniscus of the knee joint. You need to pay attention to whether there are fixed tender points in the knee joint. If so, it is recommended to go to the hospital for a systematic examination. Wait until the results come out before deciding whether or not to resume the deep squat exercise.

Things to note when doing squats: Knee clicks

1. Distinguish between pathological and physiological snapping

Knee popping is not necessarily a joint problem; physiological popping is very normal. Physiological snapping: The sound is crisp, single, and non-repetitive; it only occurs when the joint is suddenly pulled or flexed. If your knee joint does not make this kind of sound, it may be pathological snapping.

If your knees make clicking noises when you squat that do not meet the above conditions, it may be pathological clicking. There are many diseases that can cause snapping knees, such as meniscus injury, osteoarthritis, etc. It is recommended that you go to a regular hospital for treatment as soon as possible.

2. Keep your knees warm

In winter, you can wear warm pants with thickened design near the knee joints; pay attention to keep the area around the knee joints dry, and change into dry and warm clothes immediately after exercise; soak in hot springs or hot baths to increase blood circulation in the muscles near the knee joints, which also has a good maintenance effect on the knee joints.

3. Do squats quickly and don’t rush to increase the weight.

Remember to do squats at a very slow pace, and don't rush to increase the weight. Use a slow pace to increase training intensity and muscle endurance. This is true for any fitness exercise, give your joints some space and room. Constant locking and impact of the knee joint is also one of the main causes of injury.