9 Home Remedies for Knee Pain

Easy, effective ways to improve joint function on your own

Denise Maher,

AARP

Comments

En español

Published June 13, 2024

a person in workout clothes gripping their inflamed knee while kneeling on the sidewalk

AARP (Source: Getty Images)

As you may be painfully aware, knee pain is very common. Global estimates suggest that more than 1 in 5 adults age 40 and over experience this type of joint problem, and knee pain in men and women in the United States increases steadily after age 60.

Persistent aching, swelling and tenderness in the knee joint don’t mean that you need knee replacement right away; you can do many things on your own to help ease knee discomfort.

Self-care is important for managing knee pain, says Leigh F. Callahan, associate director of the Thurston Arthritis Research Center at the University of North Carolina.

Here are some of the best home-based ways to help your knees feel and function better.

1. Aim for light activity, easy exercise

Haven’t been moving much recently? You can get big benefits from doing light-intensity activities such as gardening, walking and housework. A study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that light activity may reduce the risk of physical limitations in people who are sedentary. The authors concluded that when moderate to vigorous physical activity is not an option, trying light activity may be better than no activity at all.

“Joint pain is a kind of a move-it-or-lose-it phenomenon,” says Alexander K. Meininger, M.D., a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and a member of the medical staff at University of Colorado Health Yampa Valley Medical Center. “Motion is the lotion ... exercise is an important tool to help patients feel better and functionally get better."

Callahan, who is also the director of the Osteoarthritis Action Alliance, suggests people with knee problems try the Arthritis Foundation’s program Walk With Ease, which she helped create. Designed for people who are not currently physically active, the program is backed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and is effective in increasing balance, reducing pain, and improving flexibility and overall health.

2. Try to lose a little, not a lot, of weight

Extra body weight certainly stresses the knee joints, but you don’t need to shed very many pounds to reduce their burden. Losing one pound equals four fewer pounds of pressure on a knee joint, Callahan notes.

In other words, a little bit of weight loss can make a big difference in how you feel. You don’t need to lose 20 pounds or become model-thin to be successful, says Callahan, stressing that “the important message is that a little bit can help a lot.” Do not be discouraged, she says.

How to Know When to See a Doctor

Sharp pain or changes in pain character and quality are telling, Amy S. Beacom, M.D., says. “Like, this isn’t my usual pain. All these things that I typically do, it’s not helping,” she says. “If the pain has not woken you up at night before, and now new pain is keeping you awake or waking you up: That is something that needs to be addressed.”

3. Work on improving your balance

People with fear of movement are more likely to be inactive, Callahan says. Two things contribute to the fear of movement, she says: concern that moving will exacerbate pain, and worry about falling. Balance often worsens with age in part because muscle mass decreases, resulting in muscle weakness.

Fear of falling is not irrational, especially since people with knee arthritis may also experience problems with balance because age-related joint wear and tear can throw off the body’s ability to sense its own position. Luckily, balance training can help improve balance and functional performance, according to a review published in 2022.

Ready to get started? Check out the exercises featured in “5 Exercises to Restore Strength, Agility and Balance.”

Tai chi, or “moving meditation,” can help you steady yourself and improve your balance. The traditional Chinese practice that combines a series of slow movements and controlled breathing is designed to center your energy and helps prevent falls — and it has also been shown to help older adults boost mood and memory, lower blood pressure, and ease pain. For more, see our “Intro to Tai Chi” video and “8 Surprising Reasons to Try Tai Chi After 50.”

4. Practice how you sit and stand

Go back to basics to help discover what you may be doing to worsen pain. “Just through moving the joint [with] an exercise like sit-to-stand in a chair or [things that] help work the quadriceps and the gluteals, or bending and straightening the knee to circulate joint fluid, reduce inflammation and prevent stiffness,” Meininger says.

“One of the first things I teach people is how to properly stand and sit from a seated surface," says Sherri Betz, a spokesperson for the American Physical Therapy Association.

If you start using your hands to push yourself up, you’ll stop strengthening your leg. Loss of muscle will increase pain. “About 70 percent of the shock absorption for your knee comes from muscle. So if you keep losing muscle, you’re going to have more and more joint stress,” she says.

Illustrated exercise moves to try: Chair Sit to Stand or the quad set, illustrated in AARP’s “8 Knee-Strengthening Exercises to Reduce Pain.”

“I always suggest that you do a quad set 10 times and see how it feels,” Betz says. “If it starts to feel better, wait a moment and then do 10 more and maybe you do about three sets of 10 every hour.”

5. Take matters into your own hands with massage and acupressure

Recent research suggests that both massage and acupressure may help reduce knee pain. In a review of 17 studies published in April 2024 in the Journal of Integrative and Complementary Medicine, researchers found that self-massage is a viable way to help treat musculoskeletal pain. Why? Probably because massage, like acupressure, helps promote the increased blood flow needed for healing.

a person activating an acupressure point below both knees

Shutterstock

“Acupressure ... doesn’t break the skin like an acupuncture needle would,” says acupuncturist and physical therapist Eileen Li, calling acupressure the “noninvasive form of acupuncture.”

Half of the participants in a study published in JAMA Network Open received knee health education programs (without acupressure) while the other group received the same program with self-administered acupressure targeting pressure points. In traditional Chinese medicine, these points often correspond to areas in the body that contain a rich abundance of nerve endings, blood vessels and lymphatic vessels.

The result: DIY acupressure sessions twice a day for 12 weeks were effective in relieving knee pain and improving mobility in older adults with probable knee osteoarthritis.

According to Chinese medicine, the pressure points that run along channels of the body correspond to blood vessels and nerve pathways in specific parts of the body, says Li, who recommends a condensed protocol including pressure points used in the study.

Here’s how Li recommends getting started:

Warm-up massage

Sitting upright in a chair, using the palm of your hand, gently stroke/push down your thigh from the outside, top and inner muscle 20-36 repetitions for a total of 2 minutes.

Pressure point ST36

Take your four fingers of your hand (approximately 3 inches) and apply it below your kneecap. From the bottom of where your pinkie finger is resting (1 inch toward the outside of your shin), ST36 may feel like a ditch or an achy sensation. Massage this point for 20-30 seconds, three to six times. To see how this is done, Li recommends watching this video.

Knee rubbing

Cup your hand and place it over your kneecap and circle clockwise 20-30 times and counterclockwise 20-30 times for a total of 2 minutes till you generate a light warmth.

Move the knee

Lastly, while sitting, gently extend and flex your knee within a comfortable range. Ideally do this with your legs hanging above the floor, but if feet touch the floor, slide your foot on the floor to extend the knee to a comfortable range. Then slowly flex the knee back down till the foot touches the floor. Try 20-30 repetitions, as long as it’s comfortable, for a total of 2 minutes. The sequence should take no more than 10 minutes.

Make sure you check in with your doctor or physical therapist before trying any new exercises or therapies.

6. Try a plant-based, anti-inflammatory diet

Here’s yet another reason to try the Mediterranean diet. One study of an anti-inflammatory diet for knee osteoarthritis published in 2022 found that there was enough evidence to support further research.

“There is growing evidence to support an anti-inflammatory diet and even some data to say that a plant-based diet can help reduce arthritis pain and restore function,” Meininger says, adding that he might suggest to patients, “Give it a try for 30 days and see if you notice less knee pain.”

Make sure you check in with your doctor or physical therapist before trying any new exercises or therapies.

7. Grab some trekking poles

Unlike clinical-looking walking aids such as canes and walkers, hiking poles don’t carry a stigma. That’s why many people use them to walk on level surfaces rather than just for fitness hikes.

Meininger calls trekking poles a more amenable option for patients. “Even for flat ground and regular walking, they don’t seem as negative ... and I think that the hiking poles can be more easily adopted," he says.

And, according to Betz, they are especially good for the knees. “I love the idea of hiking with poles,” she says. “Because often you’re going uphill on the first part of the hike, and then you have to come back down. And that’s the worst part for the knee. Hiking poles minimize the stress on your knee as you’re coming down,” she says.

“Walking sticks give you an extra leg,” says Amy S. Beacom, M.D., a sports medicine specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. “If you have a painful limb, why not?”

8. Try home-based exercise machines

Recumbent or stationary bikes or stationary peddlers can be useful. Both Beacom and Meininger note that stationary peddlers are very popular with some patients. Don’t dismiss anything without trying it, Beacom says: “It is trial and error. You never know what’s going to work for someone. Whatever gets someone to move can be really helpful."

Before investing in a stationary bike, try one at a community center, YMCA, gym or physical therapy office to see how it feels.

9. Find the right R&R routine

Rest when you have pain, and use either cold or heat therapy to help soothe your knee joints. “Ice or heat ... will usually help, and there’s no right or wrong,” Beacom says. Some people like compression sleeves or ace bandage wraps for stability, she says. But you don’t need to spend a lot of money on a tool to help you cool or warm your knee.

If you have pain after an activity, pay attention. Callahan cites the Walk with Ease 2-Hour Pain Rule: Your pain should not be worse two hours after you exercise than before you started. If it is, cut back.

Video: 3 Easy Moves for Stronger Knees

%{postComment}%

Denise Maher is a reporter, writer and editor who covers integrative medicine, reproductive health, chronic pain, autoimmune disease and other consumer health topics. Her work has been published in Everyday Health, HealthCentral, Reader’s Digest, Men’s Health, Self and more.