Knee Pain

People often expect their knees to fail them. They think it is just the way the body is designed. But The Vance Stance® will show you that you can very often correct the underlying misalignment that is causing the torqueing and compressing at the knee joint that results in deterioration and pain. Crooked legs show up as bowlegs, knock-knees, or hyper-extended legs. These postural aberrations must, and can, be corrected to eliminate the pain.

KNEE PAIN is connected to tight feet and lower legs, tight hamstrings, tight hips, and incorrect usage and placement of the torso. It may sound daunting, but you can actually have success reprogramming your body with The Stance and its 34 Movements. Caught early enough, you may be able to avoid knee and/or hip replacements.

• Try this: this is a short version of The Vance Stance, the central piece in this body-alignment work. Stand with your feet centered down from the crest of your hip bone, pointing straight ahead. Bend your ankles more than you may think is meant. Bend your knees now, keeping the knee area centered over the feet. Notice if your feet feel the urge to turn out, or go wider. Feel the old habit of the legs and knees that feel the urge to want to straighten, and not bend at the knees and ankles. Note if the old shape of your legs resembles a capital letter A (for Awful, we say!) instead of a capital letter H, for Happy, Healthy! If you can feel an immediate lessening of the pain at your knees, you are on your way to the permanent change needed to release the causes of your knee pain.

NOTE: the degree to which this Stance position feels completely alien is the degree of resistance, tightness, and inflexibility you have to work through. The Stance is designed to take you step by step through the process.

Other exercises that can help in Knee Pain include:

• Movements suggested in the Foot Pain Section to open the front and back of the legs.
• Leg on Railing (page 112-113), which opens the hamstrings and your back.
• Cross-legged Sit (page 128-129) which begins the opening of the hips. 

NOTE: unlike the "good pain" we experience as the feet are opening, if you feel anything painful at the knees, STOP! This is a clear indication that your feet and hips are too blocked, that you are forcing the knees to move incorrectly. Go back and pay more attention to opening the joints below and above the knees until you can do the Cross-legged Sit with no pain at the knee.