Heal Your Knees With Chinese Reflexology

If you’re a runner and you’ve got knee pain or if you have chronic knee problems, read this article to learn how to heal your knees faster and prevent injuries with Chinese Reflexology. The Chinese Reflexology point for the knee helps to heal injuries faster and banish weird twinges and wobbles. It’s also very beneficial for long-term chronic weakness in the knees.

I never considered myself a runner until this year. I was woefully out of shape, having not exercised regularly since the birth of my son 3 years ago. I wanted to get fit, so I signed up for a triathlon. I was always a crappy runner so this year, I focused on improving my technique. Things went well until…

reflexology for knees, knee pain, knee problems, reflexology

The night before my race, for no apparent reason, I experienced a weird “twinge” in my knee. I was a little concerned so I took out my reflexology stick and used it to massage the reflexology point for my knees. After the massage, my knees felt fine and I went on to have a great run. In fact, I had such a fun race that I signed up for another triathlon. Although now I had a new goal: I wanted to be competitive.

I began training for speed and I joined a running club for moms. We have a Facebook group where members post about training runs, races and accomplishing goals. Go ladies! However, there were also a few of women who posted about injuries, with knee injuries being the most common.

In a perfect world, no one should ever have to use the phrase, “bone against bone” to describe their knees, yet that’s what some of these brave athletes were posting. And as a fellow mom, I know that moms can’t afford to be sidelined because we’re so busy running after our kids!

That’s why I’m dedicating this article to my running group and to all the runners and athletes out there. You know who you are. I know that it feels good to run and it feels amazing to challenge yourself and surpass your goals. However, it feels even better to run without pain, so if you’re experiencing knee pain, put up your feet and learn how to heal your knees faster with Chinese Reflexology.

The Chinese Medicine Perspective on Knee Pain

One of the core principles of Chinese Medicine is the concept of Qi or life force energy. Similar to how your body has a network of vessels for transporting blood, there’s also a network of channels for the flow of energy in your body.

When Qi (energy), blood and fluids aren’t flowing as they should, this can lead to pain. Generally speaking, in Chinese Medicine, there are two main causes of knee problems.ย  The first occurs when Qi is blocked and/or stagnant. It’s like the energy is pooling in the knees and there’s too much going on there. This describes a typical knee injury where there’s swelling and throbbing and usually the pain is quite intense.

The second cause of knee problems is not having enough Qi, blood and fluids flowing through the knees. This is usually related to aging or insufficient nutrition and it tends to manifest more as a weakness of the knees.

In both cases, knee pain is a result of a disruption in the normal flow of Qi, blood and fluids through the knees.ย  While it’s easy to point a finger at an injury or over-training as the cause of knee pain, there’s usually an underlying condition that makes one more susceptible to wear and tear. The challenge is to figure out what the underlying condition is and to fix itโ€”and of course, in the case of a running injury, you’ve got to fix bad running form too.

With Chinese Reflexology, your feet tell you where there are Qi disruptions in your body. That’s because your feet house the “master control points” for regulating the flow of energy in your body. When you massage your reflexology points, you stimulate the proper flow of energy in your body. And when energy flows as it should, blood and fluids also flow properly and this supports your body’s natural healing process so that you can feel better faster.

How to Find the Knee Reflexology Point

The Chinese Reflexology point for the knee is located on the outer edge of your foot where the skin meets the sole. It’s like a circle with a diameter slightly wider than the width of your thumb. To locate this point, use your thumb to feel along the edge of your foot in the area in front of your ankle.

If your knees are sore, you’ll know you’ve found the knee reflexology point when you feel a tender spot. ย  BINGO!

Reflexology points are only sensitive when there’s an energy disharmony in the corresponding area of the body, such as one caused by a knee injury. You can measure your healing progress based on the sensitivity of the point. As you heal, the point will feel less sore.

The point on your right foot corresponds to your right knee and the point on your left foot is for your left knee.

How to Massage the Chinese Reflexology Point for the Knee

You can use either your thumb or the knuckle of your index finger to massage the knee reflexology point.ย  Press and rub the area using a back and forth motion, from toe to heel and back again.ย  If you have an acute knee injury, massage the knee reflexology point for 60 seconds, 3 times a day.ย  Do this until the acute phase of the injury passes. Then, you can gradually reduce the amount of massage until your knees are healed.ย  E.g. 60 seconds twice a day reducing down to 30 seconds at a time.

If you’re massaging for chronic knee pain, you will need to massage the reflexology point for your knee for a longer time frame.ย  Things that are chronic have been ongoing for a much longer time.ย  Thus, it takes your body more time to rebalance itself, but you should notice that the reflexology point is less sensitive after about 2 to 3 weeks.ย  That’s a good sign.ย  It means the Qi is starting to flow as it should and your physical body will begin reflecting this soon.

When You’re Feeling Better…

When you’re feeling better and not in the deep fear or frustration that an injury can bring on, it’s time to delve deeper. One thing to note too is that when you’re feeling better, that doesn’t mean you should then run out and push yourself harder.

Knee injuries don’t suddenly appear, especially if you’re a runner.ย  They take time to develop and there’s always an underlying cause that goes even deeper than the physical body. This is where stuff gets interesting and in my opinion, where things get quite fun!

I’m talking about the emotional, spiritual and mental causes of injury.

According to Louise Hay, the author of You Can Heal Your Life, knee problems are related to, “Inability to bend. Stubborn ego and pride. Fear. Inflexibility. Wonโ€™t give in.”ย  She recommends affirmations to help you get in the flow, such as saying out loud, “I am flexible and flowing.” or “I bend and flow with ease and all is well.

Deb Shapiro, author of, Your Body Speaks Your Mind: Decoding the Emotional, Psychological, and Spiritual Messages That Underlie Illness, writes the following:

  • “Water in the knee indicates a holding of emotional energy, particularly a resistance to surrender, or there may be too much emotion to cope with and the weight is being carried in the knees.
  • An inflamed knee indicates something or someone is making you feel irritated or angry, and you will not give in!
  • A dislocated knee shows a resistance to giving way. The knee can no longer take the pressure, so it collapses and you are unable to maintain your standing.”

I love this wonderfully written article from Monika Meulman at The Healing Muse about what she learned from her knee pain while she was a running coach.

Holly Tse, author of ChineseFootReflexology.com (Heh, heh, did I catch you by surprise here?), believes that the knees are related to moving forwards in life. Your feet, ankles, knees and legs are all related to movement. When you resist the flow of life and try to control it, that’s when knee issues arise. Your body is simply trying to tell you something that your bullheaded mind is too stubborn to hear.

Injuries are a very effective way for your body to draw attention to an area of your life that you’ve been overlooking. Injuries shine a spotlight on something that you’ve been ignoring or setting aside for quite some time.ย  More often than not, what you’ve been ignoring is yourself.ย  What youย crave is appreciation and nurturing and it’s not so much from other people, it’s from yourself.

This is especially true for people who are always giving to others, such as moms. When you get injured, it gives you a reason to pause and stop giving to everyone else.ย  It gives you an opportunity to have others support you, but most importantly, it gives you the opportunity to give to yourself.

In my twenties, I never said, “No” to people. I always did what I thought other people expected of me and I completely ignored my own needs.ย  When I got into a car accident, it was the first time in my life I felt I had a good enough excuse to start saying, “No,” to everyone else’s demands and start saying, “Yes,”ย  to myself.

When I felt that twinge in my knee the night before my triathlon, I stopped what I was doing to focus on nurturing myself by massaging my knee reflexology point. I also said, “Screw this” to worrying about swimming in the Bay or how many pounds away I was from my pre-pregnancy weight. I decided to simply allow myself to enjoy the experience of the race and sure enough, the knee pain went away.

So if you’ve got knee pain, the best gift you can give yourself is to let go of managing everyone and everything around you.ย  Give yourself the compassion and nurturing that your body is craving and of course, take the time to massage your knee reflexology points too!

Rest. Be well. Heal your knees and move freely through life.

Take Care,

Holly
Meandk

Know a Runner or Someone With Knee Problems?

Help ’em keep their knees healthy by sharing this article on Facebook or Pinterest. To share, please click one of the buttons at the bottom of this page. Thank you. Their knees will thank you too!

Did You Know There Are Chinese Reflexology Points to Strengthen Muscles and Relax Tendons?

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Spleen supports strong and healthy muscles through its role in digesting food and transporting nutrients throughout the body. The Liver channel also plays a key role in nourishing the tendons. There are Chinese Reflexology points for both of these organs/meridians.

You can locate these points by downloading your freeย Chinese Reflexology foot charts. Once you do, press these points on your feet to see if they’re sensitive. This will give you an indication of what is going on in your body at the energy level. Simply sign up below for my newsletter, Amazing Feet. You’ll get free online lessons as well as the reflexology charts.
Iโ€™m a full time mom so I promise that you wonโ€™t get tons of email from me as Iโ€™m much too busy looking after my toddler. I also promise to keep your email address confidential and to only send you messages that are full of useful and invaluable information.

28 thoughts on “Heal Your Knees With Chinese Reflexology”

  1. I saw the title of your blog and came running – er, limping…I have knee pain and have considerable arthritis around both kneecaps, marked on the right and moderate on the left. I am going to study what you’ve posted to learn more. If I may, might I suggest that in the future you break up such valuable information into multiple smaller blog posts? It’s hard to absorb so much at once! Thanks for bringing this information to us.

    1. Hi Judy,

      Thank you for your suggestion. If it feels right for you, I highly encourage you to try massaging your knee reflexology points. It will help the Qi to keep flowing through your knees.

  2. Loved this post Holly. Loved the way you tied in the mind/body link. The world is paying far more attention these days to body-mind solutions to health. I share all of your views, I’m an EFT-er which works with the chi energy of the body as well. Love what you’re doing with the blog, and I’m looking forward to coming back many times ๐Ÿ™‚ J

    1. Hi Julie,

      Thanks for your comments! EFT is an awesome tool for moving stuck energy. I look forward to checking out your blog too.

  3. Love reading about how knee pain is all related to resistance to change which makes perfect sense and is the pain point for exhausted people pleasers since that is the women I work with. I am going to pay attention to when my knees speak!

  4. Thanks for this post. My knee pain has subsided since I’ve cut down on sugar, but I’ll definitely try the massage points when they’re bothering me, like today, when I’m wearing different shoes than usual. Great info!

  5. I hate running with a passion but get the knee tweaks when skiing. I do love reflexology so much though – I miss it as I used to go regularly in the UK. Can you move to Utah please ๐Ÿ™‚

  6. I appreciate this post thank you. I just started getting into reflexology and I find this really helpful. I have had some pain in my knee and it feels close to overextending a lot lately. I’ll try using this technique. Thank you. I think I will probably have to get an MRI too once I get my insurance in order but either way it will feel good to have some relief!! I appreciate that bit about the psychological aspect as well. That shows some parallels in my own life too. Thank you. I appreciate your writing style as well. It’s very simple and straightforward, sometimes humorous, and clear. thank you.

  7. Hi, Yr massage treatment for knee pain works! Thanks so much, awesome, awesome!! I been having this right knee pain for at least 5 yrs or more. Everytime, when I bend or squat, I’ll feel a sharp pain on the inner side of my right knee. I hv applied ointment or self massage on my knee, but the pain just couldn’t go away. Happened to chance upon yr website, followed yr technique, n lol, it works, within a few minutes. I bend or squat, lo n behold, no pain, gd as normal. From now on, I massage my foot as long as I can, each time, the result is positive, no pain.. even when I squat and move around… So grateful to you for sharing this info… A BIG THANK YOU ๐Ÿ™‚

  8. Just read you blog on knee injuries. I dislocated my right knee in 1975. It was left ‘out for some weeks’ now I struggle with it. Extra weight gains because I can’t run, exercise much. I am unable to bend my knee enough to massage as described. Any suggestions as to how I could massage and relieve pain?

    1. Perhaps you can ask a friend or relative to massage the point for you. Alternately, I’d recommend gentle stretching daily (e.g. reaching for toes, might just be reaching for knees to start). While it may take a few months to regain enough flexibility to massage your foot, you should see improvement in your flexibility in a few weeks. Once there is enough gain in flexibility, the knee point can be reached while standing when the knees are slightly bent. If it feels a bit wobbly to stand this way, you can use a piece of furniture for balance (e.g. sturdy table to help support).

  9. Thank you Holly. Beautifully written article. Back in November I remember falling on my knee. The pain is just below the knee cap right on top of the bone. It has been bugging me since then – limiting my range of movement, limiting what I can do, and causing me discomfort. I really appreciate this article and have already started massaging the reflexology point for my knee. I am feeling the improvement and know that when I combine this with the affirmations from Louise I am healing my knee. It is time for me to take care of myself. It is time for me to let go of the need to control. I am flexible, free and flowing. I’m noticing that I was restricting myself and was blocking my own growth. This injury is a great reminder for me and an opportunity to heal myself. It is giving me the confidence I need at this time. Thank you again! All the best

    1. You’re very welcome Derek. I’m happy to hear that you are already feeling an improvement. Keep up the massage. And I love how you are also addressing the emotional roots of the knee pain. Yes, you can heal your life ๐Ÿ˜‰

  10. So, I was concentrating all of my energy into the middle of my hand. I did it with such power, my hand bent and my whole body got paralyzed with a lot of pain. What has happened?

    1. And thanks to your blog, even though I do not have high blood pressure, I healed my depression! And I healed my knees well. Thanks for this blog!

    2. I’m not sure. I’ve never heard of this occurring before. It sounds like you have some powerful energy flowing through you. Perhaps take a more balanced and relaxed approach in the future. As well, If there is somewhere near you where you can learn Qi Gong or Tai Chi, you may want to check it out.

  11. This is a wonderful article. thank you. I have a knee injury from transforming my belief system and going through massive life changes. The inability to be flexible and move forward and being stubborn might just be the cause of my knee pain. The reflexology and affirmations are helping. I have my own website where we give wholehearted advice on how to better connect to the supreme energy and I find your knowledge and wisdom has taught me a lot. Thank you!

  12. Great site for knee pain thanks so much Holly it has given me a lot to ponder on !
    An excellent way of finding the knee reflex when you are in pain I located it much more easily and it does HURT
    I cannot wait to see how long it will take for knee ache to go away and will take note as yesterday I really thought I would not be able to get home from tube station as I could not walk comfortably.

  13. Holly, this is a great post. I had knee and foot problems for seven years. Initially, I thought that the pain and discomfort were brought on by my daily runs on the beach. Over the years, though, I realized there was an emotional component and like you pointed out, the “injury” was all about thwarted movement.

    Once I realized the steps I needed to take in my career that I had pushed to the back of my consciousness while being a full-time mother (which I loved but as my son got older was eventually out of balance with my soul’s purpose) had a lot to do with the leg problems I was on my way to increased mobility.

    As I have moved forward with my life, returning to grad school, taking my writing seriously, releasing old patterns about love, my entire body has more energy and I’m now able to walk again without pain. Use of reflexology is a recent addition to the shamanic healing modalities I’ve used in the last several months to help move the energy and I look forward to an ever-expanding relationship with it.

  14. I am a massage therapist and have periodic trouble with my right knee. I have worked quad and surrounding myscles but the knee reflexology point has been the answer. Thank you so much!

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