So i’ve been squating(without weight), and when i squat, i concentrate on proper form.
However, my left knee when squatting cracks/pops(its a chatterbox… xD) no discomfort with it ever, no pain, no soreness, no stiffness, never had a knee injury. Just noises, is it just a chatty knee? or should i worry about injury(especially when i start adding weight)?
Lauren
everyone crackles and pops from time to time. its just tendons and ligaments snapping across a surface thats not smooth. shouldn’t be problem but if you have never squated with weight before, take it slow to get your body used to it.
yes you should worry. look for paul chek’s excelent article on pattern overloading to know why (a start)
S-man
Lauren, Try to find a position that will allow you to squat without hearing the popping. Try a wider stance, or a narrower one, toes turned out a bit more, or turned straighter ahead.
Since you’re still squatting bodyweight, there’s an excellent article by Krista Scott Dixon at stumptuous which teaches the beginner how to squat. It’s directed towards women and might be helpful to you. PM me if you can’t find it.
Lisa
Thanks all,
Actually, i’ve been reading Krista’s site for awhile and used her photos to learn proper form
I shouldve also mentioned, i tend to be a very crackly person my wrists sound like they’re breaking every time i move them more than a slight amount, my ankles crack when i run etc
I have tried afew stances, and if its not my knee then my hip cracks(at a wider stance… ). I only mentioned my knee because its what snaps most often in my most comftorable stance.
I must just be cursed 
Lauren
Knee mice are sometimes indicative of a problem, sometimes not. Since you don’t have any pain, I lean towards “not”. I find the more I squat, deep, the less my knees crack.
BUT! I did see a doctor to be sure there were no counter-indications to deep squatting before I did. He said it was nothing to worry about, so I don’t. I advise you to do the same. Better safe than sorry–you only get one pair of knees.
Dan
I’m in the same boat. I crackle and pop like a sack of walnuts. My doc told me not to worry as I don’t experience undue discomfort. Then again, my doc once told me not to eat so much red meat, so you never know.
(2)
[Shakes head] For Pete’s sake.
The condition, such as it is, is called “crepitus” and is nothing to worry about. If you do a search for that term you’ll find a fair bit of information about it, including a squat article back in the T-mag archives.
I have the same thing. I’ve had it since I was in my mid-teens, and everyone told me that it was due to squatting, that I’d have to have my knees replaced before I was 30, yada yada yada. Well, here I am over 40 now, still squatting (full squats, parallel squats, King squats, quarter squats, box squats, front squats, high-tempo, low-tempo, heavy, light…), still having all that loose cartiledge making noise … and no pain whatsoever.
You’re not going to be able to find a position where your knees don’t make noise. And you don’t have to. Any exercise that you can do pain-free is fine. Okay? And any exercise that causes you pain (the bad kind) should be avoided.
It’s a pretty simple rule, but one that gets forgotten a lot.
Generally I wouldn’t be too worried about the noises unless they’re associated with pain.
As an aside though, do your knees or hips crack when performing any other exercises?
Thanks all!
Kin,
Depends on the exercise, but yes. They normally dont pop until my knees get bent at a right(90 degree) angle or more, but almost any exercise involving my legs can cause them to crack on & off. I only worried because If it was causing injury i didnt want to make it worse by adding weight(especially since they crack alot more often during the squat then any exercise i’ve done before). My hips pop alot during swimming & sprinting, it comes & goes & also depends on the swimming stroke im doing & how fast im going/how hard im pushing myself.
I’ll certainly keep a watch on it although it doesnt sound like a huge issue because there is no discomfort^^
thanks again
Lauren
(excuse any spelling errors, have finished “morning” coffee)