Knee Pain: Why It Happens and What You Can Do About It
August 9, 2026
Knee pain can affect people of all ages, regardless of how active they are. With the right advice, exercise and management most knee pain improves.
What causes knee pain?
The knee joint is complex. There is a lot of different muscles, ligaments, cartilage and tendons that work together to move and support the knee. There is often not one single cause. Knee pain can develop when the amount of load placed through the joint exceeds what the tissues are currently able to tolerate.
Pain can be caused by:
- A sudden injury like a fall, twisting or a sports injury.
- Overloading from increased activity or exercise.
- Changes to training or footwear.
- Prolonged periods of sitting or standing.
- Age related changes in the joint.
Common symptoms
- Pain during walking, running or walking up/downstairs.
- Stiffness after sitting for long periods.
- Swelling around the knee.
- Clicking or grinding.
- Difficulty squatting, kneeling or getting up from a chair.
- Feeling the knee is weak or unstable.
Having any of these symptoms doesn’t necessarily mean there is significant damage to the knee. Most knee pain responds well to physiotherapy management.
Should I rest my knee?
Resting the knee completely is rarely ever the answer. But it can be helpful to temporarily reduce activities that aggravate symptoms. However, keeping the knee moving in its comfortable limits is usually beneficial for recovery. Doing too much too soon can flare your symptoms but doing too little can lead to stiffness and weakness. So it is important to find the right balance.
How can physiotherapy help?
A physiotherapy assessment can help you understand what is causing your symptoms and how you can manage them to stop them affecting your daily life.
aims to understand what is causing your symptoms and how it is affecting your daily life. Rehabilitation is individualised because what works for one person may not work for another.
Treatment can include:
- Advice on managing symptoms and activity levels.
- Advice on safely returning to work, exercise or sport.
- Exercises to improve movement and strength.
- Education on pain management.
When should I seek advice?
If you have knee pain it is a good idea to seek advice. Physiotherapists can assess your symptoms, help identify the cause of the pain and provide advice on the best way to manage it. Getting advice early can help you stay active and reduce the risk of your pain affecting your everyday activities.
If you have any questions or feel you need more support, please call the clinic on 0191 285 8701 for a free telephone triage call or email info@physiotherapymatters.co.uk.