Tips for not exhausting knees from dancing?

[rsms]

Previous years at Fusion, my knees started to hurt at about Saturday. That's not too surprising, as I am one of those who tend to not leave the dancefloor, and I may be a quite energetic dance. While I do exercise regularly and would say my legs are strong, I'm also not exactly young (40+). But my knees have almost never given me a problem – except at Fusion.

This year I would like to avoid exhausting my knees. Maybe you people have some recommendations to share? But let's skip the obvious one: that I should try and take breaks from the dancefloor once in a while...

SHOES
Should I maybe buy a new pair of shoes before the festival? Is it a bad idea to dance in new schoes without first getting used to them slowly? Or a good idea to have two different pairs of shoes to alternate between? Anyway, do you have any tips for what to think about when choosing shoes for dancing?

DANCEFLOOR SURFACES
I guess the choice of dancing shoes is related to what kind of surface you dance on.
But from what I remember, different floors at Fusion have very different dancing surfaces. From soft sand (Trancefloor, Kutt:air) to hard beton (most of the hangars), while most outdoor floors have either grass or gravel.
I will dance on them all. But obviously, dancing on beton will put more strain on my knees so I wonder what extra precautions I could take in those places.

KNEE SUPPORT
There are a number of different kinds of knee protectors/stabilizers available at pharmacies, for people suffering from runner's knee or similar. Tape, pads, bracing and whatnot. Would it be a good idea to use some of these throughout the festival to stabilize the knees?

OTHER TIPS?
Please share! I guess I'm not the only one who whould be thankful.

[RoofDamage]

Never had problems with my knees, but with my calves when dancing for a long time (so maybe everything I'm writing now is not helping you, sorry ) but I think it is a good idea to warm up/stretch bevor dancing and maybe take some magnesium and stay hydrated

[Mego]

Do a massage for you feet and calf everyday, beeing Barefoot from time to time. Streeching all muscle of your hips. Thats what i do

maybe your problem is not the knee, often it is the ankle joint

[irrelevant]

Same, but I got blisters & sore feet. Best tricks possibly suiting you as well are to sleep w/ elevated legs (just put the dirty laundry under your calves) and use peppermint essential oil or cooling gel (perhaps Tiger Balsam in your case?). I'd also try & get hold of a physical therapist and ask for advice, if I were you. Good luck, and take care of your knees.

[Janu]

I‘m not an expert at all, but i also try to integrate good rest during the festival and to keep my legs in a good shape. I‘m much younger (29), but i have a background of kneeproblems and maybe my thoughts are useful for you (and/or others).

SHOES
Should I maybe buy a new pair of shoes before the festival? Is it a bad idea to dance in new schoes without first getting used to them slowly?

I think you answered your question already. A good pair of shoes is probably important, but i think your body does not have enough time to adapt to the new shoes until the festival starts. Wearing new shoes could lead to more problems then it would help.

But what could help is putting your shoes of in resting phases. Let your feet breathe, walk barefoot in your camp and, put them off when you chill and rest on the festivalground. (Probably a good tip in terms of a ‚holistic‘ perspective; concentrate not only on good knees but on good legs in general).

What also seems to be quite good is lifting your legs 2-3 times during the day in resting phases. Thats a tip i got from a ‚thru-hiker‘ on youtube, who goes hiking for 2.000 miles +, for example. As chatgpt summarized for me:

„Elevating the legs helps relieve muscle fatigue and reduce knee stress by improving blood circulation and reducing swelling. It promotes the return of venous blood to the heart, enhances oxygen delivery to muscles, and supports lymphatic drainage. This reduces pressure in the lower limbs, eases joint load, and speeds up recovery after intense activity or prolonged standing.“

Edit: Chatgpt recommends to do that 2-3 times a day for 15-30min. Obviously 30min is quite long, but 10-15min is probably realistic to integrate into your festival. Easy to integrate with the following tip:

Personally i‘m going to use a travel hammock for better resting phases during the day and night. You can carry it with you because its ultralight, you can easily lift you legs inside and swing your legs back and forth when sitting inside.

[holterdipolter]

My problem is not feet or knees, but in the hips instead.

I bought a pair of trailrunning shoes for fusion last year and did not regret it. I broke them for a few days before, but I never get blisters anyway. Currently breaking in another one for this year.

Funny enough, fusion always really helps with my tense shoulder.

Stretching and some massaging by friends was also always helpful. If you can, start right now if you're not already doing things regularly.

Two years ago I did my stretches at Palapa and a physical therapist walked up to me and offered a full professional stretching session. That was fucking awesome. Thanks again Jose from Argentina

[311gia]

Try Voltaren Schmerzgel or Voltaren Forte Schmerzgel with Diclofenac from the pharmacy + as a natural pain relief drink pure MSM + Glucosamine in water. You can't overdose; take at least 1 tablespoon of each per drink, even several times a day. For external use, use magnesium oil spray for massaging in. All of them work directly against pain and are easily available on Amazon. Enjoy!

[Aal]

I think your knees might hurt because of the ground. I have similar Problems and I figured for myself out that it depends on how even the ground is I am dancing at or are there possibilities like either dancing on sand or in the grass etc maybe it works for you as well to focus a little bit on that and try different spots. So it might not be you or your Body, maybe just the given parameters

[lila airwaves]

Use a Pattelasehnenbandage. It's like magic. You get it in a Sanitätshaus.

[rsms]

Me deepest thanks to all of you who shared your tips! It's very valuable and I will try to follow them all. Say hi to the soon-50 guy on the dancefloor with Pattelasehnenbandage under his knees, this time maybe even remembering to take a rest (with the legs held high and the right minerals in the water) now and then