Martial Arts Injury Care: Patellar Tendonitis (Jumper’s Knee) & Osgood Schlatter’s Disease

This simple but effective injury care tip comes from Trish Bare Ground's Guide for Martial Arts Injury Care and Prevention:

Many jumping sports get a condition known as patellar tendonitis, or jumper’s knee, from repetively jumping on a hard surface, putting stress and strain on the patellar tendon which attaches the four large quadriceps muscles (on front of the thigh) to a small bump (tibial tuberosity) just below the patella (kneecap). Pain is normally localized around this bump and the space between the patella and the bump just below the patella. Others get a similar pain because the bones of their legs are growing faster than the muscles can accommodate for, causing pain in the knee and just below in the area of the bump that the patellar tendon attaches to. This condition is most often seen in males, ages 10-15 years of age who have had a dramatic growth spurt in a short period of time. Martial artists are prone to both, even though it is not a jumping sport per se. A lot of the agility drills as well as jumping rope, can have the same effect, especially if they also run on a hard surface, such as concrete or asphalt.

Now generally the best thing to do is to rest and ice these injuries, but sometimes practice and competition schedules are not that accommodating, and a pacifier for the injury is needed. You can purchase commercially produced CHO-PAT® straps, those brown straps that you often see basketball players wearing around the leg just under the knee, to help reduce the pain. You can also use pre-wrap, applied before any type of workout using the following technique:

1. Using pre-wrap, circle the leg 10 times just below the patella (kneecap), being careful not to pull tight.

2. Then take your hands and “roll” the pre-wrap down from the top and up from the bottom until you have a “strap”.

3. To loosen, place your fingers between leg and strap and pull, stretching it to your own comfort. Simply tear to remove.

Final VHS Video Clearance Sale

We have a limited number of VHS titles left at clearance prices. Get them while they last:


Power Breaking video $5.95
WTF Black Belt Poomse Vol. 1 video $5.95
WTF Black Belt Poomse Vol. 2 video $7.95 (only 1 left in stock)
Tai Chi: Chen Style video $5.95
Tai Chi:Yang Style video $7.95 (only 1 left in stock)
Power Strength Stamina video $5.95 (only 1 left in stock)
Taekkyon Vol. 1 video $7.95 (only 3 left in stock)
Taekkyon Vol. 2 video $5.95
Muay Thai Knockout 1 video $7.95 (only 3 left in stock)
Traditional Korean Weapons 1 video $7.95 (only 1 left in stock)
Traditional Korean Archery video $7.95
Warrior Arts of Korea video $5.95
Taekwondo Hand Skills video $5.95
Police Tactics One video $5.95
Perfect your Kyorugi Kicking video $5.95
Taekwondo Hanmadang video $7.95 (only 2 left in stock)

Preorder New Martial Arts Movie and Save

Save $5.00 off the regular retail price of $24.95 when you order the Zen Man 2 DVD Set. In his feature film debut, Sang H. Kim brings to life the story of a peace-seeking Zen master named Han who is drawn into a web of revenge by the son of his former student. As elements of his past come back to haunt him, the Zen master faces a choice: kill or be killed. While the young man finally gets his wish, he discovers that we don't know what we have until we destroy it.

In this special 2 disc deluxe edition, you get the full length wide screen version of Zen Man plus a second disc loaded with behind the scenes footage, "making of" featurettes, a look at the martial arts used in the movie and more. Don't miss out on the debut feature film from Sang H. Kim.