Knees hurting From Ballet..... Anyone Know Why?

Im 16 and just got into it....

I notice that when ever i Grand Plie in any position my knees hurt or if i do any jumping (toures) (but im making sure i come back down fully from Releve)

is it possible that my technique is wrong?

or maybe bad knees?

What can I do about it? Do I need surgery? Should I stop?

Knees hurting From Ballet..... Anyone Know Why?opera house

As GroovyGirl and romanster said, it's your technique. Unfortunately, it's possible to get both teachers AND doctors who don't know the right way to explain what you're doing wrong and what you should be doing to make it right. Like jazzypinkdancer, your doctor will just tell you it's patellofemoral syndrome and most likely try to prescribe exercises to build up your inner thighs, which isn't the correct exercise. Meanwhile, all your teachers are likely to keep saying "turn out from your hips!" That doesn't help if all you know to do is force your turn out.

The problem lies in how you use your piriformis muscle, which lies deep in the lower regions of your butt. When tightened, the action of this muscle is to "'rotate laterally (outward) the thigh" - i.e., produce turn out. (see link) This is THE turn out muscle that causes your entire leg to line up properly with your knees in the correct position.

If your teacher can't help you to locate it and use it properly, you might stand a better chance getting a physical therapist to give you the correct exercises to find it and work it properly. You'd need to pass through a doctor's office to prescribe a round of physical therapy. But in my experience (with my daughter's situation), we never found a doctor who understands the biomechanics of dance. My daughter only learned about the piriformis from a physical therapist and she hasn't had knee problems since.

Knees hurting From Ballet..... Anyone Know Why?dream theater opera theater

maybe ballet isnt your cup of tea. try somthing with less stress on the knees.
well, this also applies to martial arts. if u want an answer, plz explain if it hurts right after you come down or does it hurt all the time after? if the 1st 1, then it will be natural and u should practice crouching and putting ur palm on you knee cap and circling ur legs. if second, consult a doctor
ask a doctor? im really not sure. . . .
My 14-year-old granddaughter has been taking dancing since she was eight and now is in professional training several hours a day. Early on, she went to a physio with some aches and pains and found out she hadn't been taught the proper way to do splits and it was set to cause future problems. Don't mess with it. See a good physiotherapist. You will get a lot of good pointers, as well as get a good answer to your very important question.
i do ballet and have knee problems, i find that my knees hurt during plie's if my technique is sloppy, it is important to keep your spine in the right position and that you don't sit in your plie. The best thing you can do is talk to your instructor and see if you're doing it right. If you are then it might be something wrong with your knees and maybe ballet isn't for you.
The best thing to do is to consult a doctor. You could have strained your knees to much. Could be that your technique needs to be developed more. And seeing you just got into it, and at 16, which is rather late to start, your body needs time to adjust to the new sport. Ballet is something that looks very easy but it is very stressful to the joints of your body especially the knee. The knee takes in a lot of shock when you land after a jump. Do warm ups and stretches to get the flow going before a lesson. I also had the same problem when i started. Just take it easy. But before you continue lessons, consult the doctor or your teacher. They may be able to give you a few pointers on how to lessen the pain.
If you are forcing your turn out, you could be twisting your knees and causing tearing in the muscles, tendons, and/or ligaments. Also, when you do a grand plie, your knees should go over your big toe - make sure they're not back too far. Your knees probably hurt when you jump because they are damaged from doing plies improperly or forcing your turn out. Make sure you plie when you land from any jump - that will help some too. Also, ask your teacher to look at your turn out and your plies to help be sure you are doing them correctly.

Good luck! Enjoy ballet! It's always been my favorite!
It could be from where you are originating your turnout. If you are turning out from the hips and letting the legs bend naturally, this should lessen the strain on your knees. If you are turning out from your ankles and knees, the pain will show itself when you put stresses on them in the most turned out positions like grand plie, and in jumping. I would lessen your turn out for a while and make sure you aren't putting undue pressure on your knees.
This is a common problem. Always no matter use ice after you dance. This will relieve some of the inflammation. Also take glucosamine. Make sure it is whole food. Don't get it from wal-mart or a pharmacy. Also consult a chiropractor before seeking an Orthopedic.
oh i always have those problems, its natural. grande plie is a very deep plie, so i would suggest either legwarmers or like sports cream. you don't need surgery, because if you did i would of had thousands of thousands or surgeries. don't stop, dancing is a great oppurtunity. i have been dancing since the age of four and i am still doing it!! also you could try

hyper-extending a little. this may sound crazy, but if you have any frozen vegetables in yor freezer, put them in the place where it hurts (but of course leave them in the bag.. lol). hope your knee feels better and quick!
I've been doing ballet since i was in first grade I'm in eight now. Just recently in the fall my knees started hurting really bad, especially with bending and jumping. My mom made an appoint at a sports medicine doctor. By that appoint my knees had been hurting for about a month. He told me I had patellofemoral syndrome. Which means my outer thigh muscles are to Strong and y inner thigh muscles aren't equal. He said it happens more commonly in girls than boys and especially if you've grown a lot. So I went to PT for a month and it got worse. The doctor told me I should take a break from dancing. I ignored that, but he said it should go away in a year and a half. If you really love dancing don't stop. If your doctor isn't willing to compromise with your life then head for the door. I started seeing a chiropractor, my friend's mom, and it is aligning my spine, but not doing much for my knees. Some people have a tendency to have this others don't it just has to do with your body. I heard they have surgery for it, but that is very extreme. If it's caught early it's totally reversible. The doctor also said it wouldn't affect my knees in my later years. I suggest you go to a doctor and see what they say. Hope this helps!