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Conditions We Treat

Knee Pain Relief
in San Mateo

Non-surgical, drug-free relief for knee pain from tight quads, IT band syndrome, runner's knee, and arthritis — addressing the root cause so you can move without pain.

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✓ 91+ Five-Star Reviews
✓ No Drugs or Surgery
✓ 16+ Years Treating Knee & Joint Pain
✓ Serving San Mateo Since 2010
Knee Pain

Real relief, real causes —
not just masked symptoms

Knee pain is one of the most common complaints we see at High Amplitude Health — and in the vast majority of cases, when there hasn't been a major injury like a torn ligament or a fracture, the knee joint itself isn't actually the problem. The real driver is almost always tightness and imbalance in the muscles that cross the knee: the quads, hamstrings, and calves all attach around the joint, and when they're overly tight, they pull on the tendons and put constant, unnecessary strain on everything in between.

That tension shows up in a lot of different ways — tendon irritation, IT band syndrome, patellofemoral pain (commonly called runner's knee), even bursitis or a Baker's cyst forming behind the knee as the body reacts to the ongoing stress. Osteoarthritis adds another layer, since arthritic joints often trigger the surrounding muscles to tighten up defensively, which then makes the joint feel even stiffer and more painful. At High Amplitude Health, we treat all of this together — muscle tightness, tendon strain, and joint irritation — rather than focusing on the knee in isolation.

Our approach leads with myofascial therapy and Active Release Technique to release the muscles actually pulling on the knee, paired with exercise therapy and assisted stretch therapy to correct the underlying weakness and tightness so the pain doesn't just come right back — a non-surgical knee pain treatment path that starts working from your very first visit.

If your knee pain followed a specific traumatic injury — a twisting fall, a direct blow, or a pop you felt at the time it happened — that's a different situation that may need imaging before treatment, and we'll tell you plainly at your first visit if that's the case.

Person with knee pain from tight quads and IT band — High Amplitude Health San Mateo
Drug-Free Relief
Myofascial Therapy · ART · Exercise Therapy
How We Treat It

A complete approach for
lasting knee relief

⟳
Myofascial & trigger point therapy
Sustained pressure on the quads, IT band, and calf muscles releases the chronic tightness pulling on the knee's tendons — often the single biggest lever for pain that has no clear injury behind it.
Particularly effective for IT band syndrome and the dull, diffuse ache many patients struggle to pinpoint to one exact spot.
◈
Active Release Technique (ART)
ART targets the scar tissue and adhesions that build up in overworked quad, hamstring, and calf muscles — restoring the muscle's normal glide and taking direct pressure off the tendons crossing the knee.
Often the fastest route to relief for patellar and quad tendinopathy.
◇
Exercise therapy & rehabilitation
Muscle imbalance and weakness — especially in the glutes and outer hip — is one of the most common drivers of patellofemoral pain (runner's knee). Targeted strengthening corrects the movement pattern causing the kneecap to track improperly.
This is the step that makes results last — without it, the same imbalance tends to bring the pain back.
▷
Assisted stretch therapy
Guided, hands-on stretching releases quad, hamstring, and IT band tightness more effectively than stretching alone — directly reducing the tension pulling on the knee joint and its tendons.
We'll also show you which stretches to keep doing at home between visits.
◎
No adjustments needed
Most of the knee pain we see resolves through soft-tissue and movement-based work alone. We don't rely on chiropractic adjustments to fix your knee, because in the vast majority of cases, they simply aren't what's driving the problem.
One reason patients who've been hesitant about a "chiropractor" for a knee issue feel comfortable starting here.
▸
Percussion therapy
Targeted vibration calms an overactive, guarded quad or IT band before deeper manual work begins — useful when the area is too tender for direct pressure right away.
Particularly helpful for acute bursitis or a fresh contusion from a fall or impact.
Who It Helps

What's causing
your knee pain?

Most knee pain we see doesn't come from a single traumatic injury — it comes from tightness, imbalance, and overuse building up over time. Here are the causes we treat most often.

01

Muscle tightness & tendon tension

Excessive tightness in the quads, hamstrings, and calves pulls directly on the tendons crossing the knee, creating pain with no clear injury behind it. This is the single most common cause of knee pain we see in patients without a specific incident to point to.

02

IT band syndrome

The iliotibial band running along the outside of the thigh can become tight and irritated with repetitive movement, producing a sharp or burning pain on the outer knee — especially common in runners and cyclists.

03

Patellofemoral pain syndrome (runner's knee)

Muscle imbalance and weakness, particularly in the glutes and outer hip, causes the kneecap to track improperly against the thigh bone — producing an ache around or behind the kneecap that's often worse on stairs or after sitting.

04

Knee osteoarthritis

Age-related wear in the knee joint doesn't just cause pain directly — it also triggers the surrounding muscles to tighten defensively, which compounds stiffness and discomfort. Keeping those muscles loose is one of the most effective ways to manage arthritic knee pain without medication.

05

Patellar & quad tendinopathy

Overuse and chronic tightness can irritate the tendons above and below the kneecap, producing pain that's sharpest with jumping, squatting, or going up and down stairs.

06

Knee bursitis

Inflammation of one of the knee's fluid-filled cushioning sacs, often aggravated by tight surrounding muscles or repetitive kneeling — producing swelling and tenderness that responds well to reducing the tension pulling on the joint.

07

Baker's cyst

A fluid-filled swelling behind the knee that often develops as the body reacts to ongoing joint irritation or muscle tightness. Addressing the underlying tightness frequently reduces the swelling and discomfort that comes with it.

08

Contusion from a fall or direct impact

A bruise to the knee from a fall or a bump doesn't always need imaging or a boot — many contusions heal well with soft tissue work to manage the surrounding muscle guarding and swelling. We'll tell you plainly if yours looks like it needs further evaluation first.

You don't have to
live with this pain.

Most patients with muscle- or tendon-driven knee pain notice meaningful improvement within just a few visits. Dr. John will identify exactly what's driving your pain — and fix it at the source, not just the surface.

3–6
Average sessions to resolution
91+
Five-star Google reviews

Serving San Mateo, Burlingame, Foster City, Redwood City, Belmont & surrounding areas since 2010.

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What to Expect

Your first visit,
step by step

Starting care somewhere new can feel like an unknown. Here's exactly what happens when you come in for knee pain — no surprises, no pressure.

01

A real conversation first

Before any hands-on work, Dr. John takes time to understand how your knee pain started, what makes it better or worse, and whether a specific injury was involved or it built up gradually over time.

02

A hands-on movement assessment

Dr. John checks how your hip, knee, and ankle actually move together — testing muscle tightness, joint restriction, and movement patterns to pinpoint exactly what's pulling on the knee, not just where it hurts.

03

Treatment often starts the same day

If your evaluation points to a clear, treatable cause — muscle tightness, tendon irritation, or joint restriction — we typically begin care at your first visit rather than sending you home with just a diagnosis.

04

A clear plan, not an open-ended one

You'll leave knowing what we found, what we recommend, and roughly how many visits it should take to feel meaningfully better — so you can decide with real information, not guesswork.

About Dr. John Blenio

16 years treating
knee & joint pain

Dr. John Blenio has treated knee pain in San Mateo patients for over 16 years — from desk workers and weekend athletes with tight, overworked quads to runners managing IT band syndrome and patients navigating knee osteoarthritis. His approach combines myofascial therapy, Active Release Therapy, and corrective exercise into one integrated plan.

Knee pain is rarely just a joint problem. It's usually a combination of muscle tightness, tendon strain, and a movement pattern putting uneven load on the joint — which is why Dr. John assesses the entire hip-to-ankle chain at your first visit rather than treating the knee in isolation.

Whether your knee pain started after a fall, crept in gradually from running, or has been part of managing arthritis for years, the goal is the same: find the true cause, correct it with hands-on care, and give you the tools to keep it from coming back.

✓
Myofascial & Soft-Tissue Specialist — Lower Extremity 16+ years assessing and correcting the full lower-body kinetic chain
✓
ART Certified — Lower Extremity Targeting quad, IT band, and tendon restrictions
✓
Corrective Exercise & Rehab Specialist Movement retraining to correct patellar tracking and prevent recurrence
Dr. John Blenio — Knee Pain Specialist, High Amplitude Health San Mateo
Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about
knee pain

Do I need an X-ray or MRI before you can treat my knee pain? +
Not usually. Dr. John can identify most muscle- and tendon-driven knee pain through a hands-on evaluation alone. If your case looks like it involves a torn ligament, meniscus injury, or fracture, he'll tell you plainly at your first visit and refer you for imaging rather than guessing.
What's causing my knee pain if I haven't had an injury? +
In most cases we see, it's tightness in the muscles crossing the knee — the quads, hamstrings, and calves — putting constant tension on the tendons and joint. Add in things like IT band tightness, muscle imbalance, or early arthritis, and you get knee pain with no single clear moment it started.
Can chiropractic care help knee osteoarthritis? +
Yes — but not primarily through adjustments. Chiropractic adjustments to the lower back and hip can support overall skeletal alignment, but for an arthritic knee, it's the soft-tissue work — myofascial therapy, Active Release Technique, and exercise therapy — that does the most to resolve the problem. Keeping the muscles around the joint loose and functioning well significantly reduces pain and stiffness, even though it doesn't reverse the joint wear itself. Many patients manage arthritic knee pain for years this way, without relying on adjustments or medication.
What is IT band syndrome, and how is it treated? +
The IT band is a thick band of tissue running down the outside of the thigh from the hip to just below the knee. When it becomes tight, it can rub and become irritated with repetitive movement, causing sharp outer-knee pain — especially in runners. Active Release Therapy and myofascial work directly targeting the IT band and the muscles feeding into it is typically the most effective treatment.
Is runner's knee only for runners? +
No — despite the name, patellofemoral pain syndrome shows up in plenty of people who don't run at all. It comes from muscle imbalance and weakness, especially in the glutes and outer hip, causing the kneecap to track improperly, and that imbalance can build up from any activity, or from none at all.
How does tightness in my hip or calf actually affect my knee? +
The knee doesn't work in isolation — it sits between the hip and ankle, and the muscles crossing it originate well above and below the joint itself. Tightness in the hip flexors, glutes, or calves changes how the knee tracks and how much load its tendons absorb, which is why we assess the whole leg rather than just the knee.
How quickly will my knee pain improve? +
Many patients feel noticeable improvement after just one or two sessions, especially with muscle- and tendon-driven pain. Longstanding issues like arthritis or a stubborn case of IT band syndrome typically take a few more visits, but most patients see meaningful progress within 3–6 sessions.
I've tried foam rolling and stretching on my own without much luck — can you help? +
Often, yes. Self-treatment can help, but it's limited by how much pressure and precision you can actually apply to your own muscles, and it doesn't address joint restriction or movement pattern issues at all. Active Release Therapy and hands-on soft-tissue work go further than what's realistically achievable solo.
Is treatment for knee pain painful? +
There are no chiropractic adjustments involved in treating knee pain here. Active Release Therapy and myofascial work on tight quads or IT bands can produce a "hurts good" sensation as the tissue releases, but the intensity is always adjusted to your comfort level — communication throughout treatment is encouraged.
Do you need to adjust or crack my knee to fix this? +
No. We don't use chiropractic adjustments to treat knee pain — in the vast majority of cases, they aren't necessary. Relief comes from releasing the muscles and tendons actually pulling on the knee through myofascial therapy, Active Release Technique, and targeted exercise, not from manipulating the joint itself.

Knee pain doesn't have to
slow you down.

Join hundreds of San Mateo patients who've found lasting relief from knee pain — without drugs, injections, or surgery — using Dr. John's hands-on, root-cause approach.

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Or call / text us: 650-735-1716