Another knee strain

[galapogos]

I thought I'd never get knee injuries, but I just got hit by a slight knee strain last Tuesday...

1. When did the pain begin?
Last Tuesday, 4 days ago

2. What were you doing at the time? Or did the pain come on gradually over time?
Front squatting. I heard some clicking/cracking noises at the knee area when it happened, but no acute pain, just a strained feeling

3. Where, anatomically, is the pain?
Right knee, anterior

4. What does the pain feel like? Sharp? Dull? Aching? Stabbing? Shooting?
Like a strain, not acute

5. Is the pain constant, or intermittent, or only on certain motions?
On squat concentrics(knee extension), when knee angle is ~90deg, on lunges

6. What motions make your pain worse?
See #5

7. What, if anything, makes your pain better?
I tried patella mobilization, seems to make it slightly better

8. Does your pain radiate to any other part of your body?
No

9. What things could you do before, that you cannot do now because of your injury?
Squatting heavy

10. What is your main concern regarding the pain and its consequences?
That it might develop into a full blow knee injury, that it is some sort of ACL injury in the making

11. Have you ever injured that part of your body before? If so, how?
No

12. Is your pain getting worse over time? And if so, how much worse over what time period?
So far no, but it hasn't gotten much better

Some more information
1. Doesn't hurt when I'm doing deadlifts or reverse leg curls(tried 2 days ago)
2. My right knee seems hypermobile compared to my left, it buckles in noticeably more than the left(hence causing the foot arch to collapse), though I can and do control it when squatting/lunging/deadlifting.
3. Passive knee ROM is unaffected
4. No significant pain when I prod around the kneecap
5. My current daily pre/rehab routine consists of the following, if it matters:
Golf ball - plantar fascia
Foam rolling - calves, ITB, quads, adductors, lats
Tennis ball - piriformis, glutes, TFL, thoracic/lumbar spine
Stretching - calves, hamstrings, glutes, quads/hip flexors, pecs
Mobility - ankle, hip mobilization
Activation - McKenzie pressup, clamshells with mini-band, supine single leg hip extension, BTN band pullaparts
Core - TVA activation,
reverse crunches, side planks, ab-wheel

Any idea what I could do to relieve the pain and prevent further injury?
I thought foam rolling the ITB, calves and quads would help since theses seem to be the standard answer for knee pain, but they didn't help much.

[UConnJulie]

Probably some tendonitis ... ice it, stretch your quads, rest it (ie nothing that provokes it). Remember that if your quads are trying to do more of the work to make up for your glutes not doing their job, then you will be prone to patellar tendonitis.

If your activation exercises are easy or you've been doing the same ones for a long time, it might be time to switch things up a bit. That's a good program though.

[galapogos]

Thanks. I went back to squatting on Thursday, and the pain was all gone!
I think you're right about the quads vs glutes. Sometimes I can feel my weight moving over to the balls of my feet, other times they're firm on midfoot or heel, and I can really feel my glutes contributing, which makes me stronger. I think it has to do with bar positioning. The bad thing is that when the bar is in the "stronger" position, it's right at my neck, and I often get choked on the way up.