KNEE EXERCISES
There are many knee exercises that can improve knee pain. Knee muscle exercises are the best way to protect the knee joints and provide knee pain relief. Knee strengthening, such as glut muscle exercises and hamstring exercises, creates a shock absorption effect around the knee joints. Hip muscle strengthening and ankle muscle strengthening indirectly affect the knees by improving the way we walk.
Hip Strengthening Helps Knee Pain
I cannot emphasize enough how important the hip muscles are in preventing knee pain. Weakness in the gluteus medius (hip muscle) causes a downward stress into the knee every time you take a step. Research studies on knee dysfunctions report weakness in the gluteus medius and gluteus maximus muscles in people with knee pain. The following exercise will help strengthen the gluts and prevent knee pain.
Knee exercises: CLAMS
- Lie on your left side with your head resting on an outstretched left arm.
- Bend both knees slightly, approximately 45 degrees.
- As you exhale, lift your top knee up, keeping your ankles together.
- Hold that position for 2 seconds.
- Slowly lower the leg back down.
- Repeat 20 times.
- Switch legs and repeat the exercise on the other side – 20 times
- Perform this exercise every day.
Muscle Focus:
- After 20 repetitions of this exercise, you should feel like your hip muscles have been taxed. You should feel that worked-out, burn sensation on the side of your hip/bottom.
Tips:
- Make sure to keep both the top and bottom hip bones stacked one on top of each other. As you lift the top knee, do not allow the upper hip to drop back.
- To make the clam exercise more challenging, tie an exercise band around your thighs (above the knees) and repeat the same movement.
Clam Exercise Benefits:
- I have chosen to share gluteal strengthening with you because it has been shown in the research that these muscles are weak in people with knee problems. Research also shows that strengthening the gluteus muscles does improve knee pain symptoms by stabilizing the pelvis when you walk, run or do anything on two feet.
Hamstring Strengthening Helps Knee Pain
The three hamstring muscles located at the back of the thigh, are important to address when treating knee pain. Research studies on knee problems show either a weakness or tightness in these muscles. Commonly, both inflexibility of the hamstrings and weakness of the hamstrings contribute to knee pain. Remember to stretch out the hamstrings after performing this exercise.
Knee Exercise: Hamstring Bridge on a Chair
- Lie on your back with a sturdy chair at your feet.
- Place your heels on the seat of the chair and bend your knees so that your hips and knees are now at a right angle.
- Dig your heels into the chair as you lift your hips up towards the ceiling.
- Your knees, hips and shoulders should all line up at the top of the movement.
- Hold your hips up for a count of 3 seconds.
- Slowly lower your hips back to the floor.
- Repeat 10 times then take a break.
- Repeat again 10 more times.
- Practice this exercise every other day.
Muscle Focus:
- This exercise will strengthen your hamstrings as well as your butt muscles. You should feel most of the work happening at the area where the hamstring muscles attach, just behind the knee.
Tips:
- Keep your ankles and knees together during the entire exercise.
- If you have low back pain with this exercise, don’t lift your hips as high. If the pain continues, despite the decrease in range of motion, stop the exercise.
- Exhale as you lift your hips up. Inhale on the way back down.
- Keep your knees bent 90 degrees (a right angle).
- You can also do this exercise on a medium sized exercise ball rather than a chair. It will be more difficult on a ball as your abdominals will have to work to keep the ball from roll off to the side.
Bridge on a Chair Exercise Benefits:
- Hamstring strengthening will improve knee pain.
- The hamstrings mimic the stabilizing duties of the anterior cruciate ligament of the knee (the ACL). This is the most commonly injured knee ligament and hamstring strengthening will decrease the everyday demands on the ACL, thereby, reducing your risk for ligament injury.
- Don’t forget that the benefits of hamstring strengthening will be minimized if you do not also stretch the hamstrings.
Other Muscles Involved in Knee Health
Besides the hip and hamstring muscles, there are several other muscles that, when strengthened, can also dramatically improve knee symptoms.
Please check back soon. The Body Insight Knees 101 DVD will soon be available. This DVD takes you through a comprehensive knee exercise program and knee stretching program to prevent and diminish knee pain.