Do you suffer from knee pain? Do your knees hurt after a long and active day on your feet? Knee pain is a common problem that many individuals face. The good news is that there are some simple exercises that can help alleviate pain and discomfort in the knees.
Staying active is good first step to building and maintaining healthy knees, but there are many other things you can do to make your knees stronger. What kind of exercises are good for your knees? Well, the amount of information available on this topic can confuse any individual who is trying to decide which exercises make their knees stronger. Are squats bad for you? What about lunges? Should you use weight machines instead?
As we all know, prolonged exercise can cause pain to develop in various parts of the body. To heal, you usually just need to relax and get some rest, and the pain will often go away on its own. However, the knees are an exception to that rule. They don’t heal as easily. Our knees endure so much trauma during the day, therefore, they take longer to recover. Even simple everyday activities like climbing stairs, standing, or bending down can put strain on the knees.
In this article, I will suggest routines that will strengthen your knees and the muscles surrounding them. Stronger muscles provide greater support and help eliminate excessive tension. Exercise makes joints more flexible and thus allows them to move more freely, so put those ice bags back in the freezer and free yourself from the clutches of pain.
Before we get started, let’s delve into the prerequisites…
Good tissue quality: Why it’s important for knee strengthening workouts
Before you start performing knee strengthening exercises, you will want to improve your tissue quality. Soft-tissue problems, such as adhesions, will make it difficult for you to move freely. Tissue damage restricts the smooth gliding of the layers of fascia. Tissue damage also reduces your flexibility and thus decreases your power output because friction between tissues is what allows forces and impacts to get absorbed.
You can take care of the soft tissue issues by simply massaging your knees with a lacrosse ball, tennis ball, or foam roller. You can even use a PVC pipe or wooden stick for this purpose. If budget isn’t a concern, you may want to consider getting assistance from a massage therapist – they will definitely be able to perform a more thorough job.
Knee Strengthening Exercises: How strength training leads to healthy knees
If you are healthy, you can try the knee strengthening workouts provided below. They will help increase your flexibility, strength and athletic performance. If you suffer from knee pain, these knee strengthening workouts will help alleviate the pain associated with knee injuries. When you are pain-free again, you will once again be able to perform more demanding exercises that involve your knees.
When utilizing these workouts, you should use your own discretion. If any one of these exercises causes pain or feels weird, you should skip it. You may want to try again after a few weeks. As always, it’s important that you listen to your body. You should challenge it, but avoid too much physical stress. Performing 10 reps of any given exercise every day is much better than performing 70 reps of the same exercise once per week. When it comes to drills of this nature, frequency is far more important than intensity.
Practice these workouts every day. Perform these reps twice or three times per day, if you can. This will help you experience results faster. Again, make sure you pay attention to your body.
Wall Quad Stretch
The great thing about wall quad stretches is that you can perform them just about anywhere – all you need is a sturdy wall. This exercise works the muscles in your ankles, shins, knees, quads, and front foot.
How to perform this exercise: Stand against a wall in the bottom of the lunge position. Then flip your back foot against the wall. Your toes should be on the wall. The back of your knee is the axis and determines the amount of stretch you get from this exercise. Try to get the back knee closer to the wall because it increases the amount of stretch. If you are feeling adventurous, push your hips forward. This will stretch your hip flexors out.
Hamstring Flossing
Your hamstring muscles cross the knee joints. If any one of these muscles has a problem, it can cause pain in the rear part of your leg and knee.
How to perform this exercise: You need a tennis ball and a solid box of around mid-thigh height for performing this exercise. Sit on the box. Place the ball under the leg on the hamstrings. Bend the knee as you apply pressure on the muscle. Allow the ball to move up and down the back of your leg as you flex and straighten the leg. Do this exercise on each leg for one minute. Your ankle and hamstring will feel great.
Ankle Band Distractions
One of the most important functions of your ankles is to hinge. Thus, they enable the knees and the hips to work together synergistically and facilitate movement. If your ankles are stiff and rigid, they may cause pain, discomfort, and injury. Ankle band distractions floss the stubborn joints. These workouts can alleviate pain, improve your movements, and supply nutrients to cartilage.
How to perform this exercise: Take a band and loop one end around a solid base. The other end should be looped around your ankle. Now assume the staggered stance and bring the leg with the band in front of the leg without the band. Inch out until you start feeling tension. Then drive your knee forward. Now keep the leg with the band firmly on the floor. Rotate the ankle freely side to side as you bring the knee back and forth. Do reps on both sides for about 45 seconds.
Quick Tips:
- You have to ensure that your sneakers provide adequate support. Old shoes are known for aggravating existing knee pain, so invest in a pair of brand new sneakers.
- Avoid exercises that put a lot of stress on your knee joint. Leg extensions, for example, stress the knee joints.
- Drink a lot of water. Water provides cushioning to the joints and thus alleviates pain.
