Exercises for Knee Pain
Want to get back to the Game, but the pain in your knees is keeping you away? Following are 5 simple exercises for knee pain that will help strengthen the muscles around the joint and decrease the stress on the joint. Stabilise your knee and get back on the Ice with minimal fuss!
Keep the following rule in mind – Don’t bend your leg so much that your knee is in front of your foot. This places undue stress and pressure on the front of the knee joint.
- One Legged Calf Raises: Stand on one leg using a wall or a chair for balance, slowly lift your heel off the floor rising up on your toes. Concentrate on keeping chin, knee and ankle in line as you do this, hold, then slowly lower.
- Step-Ups: Find a staircase, then lead with your right foot and step up, bring left foot up and tap on the top of the step, then lower back down. When you step up, make sure your knee is directly over your ankle. Repeat with left foot.
- Partial Squats: Stand about 30cm in front of a chair like you’re about to sit in it. Keep feet hip width apart and toes forward, then bending at the hips, slowly lower yourself halfway down to the chair keeping knees behind your toes.
- Straight-Leg Raises: Sit with back against wall, right leg straight out in front of you, and left bent about 45deg with foot flat on the floor. Slowly raise your right leg about 30cm off the floor and hold, then gently lower. Repeat with left leg.
- Hamstring Stretch: Best way to do this is to lie flat on back with legs stretched out. Loop a towel or rope around one foot and then pull straight leg toward your chest (keeping a slight bend in the knee) Keep your entire back pressed flat to the floor throughout the stretch. Hold for 20seconds then release and repeat with other leg.
Do 10 repetitions of each of these exercises for knee pain 2 to 3 times a week.