Knee Exercises

Knee Exercises
If my knee hurts, why exercise?
Having strong, flexible muscles is the best way to keep knees healthy and prevent further injury.
Strength
Strengthening the muscles that support your knee will reduce stress on your knee joint. Strong muscles in
the front of your thigh (quadriceps) and back of your thigh (hamstrings) help your knee joint absorb shock.
The less strain on your knee, the better the chances are for pain relief and preventing further injury.
Flexibility
Stretching the muscles that you strengthen is an important part of preventing injury. Strengthening
exercises build muscle to help support your knee, but can also tighten the muscles. Tight muscles are more
prone to injury. Gentle stretching after strengthening exercise reduces muscle soreness and will keep your
muscles long and flexible.
Quadriceps muscles
at front of thigh.
Hamstring muscles at
back of thigh.
How do I start exercising?
our doctor or physical therapist will tell you which exercises are right for you.
Start slowly. uilding muscle strength takes time. as you get stronger, gradually increase the number of exercise
repetitions or add weight to an exercise.
Do not ignore pain. you should not feel serious pain during an exercise. you might feel discomfort because you
are challenging your muscles, but not pain. of an exercise hurts, stop the exercise.
Do not overdo it. you should not feel serious pain after exercise. it is typical to feel stiff or a bit sore the day after
you exercise. of you feel so sore that it is difficult to move, then you have overdone your exercise. best is the best
thing for your sore muscles.
Ask questions. Talk to your doctor or therapist if you have any pain or are unsure of how many exercises to do,
or how often to do them.
Strengthening Exercises
Warm up with 5-10 minutes of low impact activity, like walking or cycling, before doing these exercises
Straight-Leg Lift
You should feel this exercise mostly in the front of your thigh.