Fitness
It’s all about strengthening the surrounding muscle groups.
Thats why its so easy for your knees to get out of whack in the first place.
It also reaches muscles that are often neglected in other forms of exercise, she notes.
And it does all of this while beinglow impact(read: easy on the joints).
Hip Rolls
Wilson suggests starting off withhip rolls or bridges.
- Lie on your back with a neutral spine, your knees bent, and feet planted hip-distance apart.
Flatten your spine onto the mat.
Inhale through your nose.
Keep your abs engaged to avoid overextending your lower back.
Breathe in again.
On an exhale, slowly roll back down.
Do 10 to 20 reps.
Add hip pulses at the top if there is no pain.
Roll up a mat or a towel to pad the knees.
Come into a kneeling position on the towel with your knees about hip-width apart.
Squeeze your butt muscles and press both your shins and knees down into the mat.
Hinge your whole body back from the knees as far as you might go.
Use your thighs and squeeze your butt to bring everything back up to vertical.
Repeat 4 to 5 times.
Lie on your side with your hips and shoulders in line with the back edge of the mat.
Prop your neck and head up with your hand, with your elbow down on the mat.
Keep your heels together as you open your top knee to the ceiling.
Open as high as you’re able to without rocking back on your hips.
Lower your knee back down and repeat.
Do 10 reps on each leg.
Place a small ball or towel between your knees.
Inhale to prepare.
On the exhale, keep your abs engaged as you squeeze the ball and lift your hips up.
Repeat 10 to 12 times for 3 to 4 sets.
On your last rep, pause at the top and pulse the ball 10 to 15 times.
Many knee injuries occur when one muscle is too strong and the other becomes weak.
Once injured, these are simple but extremely effective exercises that can help rehabilitate the affected area.
Lie on your side.
Align your hips and shoulders.
Keep your legs extended out straight.
Slowly lift your top leg as high as you could.
Maintain straight hip alignment.
Lower your leg.
Do 3 sets of 10 on each side.
Leg Circles
Wiener also recommends this Pilates exercise.
Lie on your back with your legs bent and feet placed hip-width apart.
Raise one leg up.
Draw a circle in the air with your foot.
Go clockwise 8 times, then counter-clockwise 8 times.
Repeat on the other leg.
Single-Leg Kicks
Lesley Logan, a certified Pilates instructor withOnlinePilatesClasses,suggests giving single-leg kicks a try.
The more we balance the two muscle groups, the easier it is on the knee joint.
Lie on your stomach.
Prop up on your forearms.
Keep your arms parallel.
Press down into your mat so your shoulders stay down.
Stretch your legs long and press them down into the mat.
Keep your foot long as you kick one foot towards your butt two times.
Press that leg back down and repeat on the other side.
Do 5 to 8 kicks per leg.
Studies referenced:
Andriacchi, T.P.
A study of factors influencing muscle activity about the knee joint.
J Orthop Res.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6481510/
Kaya, D. (2012).
Vibromyographic analysis of knee muscle imbalances in knee osteoarthritis.
Journal of Biomedical Science and Engineering.
DOI:10.4236/jbise.2012.54025
Saleem, N. (2022).
Effect of Pilates based exercises on symptomatic knee osteoarthritis: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
J Pak Med Assoc.
