How to exercise if your knees hurt

Inflammation and pain in the knees can occur for a variety of reasons, ranging from bruising to degenerative changes in the articular cartilage. In some cases, complete rest is required to recover, and physical activity can aggravate the condition. Therefore, before choosing a training regimen, consult with a therapist and narrow specialists and get a diagnosis and treatment plan.

There is a high probability that the doctor will allow you to practice: in some conditions, for example, osteoarthritis, physical activity is not only possible, but also indicated. Below we will tell you how training helps to improve the condition of the knee joints and how to exercise so as not to harm yourself.

How training can be useful

A common cause of knee pain is osteoarthritis, a group of diseases in which various joint structures are affected. It can affect any joint, but in 92% of cases it affects the knees.

Symptoms of osteoarthritis include knee pain that gets better at rest and gets worse with exercise, such as walking or going down stairs. Also, in the morning, there may be stiffness, a feeling of stiffness in the knee.

Because of the pain, people begin to avoid any physical activity. However, this only aggravates the condition, leads to weight gain, weakens muscles, and can cause fear of movement, anxiety and depression.

Both aerobic and strength training reduce knee pain, improve knee function and improve gait.

Exercise does not specifically target the knee joint, but strengthens the muscles around it. Strong leg muscles help support the knee, which reduces pressure and stress on the joints. Moreover, exercises performed with good technique help restore correct joint biomechanics, normalize muscle stimulation patterns, and reduce pain and cartilage degradation.

When not to start training

First of all, you should not start training if your doctor categorically forbids you to do so. If you are not sure about his qualifications, get advice from several specialists: their opinions may differ.

Before starting training, assess your condition. It is not worth doing if:

the knee is swollen;
you feel pain even when you are at rest;
pain makes you limp;
the joint feels warm, the skin above it is reddened;
pain lasts more than two hours after exertion and worsens at night.

If you experience these symptoms, you should definitely consult a doctor.

How to do strength training

Strength training is a weight-bearing exercise. As a rule, these classes mean work with a barbell and dumbbells or on simulators, but you can get a good load at home. You can work out with your body weight or with compact equipment - resistance bands and leg weights.

What exercises to do

The main task of power loads is to evenly pump muscles, but at the same time not to create unnecessary stress for the knee joint. Here are some movements you can do without risking injury to your knees.

Squats

Squats perfectly pump the quads - the muscles on the front of the thigh, load the glutes and core muscles, and teach the correct body position. Even deep squats do not harm the knee joint, but only if done with perfect technique.

If you are unsure of your technique, start with a limited range squat - a chair.

Stand next to a chair with your back to it. Place your feet shoulder-width apart, slightly turn your toes to the sides. Keeping your back straight, pull your pelvis back and sit in a chair. Get up from the chair and repeat the exercise.

After a few workouts, try removing the chair and squatting until your hips are parallel to the floor. Gradually increase the range of motion and bring it to the level at which you can keep your back straight, do not lift your heels off the floor and do not bring your knees together during the climb.

You can also add weighting in the form of water bottles or dumbbells over time. You can also get heavier with an expander if you hook it over your feet and put a loop on your shoulders.

Steps

Another good quad exercise. Find a small elevation about 20-30 cm high (in the video about 50 cm). Place one foot on a dais and climb up onto it. Make sure that the knee does not turn inward - point it clearly forward or turn it slightly outward.

While walking, try to keep your body straight, do not lie on your stomach on your knee. Alternate legs every other time: one step with the right foot, the next with the left. You can gradually increase the height of the stand up to 50 cm, and also take weights - dumbbells or water bottles.

Extension of the lying leg

This exercise is great for pumping your quadriceps. Lie on your back, stretch one straight leg, bend the other at the knee and place your foot on the floor. Place a rolled towel under the knee of a straight leg. Straining the muscles, fully straighten your leg at the knee and fix the position for 2-3 seconds. Relax and repeat.

Gluteal bridge

Exercise pumps the buttocks and the back of the thigh. Lie on your back, bend your knees and place your feet on the floor. Straining your buttocks, unbend until fully extended at the hip joint and come back. Over time, you can make the exercise more difficult - add weight by placing a heavy object like a water canister on your hips or placing your feet on a stand about 20 cm high.

Curl of the legs lying with an expander

How to train if your knees hurt: lying leg curls with an expander

This exercise pumps the muscle group on the back of the thigh. Hook the expander into a stable support just off the floor. Lie on the floor on your stomach and place the loop around the ankle of your working leg. Overcoming the resistance of the expander, bend the knee and straighten it back.

Abduction of the leg with an expander

Exercise pumps the gluteus medius muscles. Hook the expander into a stable support at ankle level. Turn sideways and loop the band around the ankle of the leg farther away from the support. Retract your leg, stretching the expander, and bring it back.

Make sure that the body does not move, the back remains straight, the hips and shoulders are not twisted. You can do this exercise with either a long or short expander. In the latter case, put the elastic on both ankles and move your leg to the side.

Ankle walking

Exercise works well on the gluteus medius muscles and helps stabilize the knees. Slip the elastic around your ankles and place your feet shoulder-width apart while stretching the expander. Take a step to the side, then substitute the other leg and repeat. Watch the position of your knees - do not let them wrap inward.

Take equal number of steps to both sides. For example, if you need to complete 10 steps in the set, do five to the right and five to the left to evenly pump both legs.

What exercises are best to avoid

These movements place undue stress on the joints:

Extension of the legs on the simulator … During this exercise, a large shear force is exerted on the knee, and the anterior cruciate ligament inside the joint is under significant stress.
Jumping to the dais … By using jerky movements and shock loads on the joints, they can worsen knee pain.
Forward lunges … This exercise can be called conditionally dangerous, since it does not harm the knees if the technique is followed. Therefore, if you want to add lunges to your program, first make sure you do them correctly. In any case, it is better to perform lunges from a place backward - such a performance reduces the shear force and is considered safer for the joints than lunges forward and in penetration.

How often can you exercise

Train twice a week with at least 24 hours rest between sessions - on the rest of the days you can add cardio workouts. Exercise 2-3 sets of 13-15 reps. Select the load in such a way as to perform the required number of repetitions with the correct technique.

As strength and endurance increase, increase the load on the muscles. You can change the exercise to a more difficult one or add resistance - a tighter expander, weights in the form of dumbbells or other heavy objects. You can also increase the number of workouts to three per week, and repetitions up to 15-16 times.

How to do cardioactivity

Aerobic exercise, also known as cardio, is a workout in which your body uses oxygen to generate energy. Breathing and heart rate increase, but at the same time, the muscles have enough oxygen to maintain a given intensity for a long time.

What exercises to do

For people with sore knees, cardio is suitable without shock load on the joints: brisk walking, exercise on a stationary bike, swimming, water aerobics, climbing stairs. Avoid running and jumping cardio - these activities provide shock and can worsen joint problems.

How often can you exercise

Aim for 150 minutes of aerobic activity per week. For example, you might practice 30 minutes a day, five days a week, and take a break on weekends. Or practice every day for 20-25 minutes.

If you are sorely short of time, try breaking your workouts into several parts. The main thing is that one segment should last at least 10 minutes. As your endurance improves, increase the session time to 30–45 minutes at a time.

What else is worth considering

Here are some tips to help you avoid getting worse and get the best out of any stress:

Track your condition before, during and after your workout. If pain builds up, stop exercising and rest your legs.
Don't take the pain for long. Unpleasant sensations should go away within 24 hours after exercise. If they remain, cancel the exercise and see a doctor.
Start with light loads and build up gradually. When it comes to cardio, you can start with 10 minutes of work and add 5 minutes a week. In the case of strength training, increase the weight by no more than 5% per week and do not change several parameters of the workout at once: add either weight or difficulty or the number of repetitions.
Warm up before exercising. The higher the temperature of the muscles, the easier it is to move, the less pain and stiffness. Classes or warm-ups in a warm room, workouts in the afternoon, when the body temperature is generally higher than in the morning, and tight elastic knee pads help to warm up.
Add a stretch after activity. Gentle stretching exercises help relax the muscles and make them more elastic. Choose 2-3 leg stretching exercises from this article.