When you have constant pain and stiffness in your knees, exercising is probably one of the last activities you think about doing. However, exercising helps strengthen and stretch the muscles around your knees, which helps reduce and prevent knee pain.
It may feel like you’re in a pickle if you have knee pain that can be helped by exercising but don’t want to exercise because it hurts your knees. Thankfully, there are some simple exercises you can do that are gentle on your knees and the rest of your body.
Three gentle knee exercises you can do at home
While going to a gym to exercise has its benefits, you shouldn’t have to leave the comfort of your own home if you want to reduce your knee pain. Here are three gentle knee exercises you can perform at home, the gym or anywhere else you feel comfortable:
- Hip bridge raises — This is an exercise that engages your gluteal muscles, which have some responsibility in powering the movement of your knees.
- Doorway hamstring stretch — This exercise helps improve the strength and flexibility of your hamstring muscles, which are responsible for flexing your knees.
- Squats — This is an exercise that aims to improve the strength of your glutes, quadriceps and hamstrings. Strengthening these muscles helps reduce pressure off the knee joints and improves your range of motion.
Watch our video guide and download your own guide
Doing an exercise you’ve never done before can be difficult without a visual aid. That’s why we’ve put together this helpful video to teach you how to do these exercises at home in a safe and simple manner.
You can also download a free guide that covers these exercises in detail. This guide can be helpful to print out or save on a mobile device so you can follow these exercises anywhere where video may not be convenient.
Want to learn more about exercises for reducing knee pain? Contact our team to talk to us about treating knee pain or to schedule an appointment with one of our physical therapists.