Knee injuries are one of the most common injuries in athletes, so keeping your knee strong and healthy is imperative if you play on staying active. Our knees are the victims of a lot of stress that we put on our bodies, from everything to walking, running, kneeling, dancing and many other things that we do in our day to day lives. These exercises in the picture are good for strengthening your knee, improving ones balance and bettering your flexibility.
Note: The first 3 exercises have very little knee movement and are the least stressful on the knee. Also, exercises 6 and 7 are very helpful if you're trying to increase your balance.
#1 Quad Set: Put a pillow under your knee, point your toe up and push down on the pillow. Hold between 10-15 seconds each time. Repeat up to 20 times.
#2 Hamstring Sets: While lying down, bend your knees with your toes up and dig your heels into the ground. Hold for 10 seconds and repeat up to 20 times.
#3 Straight Leg Raise: Again while lying down, tighten your thigh and pull your toes back (as you would for the Quad Set), keep the other leg bent and slowly lift your leg about 18 inches off of the ground. After holding for about 20 seconds, slowly lower your leg back down and repeat up to 20 times.
#4 Bridging: While lying down, bend your legs, keep your feet flat on the ground, place a pillow in between your legs and squeeze your legs together. While doing this, slowly raise your bottom up until you are in a nice 45 degree angle. Hold this position between 5-10 seconds and then slowly lower your bottom back to the ground. Repeat 5 times.
Alternate: If raising your bottom is too uncomfortable, just squeeze the pillow for 10 seconds and then release. Repeat 5 times.
#5 Knee Extension: While sitting in a chair in the upright position, straighten your leg, tighten your thigh and point your toe towards the sky. Hold this for about 10-15 seconds and then slowly bring it back down. Repeat 15-20 times.
#6 Heel Raises: Hold on to a sturdy surface (countertop or chair works great!) and slowly raise your heels off of the floor as high as you can while still maintaining your balance without putting your weight on whatever surface you're holding onto. Hold for about 2-3 seconds each time you do this exercise and repeat 25 times.
#7 Butt Kicks: While standing straight and holding on to a sturdy surface, keep your knees in line and slowly lift one of your heels as high as possibe and then slowly lower your heel back down. Repeat this exercise 20 times.
Remember, while repeating these exercises, do the same amount of repetitions on each leg! You don't want one knee stronger than the other because that will give you more problems than when you started. Also, if any of these exercises are uncomfortable then do the alternate exercise until the first one becomes more comfortable!
http://www.whyiexercise.com/knee-exercises.html
Note: The first 3 exercises have very little knee movement and are the least stressful on the knee. Also, exercises 6 and 7 are very helpful if you're trying to increase your balance.
#1 Quad Set: Put a pillow under your knee, point your toe up and push down on the pillow. Hold between 10-15 seconds each time. Repeat up to 20 times.
#2 Hamstring Sets: While lying down, bend your knees with your toes up and dig your heels into the ground. Hold for 10 seconds and repeat up to 20 times.
#3 Straight Leg Raise: Again while lying down, tighten your thigh and pull your toes back (as you would for the Quad Set), keep the other leg bent and slowly lift your leg about 18 inches off of the ground. After holding for about 20 seconds, slowly lower your leg back down and repeat up to 20 times.
#4 Bridging: While lying down, bend your legs, keep your feet flat on the ground, place a pillow in between your legs and squeeze your legs together. While doing this, slowly raise your bottom up until you are in a nice 45 degree angle. Hold this position between 5-10 seconds and then slowly lower your bottom back to the ground. Repeat 5 times.
Alternate: If raising your bottom is too uncomfortable, just squeeze the pillow for 10 seconds and then release. Repeat 5 times.
#5 Knee Extension: While sitting in a chair in the upright position, straighten your leg, tighten your thigh and point your toe towards the sky. Hold this for about 10-15 seconds and then slowly bring it back down. Repeat 15-20 times.
#6 Heel Raises: Hold on to a sturdy surface (countertop or chair works great!) and slowly raise your heels off of the floor as high as you can while still maintaining your balance without putting your weight on whatever surface you're holding onto. Hold for about 2-3 seconds each time you do this exercise and repeat 25 times.
#7 Butt Kicks: While standing straight and holding on to a sturdy surface, keep your knees in line and slowly lift one of your heels as high as possibe and then slowly lower your heel back down. Repeat this exercise 20 times.
Remember, while repeating these exercises, do the same amount of repetitions on each leg! You don't want one knee stronger than the other because that will give you more problems than when you started. Also, if any of these exercises are uncomfortable then do the alternate exercise until the first one becomes more comfortable!
http://www.whyiexercise.com/knee-exercises.html
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