Today I’m going to show you the best exercises you can do for your knee if you have knee osteoarthritis.
Osteoarthritis is a common cause of knee pain and stiffness that often comes on slowly over time.
Exercises that can help fall into three categories; mobility, strengthening and endurance.
Mobility – keeping the knee fully mobile spreads the forces throughout the joint as well as lubricating joint cartilages decreasing that painful stiffness.
Strengthening – by strengthening the muscles which work the knee and the hip joint (the quads, hamstrings and glutes) you are building better shock absorption around the joint. This means that the muscles can achieve better function, like getting up out of a chair, or car, getting up from the floor or going up stairs with less stress passing into the painful joint.
Research has proven that moderate physical activity 5/7 week and increasing aerobic fitness helps knee pain through strengthening the mind as well as the body.
We find many of our patients struggle with knowing how to start and how to progress. They also struggle with maintaining their motivation to continue exercising long enough to get results. If you can relate to this, keep watching and I’ll show you which exercises are the best ones to do.
Best OA knee exercises
- Knee bending using a towel to help
- Knee extension with self assistance
- Quads strengthening over a fulcrum
- Glutes and hamstring strengthening in a bridge
- Glute Med strengthening in a clam
- Functional Strengthening exercises such as mini squats
Many of these exercises can be modified to suit your individual needs.
So, If you aren’t sure where you should start, whether you’re doing these correctly, or would like some help with motivation and exercise progression, comment below “knee” and we’ll be able to answer your questions and help you manage your knee arthritis.
