Knee Strength - For Beginners
This blog will provide you with an understanding of the fundamentals of building knee strength at the beginner level.
More robust muscles around your knee can help reduce joint pain and allow you to move confidently throughout your day-to-day life.
If you have not read our initial knee health blog that breaks down the importance of alignment, please do so. This will give you a better understanding of how to align your ankle, knee, and hip. Once you have a fundamental knowledge of alignment, we can begin to focus on building strength.
We’ll take a ground-up approach and look at the five areas that will support your knees.
The Feet
A solid foundation starts at the bottom and this is why we prioritize barefoot training. Spending time barefoot will improve the function of the muscles in your feet, creating the natural arch and properly disbursing your weight.
Here’s a simple exercise you can do anywhere to strengthen your feet, we call these marble pick-ups and the main focus is to strengthen the feet and improve the connection between your feet and glute. Marble Pick-Ups
The Shin
As we move up the body, the next area of focus is the shin. The muscle on the front of your shin is called the anterior tibialis and this plays a role in reducing the force and impact on the knee. Think of this muscle as a shock absorber every time your foot hits the ground. Our goal should be to disburse the force evenly throughout the entire body, but strengthening this muscle will help with immediate impact.
All you need is a wall for this exercise! Tib Raises are a great way to isolate the anterior tibialis and build strength. Tibialis Raises
The Quad
For the purpose of the beginner level, we want to make sure our quads are strong enough to support basic functions like sitting down and standing up. There are plenty of ways to strengthen the quads, however, when someone is experiencing knee pain, it’s best to begin training with isometric holds. Isometrics not only strengthen the muscles but the tendons as well.
One isometric we utilize here is a wall sit, but make sure you follow the instructions in the video, as we do our wall sits a bit differently than the average wall sit. Wall Squat - Iso
Hamstring & Calf
As you begin to understand more about the way we move through space, the more you’ll understand the importance of the muscles on the back side of our leg. This next exercise is another isometric giving us the same benefits of muscular and tendon capacity while also helping us better align the entire leg. Be sure to listen to the instructions in the video again to ensure you’re setting yourself up properly to get the most out of the exercise. Hamstring Drop In - Iso
These four exercises will help you start building strength in the five muscles that are directly surrounding the knee. The frequency and repetitions of each workout will vary for each individual, we just urge you to listen to your body and utilize our “Knee Health” program in the app to begin building strength while improving alignment.
If you are interested in learning more or want individualized attention from one of our trainers, please reach out to Anthony directly via email at anthony@islandathletics401.com.