Knee exercises

[Frank Delicious]

Who has some good knee exercises? I'm always looking for good exercises to keep my knees strong.

 

[JR]

Who has some good knee exercises? I'm always looking for good exercises to keep my knees strong.

Check out Wii Fit.

 

[Frank Delicious]

I just sold my wii.

 

[rehder]

squats and deadlifts...just make sure to use good technique

 

[ManU]

DON'T do leg extensions...they will destroy the stability in your knee
Also it is not so much that you are "strengthening your knees" rather it is the strength in the supporting musculature
I have discussed this with my sports med doctor often enough given the state of my knees
anyway the reco's are:
calf raises...if you don't have a set of weights at home...just use stairs...toes on the edge of the step, then lower and raise yourself...do one leg at a time

squats for sure...body weight will work...raise your arms in a "Y" above your head

wall sits...squat down and sit with your back against a wall...this will work your quads without straining the ligaments in your knee as your feet are planted (as opposed to when doing extensions)

lunges...step forward and lower your centre of gravity and then push back up

IF you do have a weight set...still do the above but squats with a bar finished with a calf raise

add weights to your lunges

and add in curls
hamstring strength is hugely important to stabilize the knee

and let's be clear you spend the all your time lugging your body weight around...so there is nothing wrong with training with your body weight...it trains you for exactly the job you have to do...it just might take extra time/reps etc

 

[JR]

Exercising in pool helps with buoyancy. My mother does that because her knee ain't in original shape.

 

[jw34]

DON'T do leg extensions...they will destroy the stability in your knee
Also it is not so much that you are "strengthening your knees" rather it is the strength in the supporting musculature

Thanks for those knee exercises. About 8 weeks ago I found out I have a slight tear of my meniscus on the right knee. After reading up on it it's the perfect DG injury: Putting weight on a bent knee then twisting. I'm actually amazed more DGers don't have this happen. Anyway my doctor said the same thing about strengthening around the knee to make the knee stronger.
The hard thing for me now is to learn to throw without twisting on my heel. It doesn't hurt to throw on the ball of my foot, but I don't get the same distance.

 

[uNicedmeMan1]

I too have suffered knee agitation from disc golfing. I even went to physical therapy for a little while for it. It's feeling alot better now but still not 100%.

What's been helping me a ton is hitting the gym regularly and concentrating on my legs and core. I also try to incorporate a good bit of flexibility exercises and I can already see improvements. It's a really nice feeling at the end of a round when you aren't fatigued at all and nothing hurts!!!

 

[ManU]

well they say that your power is generated from the ground up so having a powerful lower body and core is very important.
my knee is completely F bombed (torn ACL, 2 torn menisci, and all sorts of arthritis) I am fortunate that it is NOT my plant leg

and I have to be honest that although I posted those exercises I don't actually faithfully follow them myself

I do, however, do a complete 2 set body routine that includes variations of squatting or dead lift motions and upper body work (I'd post my complete exercises but I don't know what some would be called...i.e. the "deadlift" that I do is a deadlift with calf raise and upright row all in one motion)

I don't work to any particular reps but mostly to failure for each exercise before moving to the next
the entire work out takes about 20 to 25 minutes

I do 1 day of "weights" followed by 1 day of elliptical machine (25 minutes on a "hills" program) and then a rest day then repeat

basically if you do something physically intense 3 to 4 days a week you should be good

I should probably add stretching but...deep down I'm a lazy SOB

 

[jw34]

I've been doing a lot of bike and elliptical work at the gym along with exercises for calf, hamstring and quads. One thing I've always focused on too along with normal upper body stuff is working the obliques and lower back. Those areas seem to get a lot of work in DG too.

 

[VictorB]

Strong hamstrings and calf muscles are the key to adding stability (strength) to your knees.

I actually don't have an ACL in my left knee, but have compensated for this by increasing the strength in my hams and calves has been enough to keep my knee stable. And no, I don't need to wear a knee brace when I'm doing pretty much any activity (except basketball)

 

[Frank Delicious]

Backwards lunges have been great for helping my knee over the past few weeks.

 

[uNicedmeMan1]

Backwards lunges have been great for helping my knee over the past few weeks.

Me too. I did the P-90x lower body workout with my buddy on Tuesday, my legs are still super sore. I've got to find a way to loosen them up before glow tonight. :shock:

 

[rehder]

Ye lunges of all different types are really good, if you dont have access to a gym.

 

[Craig1]

I also have a tear in my medial meniscus. There was no real event that caused it to hurt - I thought maybe I somehow hurt it in hockey, but now I think it must have come from DG. I just started physio, but now I'm worried that I'll be prevented from playing DG by this injury in the long run.

I guess I have to stop playing, in the short term at least, to give it a chance to heal - right?

 

[jw34]

I ended up taking off around 4-5 weeks or so and let it heal enough and I felt less and less pain. During that time I did more stationary bike work and exercises that were for meniscus rehab.
Yes, a bit of a short term break will help. But use that time to do a bit of rehab and re-think your throw.

 

[uNicedmeMan1]

DON'T do leg extensions...they will destroy the stability in your knee
Also it is not so much that you are "strengthening your knees" rather it is the strength in the supporting musculature
I have discussed this with my sports med doctor often enough given the state of my knees
anyway the reco's are:
calf raises...if you don't have a set of weights at home...just use stairs...toes on the edge of the step, then lower and raise yourself...do one leg at a time

squats for sure...body weight will work...raise your arms in a "Y" above your head

wall sits...squat down and sit with your back against a wall...this will work your quads without straining the ligaments in your knee as your feet are planted (as opposed to when doing extensions)

lunges...step forward and lower your centre of gravity and then push back up

IF you do have a weight set...still do the above but squats with a bar finished with a calf raise

add weights to your lunges

and add in curls
hamstring strength is hugely important to stabilize the knee

and let's be clear you spend the all your time lugging your body weight around...so there is nothing wrong with training with your body weight...it trains you for exactly the job you have to do...it just might take extra time/reps etc

What's the difference between leg extensions and curls? Is it that leg extensions are the seated position and the curl is the lying on the stomach?

 

[Flick4D1]

Yes, you are correct. Leg (knee) extensions are typically performed in a seated position as far as machines go, and leg curls (knee flexion) are typically performed lying down or seated on a machine.

I'd recommend performing this exercise instead of leg curls, though. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYnVwNhBzY0&feature=related

It's a very functional exercise, despite being performed in a non-functional position, and works the hamstrings, glutes, lower back, and abdominals (super important for core stability/knee and hip stability/power production). If you've ever worked out hard, had sore hamstrings, and tried throwing sidearm (or any) drives while still sore, you realize how important these muscles are! :wink:

 

[uNicedmeMan1]

Thanks Flick!

I'll give that a try. I gotta admit the first few times I watched that video I was really thinking of a few other exercises I'd like to do... :wink:

 

[Toon]

I want to 'work out' so bad now! :x :?
But seriously, they look like good core exercises too.