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Imagine this: you wake up on a Monday morning to the sound of your blaring alarm. Surprisingly, you awake refreshed and ready to start your day. You take a deep breath and sit up. As you throw your legs over the side of the bed, you grimace at the sharp pain in your knees. “Oh no, it’s one of those days,” you think to yourself. You reach for the bottle of ibuprofen on your nightstand as you mentally prepare yourself for a day full of coping with knee pain.
Sound familiar? If so, you might have weak knees, as weakness sometimes results in pain and discomfort. It’s nice to occasionally get figuratively weak in the knees when having sweet nothings whispered into your ear, but it can be a pain (literally) to have consistently weak knees. You are the only one who can stop the vicious cycle of wear and tear that results in weakness that results in knee pain.
Ready to take steps toward freeing yourself from knee pain? If your answer is yes, you’ll want to start by making an appointment with a physiotherapist. Or, you can do some basic knee-strengthening exercises.
Strengthen Weak Knees with Exercise
Exercise is glorious. Not only can it help us shed excess fat; it also improves our mood. If that wasn’t enough, exercise can prevent and relieve knee pain. Here are a few exercises that may help you strengthen your knees:
- Wall squats – To perform a wall squat, stand with your back against a wall, with feet hip-width apart and toes pointed forward. Then, slide yourself down the wall (be sure not to go further than a few inches down). Hold for a few seconds and then slide back up the wall. Do this up to 25 times, twice per day.
- Kneecap squeezes – Sit in chair with your feet planted on the ground, toes pointing forward. Press a soft football between your knees. Squeeze the ball for a few seconds, and then release. Do this up to 20 times, twice per day.
- Heel raises – For this exercise, hold onto the wall or a sturdy table or chair as you stand on one leg. Slowly raise yourself onto your tiptoe and hold for a few seconds, and then lower yourself down. Do this up to 30 times per leg, twice per day.
It’s best if you have your painful knees examined by a physiotherapist. In some cases, certain exercises may increase pain – that’s why a healthcare professional should direct your exercise program. A trip to the physiotherapist can save you pain and time wasted on the wrong exercises.