Dealing with knee arthritis or osteoarthritis can be challenging, especially when faced with common but misguided advice like "Stop lifting weights," "Stop running," or "Just lose weight." None of these are good options for long-term health and mobility. While knee osteoarthritis can make knee exercises painful, the best approach is to strengthen your knees, but with a twist.
The Importance of Strengthening Your Knees
Strengthening your knees is crucial for managing arthritis pain and improving function. However, the key is to use hip-dominant leg exercises that also train the knees. This approach ensures that the forces are mostly loaded into the hips, making it much more tolerable for your knees.
Hip-Dominant Leg Exercises
Hip-dominant exercises target the muscles around your hips, which can help offload the stress on your knees. Here are a few examples:
Hip Bridges: Lying on your back with your knees bent, lift your hips towards the ceiling while squeezing your glutes. This exercise primarily targets the glutes and hamstrings, reducing knee stress.
Deadlifts: Focusing on proper form, deadlifts engage the glutes, hamstrings, and lower back, providing strength without overloading the knees.
Lunges: By emphasizing the hip movement and keeping the knee aligned, lunges can be adjusted to focus more on hip strength.
The Mobility Challenge
However, there's a catch. Many people with knee osteoarthritis lack sufficient hip mobility to effectively load their hips and offload their knees. This lack of mobility can hinder the effectiveness of hip-dominant exercises.
Improving Hip Mobility
When working with patients who have knee osteoarthritis, an important focus is improving hip mobility before adding leg strengthening exercises. Enhanced hip mobility allows for better execution of hip-dominant exercises, making knee strengthening more comfortable and effective.
Here are some exercises to improve hip mobility:
Hip Flexor Stretches: Stretching the hip flexors can help reduce tightness and improve range of motion.
Piriformis Stretch: This stretch targets the muscles deep in the hip, improving flexibility and reducing strain on the knees.
Dynamic Hip Warm-Ups: Incorporating movements like leg swings and hip circles can help warm up the hips and improve mobility before strength training.
A Balanced Approach
By combining improved hip mobility with hip-dominant exercises, you can strengthen your knees in a much more comfortable and effective manner. This balanced approach not only alleviates pain but also enhances overall joint health and function.
Need Help Overcoming Arthritis?
If you’re struggling with knee osteoarthritis and need personalized guidance, we’re here to help. At Prevail Rehab & Performance, we focus on tailored solutions that address your specific needs. Improving hip mobility and incorporating the right strength exercises can make a world of difference in managing your arthritis.
Contact us if you could use some help overcoming your arthritis problems! Let's work together to keep you moving and pain-free.
Comments