Due to the nature of a woman’s anatomy which differs greatly from that of a man, women are prone to suffer from knee pain than when compared to their male counterparts and therefore, require knee exercises. This is especially the case for female athletes and pregnant women. The main reason for this is that women have a wider pelvis and therefore, the thigh muscles tend to pull the patella or knee cap to one side. This usually results in an inflamed knee that becomes increasingly painful with time. However, with the appropriate knee pain exercises, the chances of suffering injuries and knee pain are greatly reduced.

Knee exercises are usually done with the aim of strengthening the muscles around the knee area. These muscles include the hamstrings, quadriceps, hip abductors and calf muscles. All these muscles are important not only for balance but also for motion. The Quadriceps muscles are responsible for the patella movement and knee straightening while hamstrings are responsible for knee bending pushing up against any surface when walking or running. Before anyone attempt any knee strengthening exercises, they should ensure that they first participate in a low impact warm up to increase the supply of blood to the involved muscles and also to prevent any injuries during exercise.

The best knee exercises include simple balancing where with the use of a chair for support; the exerciser balances on one leg for up to a count of ten and then switches to the other leg. Contractions are also another form of knee pain exercises that can be done to strengthen both the quadriceps and the hamstrings. For the quadriceps, a person should sit on a chair and then stretch their legs out so that only the heels of their feet touch the ground. Then with the knees as straight as possible, the exerciser should tighten the thigh muscles. When doing this, one should hold and count to ten before relaxing for about three seconds and then repeating the knee exercises again.

Contractions for the hamstrings involve sitting on a chair just like in the case of contractions for quadriceps. The only difference when doing these knee strengthening exercises for hamstrings is that instead of tightening the thigh muscles, one attempts to pull back on the heels without moving them. This creates some tension on the hamstrings and just like with the quadriceps, one should hold to a count of ten before relaxing for three seconds and then repeating the exercise again. The number of repetitions should be gradually increased to increase the effectiveness of these knee exercises.

Leg lifts are also another common type of knee exercises. To do them, the exerciser needs to lie down on their back with one knee bent at a right angle. The other leg should be maintained as straight as possible even when it is raised until it is at the same level as the bended knee. The position should be held for at least three seconds and the exercise repeated at least ten times while alternating the legs. Curls are also some of the best knee exercises. These are done by lying on one’s stomach and then putting one foot on the back of the other leg’s heel. Exercisers should then try to pull the covered heel towards their backside. The position should be held for up to a count of ten before releasing and the exercise should be repeated while alternating the legs. Knee exercises are vital for women to make their knees sturdy, flexible and supple for movement.

You can also click here for some tips on doing knee strengthening exercises .