strengthening legs with dodgy knees

meerkat70

i have bad knees (hypermobile and crunchy)

i've tried squatting, many many times. i have good form, but still get a sharp stabbing pain in the knee, so am forced to accept they are not for me. same problem with lunges. on a good day i can deadlift.

are there things i can do to strengthen legs that dont involve the knee so significantly?

Donners185

Bump.

rbrookbanks

Cycle. No weight bearing or impact. Brilliant for general joint health.

Cherimoose

You should be able to do Romanian Deadlifts. They work your entire backside - hamstrings, glutes, and spinal muscles - all with minimal knee involvement. Watch a few tutorials on Youtube.

Some other ones that tend to be easier on the knees:

- step-ups: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttmh8_7lkXc

- wide-stance squats: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJJj7tTBtUE

- wall sits: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-wV4Venusw

And of course calf raises

kaned_ferret

I have the same problem, even cycling and the cross trainer gives me gyp, but I just try to keep going (I don't do that long in the grand scheme though!) Swimming breast stroke doing the frog legs thing is pretty good as well. But like you, I am just resigned to having crappy knees.. I am just trying to improve range of motion because although I have hypermobile joints like you, all the muscles and connective tissues are crappily short and tight so even touching my toes with my feet together is nigh impossible lol.

Cavy1234

If you have access to a pool, swimming can definitely help. Something that helped me was getting one of those little bicycles that fit in front of your chair. It's just a base with pedals so you can strengthen your legs while sitting at a desk, watching TV, or visiting MFP.

meerkat70

Just giving this a little bump, to see if anyone else has strength training ideas. (I'm already good on the cardio.)

Cherimoose

Thanks to everyone for the replies. If anyone has other ideas, i'd love to hear them.

You're welcome. :-)

Are you able to do split squats?

gmallan

I had bad knees for a while and my lower body routine involved Straight leg deadlifts, hip bridges/hip thrusters (these will torch your glutes), calf raises and the hip abductor machines. Was all I could do without making things worse. I did manage to preserve quite a bit of strength. I found the quads the hardest to hit though just as a comment

meerkat70

unfortunately i can't squat at all.

How do you weight a hip bridge? I've only done them bodyweight. Do you use a plate or something?

Thanks all, and apols for slow response, havent been at puter.

Stage14

First off, talk to a doctor. The last thing you want to do is make your knees WORSE. And if something actually HURTS, stop doing it immediately.

You might try out some ballet based workouts, and isolation moves for building the leg muscles. And avoid the leg machines at the gym at all costs (except the leg press). I have an awful left knee, and I started out with dance based low impact workouts that focused on stability rather than raw strength, so that I could build up the muscles around the knee. Pool workouts are great for this.

slim4health56

Same boat - noting for advice.

DebbieLyn63

I have horrible knees as well, and thought I would never be able to do squats again, then I heard about ATG squats, or some call them Sumo squats.
Wide stance, with all your weight on your heels. Do not let the knees go forward past your ankles, and go down as far as you can and back up, all in one fluid motion.

I started trying them using the over-the-door exercise straps first. I could lean back without falling over, and use the straps to support my weight a bit if I needed to. I was shocked that I was able to do 10 in a row, with no pain at all.
I can now do them with just a light hand on a counter or back of a chair, just for balance.

As long as my knees stay in line with my heels, there is zero knee pain.

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spirit05

I have really bad knees and have modified most exercises.
Sumo squats take the load off of knees and are great
Nordic walking is good, use of the poles takes the pressure off of knees and hips.
Anything in a pool is great too! Water jogging, HIIT, modified for the pool gets a good burn!
I started with a stability ball, just sitting on it for an hour or so helps strengthen your core and equals an okay calorie burn as well, for me it's about 184 calories an hour.

LumpySpacePrincess1

Do exercises with low impact, such as cycling and the elliptical. The key I to strengthen the muscles surrounding your knee so they have support and stay in line.
A great exercise is wall sits. Do about 6 for 10 seconds each. They're hard at first, but get easier pretty fast.
I think you should avoid lunges, they make my knees worse. Build up to doing squat later.

Mguilmot

I have terrible knees too. I can't squat, do lunges or deadlift or even do leg extentions. I can do romanian deadlifts, and leg curls, calf raises, and strangely enough the leg press does not give me pain in my knees but I do them with lighter weights and higher reps just to be on the safer side ...

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sijomial

My knees are a mess so I can't squat or lunge.
I keep my quads strong though cycling backed up with using the rowing machine and sometime elliptical or stepper.

Strength exercises for my legs are limited to:
Leg press (can't go much above bodyweight though) :grumble:
Leg extension.
Leg curl (I do these as don't want to get too quad dominant from all the cycling I do).

Straight leg lifts are a good rehab exercise you can do anytime.
Using the stairs instead of lifts/elevators also helps.

BTW - if you are getting sharp pain then you really should get that diagnosed properly, it could be something really simple to fix like a minor meniscus tear that a simple procedure will sort out.

linzijoy

Bumping for later :-)

darrensurrey

Kneeling sissy squats may be useful for you.

AmykinsCatfood

I packed on some leg muscle after just a week of cycling. I build leg muscle quickly though but biking made it happen much faster than walking ever did.

ETA: I have Hyper-extension so I know all about aches and weird pains in the knees/hips.

gmallan

unfortunately i can't squat at all.

How do you weight a hip bridge? I've only done them bodyweight. Do you use a plate or something?

Thanks all, and apols for slow response, havent been at puter.

You could probably use a plate but most of the time you put a barbell across your hips (just below your hip bone). A hip thruster is basically the same but your shoulders are elevated on a bench

http://bretcontreras.com/the-hip-thrust-spread-the-word/

meerkat70

thanks all. i have been formally checked previously. i have very hypermobile knees.

i can occasionally squat when having a good knee week, but not generally, and even then results can be unpredictable if the knee goes out mid squat. (i've had to be rescued before. not pretty. :-) )

i'll give the weighted thrust and bridge a go. embarrassing exercises for the only oestrogen carrier in the weight room. cool. :-)

i do cycle and run. my main interest in strengthening my legs is to give better support to my joints, and help injury prevention for running.