Increase knee strength and decrease knee pain with these at home exercises! Six simple physical therapy exercises you can do at home to decrease knee pain and improve function.

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️ THIS IS PART TWO OF A 2-PART KNEE STRENGTHENING SERIES.

️ CLICK HERE TO SEE PART ONE: https://youtu.be/ikt6NME0k9E ⬅️

BEST STRETCHES FOR KNEE PAIN: https://youtu.be/Rjojo8ysStQ

FIX PATELLAR TENDONITIS AT HOME: https://youtu.be/bvryJd1FqyQ

HOW TO CHECK FOR A MENISCUS TEAR: https://youtu.be/VRuxkwogpjI

BEST HOME EXERCISES FOR MENISCUS TEAR KNEE PAIN: https://youtu.be/yLB4ktZFMJE
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Knee pain is a condition that affects millions of people every year. In fact, knee pain ranks third on the list of most common injuries that I see as a physical therapist (low back pain and neck pain are numbers one and two). If you have (or have ever experienced) knee pain, you know how debilitating this condition can be. Simple tasks like walking, standing, and stairs can become nearly impossible.

Luckily, there’s a lot that performing the right exercises can do to decrease your pain and help you to feel better. It’s crucial that we strengthen the right muscles the right way in order to improve knee strength and function and therefore decrease pain and help you to feel better.

So that’s what I wanted to share with you today! Six simple physical therapy exercises you can do at home to strengthen the muscles that act on your knee and, as a result, improve stability and function.

Keep in mind that whenever I talk about the knee in my clinic, I usually refer to it as a “dumb joint“. It flexes (bends) and extends (straightens) and that’s about it. Often times when the knee is painful it is actually because of where our knee is operating in space. This is controlled by the muscles of the hip and ankle which are responsible for how your knee bends. I am including exercises for those two areas given their importance in knee function and pain.

Here are my top five exercises to help you decrease knee pain and increase strength. Between the exercises in this video and those found in part one of this series you’ve got a great home routine that will hopefully help you out of some of the pain/discomfort that you may be experiencing.

1. LONG ARC QUAD - 3 sets of 10-20 reps really gets the quads fired up. Can cause pain in some conditions in which case you should forego this exercise.

2. STANDING HAMSTRING CURL - 3 sets of 10-20 reps. Important in helping stabilize the knee and supporting the ACL.

3. SQUATS - 3 sets of 10-20 reps. Go as low as possible without pain.

4. HIP ABDUCTION - 3 sets of 10 reps on each leg. One of my favorites for knee stability.

5. DEADLIFTS - 3 sets of 10-20 reps. Fires the hip extensors and hamstrings to improve knee function.

6. HEEL RAISES - 3 sets of 20-30 reps. One of your calf muscles (gastrocnemius) crosses your knee joint and assists in knee flexion (bending). Don’t neglect this muscle while training your knee!

Hope you enjoyed those exercises and I hope they help you out of some of the pain or discomfort you may be experiencing. Be sure to LIKE, SHARE, and COMMENT; thanks so much for watching!