Exercises for knee strength

The following exercises are commonly prescribed to patients with arthritis of the knee. You should discuss the suitability of these exercises with your physiotherapist prior to beginning them. Generally, they should be performed 3 times daily and only provided they do not cause or increase symptoms.

1.     Static quadriceps exercise

 Tighten the muscle at the front of your thigh (quadriceps) by pushing your knee down into a towel (figure 1). Put your fingers on your quadriceps to feel the muscle tighten during contraction. Hold for 5 seconds and repeat 10 times as hard as possible without increasing your symptoms.

 Static Quadriceps Contraction

2.     Inner range quadriceps 

Sit with your knee bent over a rolled up towel, high enough to be able to lift the heel off the ground.Tighten up the knee muscles and lift your heel off the ground. Keep your knee firmly down on the roll.Hold for a few seconds, trying to get the heel as high as you can, relax and repeat. People with patellar (kneecap) problems may need to avoid this exercise if it causes pain.I think this is by far the best exercise to do for the strength of your quadriceps, as when you do it, only the correct muscles can be working. If you find it difficult, increase the size of the roll. The bigger the roll the easier the exercise is, so start with a big roll and gradually reduce. Hold for 5 seconds and repeat 10 times.

  Inner Range Quadriceps

3.   Straight-leg raise: sitting 

Get into the habit of doing this every time you sit down. Sit well back in the chair with a good posture. Straighten and raise the leg, hold it for a slow count to 10, then slowly lower it. Repeat this several times with each leg – at least 10 times with each. If this can be done easily, repeat the exercises with a weight on the ankle (buy ankle weights from a sports shop or improvise, for example with a packet of salt wrapped around the ankle).

4.    Straight-leg raise: lying

 Get into the habit of doing straight-leg exercises in the morning and at night while lying in bed. With one leg bent at the knee, hold the other leg straight and lift the foot just off the bed. Hold for a slow count of 5 then lower. Repeat with each leg 5 times every morning and evening and then gradually increasing the repetition till 10.

5.    Muscle stretch

 At least once a day when lying down do the following exercise. First, place a rolled-up towel under the ankle of the leg to be exercised. Then bend the other leg at the knee. With the straight leg, use your leg muscles to push the back of the knee firmly towards the bed or the floor. Hold for a slow count of 5. Repeat with each leg 5 times. Not only does this exercise help to strengthen the quadriceps muscles, but also it prevents the knee from becoming permanently bent.

6.    Clenching exercises 

During the day, whether standing or sitting, get into the habit of clenching and releasing the quadriceps muscles. By constantly stimulating the muscles, they become stronger.

7.    Hamstring Stretch

Keep one leg on ground; put one foot on chair with leg straight. Bend forward at the hip. Do not attempt to touch your toes as this will stretch your back, and the goal of this exercise is to isolate your hamstring muscle in the leg that is being supported by the chair. Hold for 30 seconds. Repeat on other side. (Fig-7).

Sit in a chair, put fist between knees, squeeze together knees. Hold for count of 10. Relax for count of 3. Do 10 repetitions.

*It is better to do the exercises under the supervision and guidance of a qualified physiotherapist at least initially because faulty exercises may cause further damage to the joint.