Knee Stretches

If you are suffering from pain in the knees, knee stretches are ideal for you. These help strengthen the tendons and ligaments around the knees. Knee stretches are also ideal for runners and athletes as these can help them prevent injuries to the knee joints.

These stretches are also useful for those suffering from arthritis and other degenerative diseases of the joints.

Knee stretches can help you strengthen the hamstrings in the back of your thigh.

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Stretching For Runners
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Runner knee stretches are usually simple to perform. These strengthen the gastrocnemius muscles in the calf. To perform these stretches, you may need specific props such as ropes and stretchy straps.

The popliteus behind the knee is one of the best knee stretches for pain. These stretches are extremely beneficial as these strengthen the ligaments around the knees and decrease the inflammation that causes pain. These stretches also lubricate the knee joint to increase the range of motion and decrease the pain that results from muscle and bone degeneration.

Some knee stretching exercises involve the Knee-to-chest stretch, bent leg raises, calf raise, straight leg raises, wall sit, lying leg lifts, bridge stretch, calf stretch, and the upper and lower hamstring stretch. These stretches can help you avoid knee problems in the long run. These will also help you deal with any existing knee problems. You can use the exercise ball to make your stretching exercises more challenging. Yoga also contains some exercises that can be used to stretch the knees and strengthen the joint. Yoga stretches can be performed by anyone, at any level of fitness.

Types Of Knee Stretches

Anilitotibial Band Stretch:

It is a simple stretch that helps work the ilitotibial band. To perform this, lie on the back and support your head and back comfortably. Bend the knee as far as possible without experiencing any pain. Place the foot straight and firm on the floor and bring the foot closer to your hip. Repeat 20 times on both the legs.

Quadricep Stretch:

In this stretch you will require to use the back of the chair to support the body. Lift the heel of your left leg and bring it towards your buttocks. While performing this stretch, keep your back completely straight, and your legs joined together. Hold this position for at least 15 seconds.

Hamstring Stretch:

To perform this stretch, you should place any one foot in front of the other and lift it. Rest your heel on something high like a step or a small stool and keep your back completely straight while doing this. Lean forward, bending only from the hip until the feel a stretch at the back portion of the knees.

Hold the position for at least 15 seconds.

Calf Stretch:

To perform this, place both your palms against a wall and stretch one foot backwards, behind you. Take the foot as far from your body as you can without bending your back. Hold the position for at least 15 minutes.

Knee Stretches: Do's & Don'ts

When you are planning to perform knee stretches, you need to know about certain knee stretches dos & donts.

Do's

  • All the instructions for each of the stretch should be followed to the letter.
  • Always stretch your knees before you go jogging or running.
  • Always learn to perform the stretch by an instructor instead of trying out the exercise on your own.

Don'ts

  • The first rule of stretching is that you need to make sure that you do not over stretch.
  • Since the knee is a very delicate joint, overstretching the joint could cause a lot of physical distress.
  • Performing the stretch in the wrong manner could cause all the benefits of knee stretches to reverse.
  • If the discs in your lower back are stressed or injured, some of the stretching exercises may damage the discs further, causing you a lot of unnecessary pain.
  • In all the exercises where you are not required to bend your back, try and stick to the instructions.
  • Bending the back would only cause you to perform the stretch incorrectly and cause yourself unnecessary pain.

Benefits Of Knee Stretches

  • The biggest benefit of knee stretches is the fact that it strengthens the ligaments and tendons in the joints.
  • These stretches also improve the joint stability so that you do not experience progressive deterioration of the joints.
  • Regular stretching also keeps lubricating the knee joint so that it does not cause a lot of inflammation.
  • As the joint inflammation increases, the range of motion decreases drastically. Therefore, it is best to practice the stretching exercises regularly.
  • Among the other benefits of knee stretches is prevention of arthritis.

For runners, the knee becomes a heavily used joint and bears a lot of load. If runners do not stretch their knees regularly, they can damage their knees very early in their life. To prolong the life of this critical joint, runners should perform yoga and other joint stretching exercises.

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