Knee Exercises – Preventative & Strengthening

By: Jessica Byrnes

As runners, our Type A personalities and competitive nature tells us that running more means more fitness gains. Often times, it isn’t until we feel a tweak or twinge that we start to look beyond running and search for the cause of a new or lingering injury that is holding us back from our potential.

Don’t wait until injury has already set in – by adding these strength exercises for runners, many common overuse injuries can be prevented and these simple, no-equipment-needed exercises will only take a few minutes of your day!

1.   Bodyweight Squats

This exercise is a great glute strengthener and gets your hips activated. Start in standing position with your arms outstretched. Lower your body to a seated position while keeping your back straight, chin and head looking forward.

2.   Single-Leg Squat Touchdown

One of my favorites that includes knee and core strengthening – a lot more challenging than it looks!

Start by balancing on your right leg with your knees slightly bent and your left arm raised straight up. Slowly bend your right knee to lower your left arm towards your right foot. Push through your heel and squeeze your glutes to return to starting position. Continue with this exercise for 10-15 reps on your right side and then switch legs.

3.   Core Work is extremely important!

Refer to previous blog posts (yoga, planks, and dynamic warm-up exercises, and single-leg exercises to name a few) for some great core strength exercises that will help keep you injury-free!!

 

Plantarflexion with tubing

This exercise promotes strength and flexibility of the foot and ankle to prevent injury when running on uneven terrain. Since it is not weight bearing, it can be performed daily. It can also function as a rehabilitative exercise to overcome an ankle sprain or mild achilles tendonitis.

1. Sit on the floor with legs fully extended in front of the body. A length of tubing, an end in each hand, should extend underneath the foot, wrapping around the ball of the foot. Make sure there is no slack. 

2. Extend the foot to full extension

3. At full extension, hold the position for one second before pulling the tubing backward in a smooth motion. The foot will be forced to dorsiflex and return to its initial position.

4. Repeat the push/pull of the exercise, adjusting tension though-out, until fatigue. 

 

Try Some Yoga!

Yoga is great for runners because it not only stretches you but it strengthens you in many ways. Yoga prevents injury, improves recovery time, improves flexibility for better from, and gets you stronger!

I like the "Sun Salutation" because it really targets everything and make you feel really good after a run. It's easy to do too. Try going through it 3 times after your run holding each pose as long as you feel you need to:

Upper Body Strengthening

For running, strengthening the upper body is just as important as working the lower body. Your arms are what propels you forward and helps maintain speed throughout the workout. When you run, your arms counterbalance the motion of your legs, which results in saved energy. Having a strong upper body will also keep you in proper running form when fatigue sets in. 

These are a few exercises you can incorporate into your workout to improve upper body strength:

1) Cable Lat Pulldown - works latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, and biceps 
Sit at the cable machine and grab the bar, palms facing forward with a narrow grip. Pull the bar down so it touches your upper chest. Concentrate on the squeezing your shoulder blades as you pull down. Slowly extend your arms to lift the bar up. Complete 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps. 

2) Dumbbell Chest Press - works pectoralis major and triceps
Lie on the bench with a dumbbell in each hand and your feet flat on the floor. Push the dumbbells up so that your arms are directly over your shoulders and your palms are up. Pull your abs in and tilt your chin toward your chest. Lower the dumbbells down and a little to the side until your elbows are slightly below your shoulders. Complete 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps.  

3) Standing Shoulder (Dumbbell) Press - deltoids 
Hold dumbbells in each hand and arms at 90 degrees, elbows below the wrists. Press the dumbbells upward until arms are fully extended. Lower back to the sides of the shoulders. Complete 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps. 

Foam Rolling

Foam rolling has many benefits to runners and depending on the type of roller you buy they are not too expensive. I highly recommend foam rolling to all runners.  

Benefits:

• Helps prevent injury by keeping overused muscles from becoming too tight
• Keeps you flexible 
• Releases tension and de-stresses you by working out those "knots"
• Helps fatigued muscles recover quickly

I personally use The Grid roller. They last longer and the grid feels like fingers massaging you and digging into your muscles.

Try some of these before and after your runs. Just roll back and forth for 30 seconds. Stop on extra "tender" areas for a few seconds and then continue to roll.

1. Calves 

 2. Hamstrings

 3. Quads

Dynamic Warm-Up – Leg Swings

Giving your body a proper warm-up is often as overlooked as stretching for many runners. By getting yourself into a routine of (at minimum) some dynamic warm-up moves like leg swings, you will activate your hip flexors, hamstrings, and glutes to prepare them for the demands of your workout. A few simple moves that should be added to your warm-up include:

Forward Leg Swings

• Brace your body against a wall, fence or other support, or a teammate! 
• Start with both feet under hips and then swing the inside leg forward and back 10-15 times. 
• Gradually increase the range of motion until your leg swings as high as it will comfortably go. 
• Switch legs and repeat steps.

Side Leg Swings

• Facing a wall, fence or other support, extend both arms at shoulder height to brace yourself. 
• Swing and extend one leg to the outside of your body and then swing back across the front of your body – same as the forward swings – 10-15 times. 
• Gradually increase the range of motion until your leg swings out as high as it will comfortably go.
•  Switch legs and repeat steps.

Plank Variations

So if we have been working at the plank for a couple weeks now, we should comfortably be able to hold it for 45-60 seconds without losing proper form.

The great thing about the plank is its an exercise that is adaptable to hit any portion of the core and/or plane of movement you need by making a couple of adjustments.

The side plank takes the principles of a plank but turns the focus on the lateral musculature.  The obliques, glute medius, and lateral leg muscles become responsible for holding your body in a straight line.

As with the normal plank, start with 2-3 sets of 15-30 seconds as needed

Repeat on both sides

Once you work your way up to 45-60 seconds of good form planking, increase the challenge and running specificity by adding repeats of a knee hike every 5 seconds. Do 10 throughout the 60-second plank.

Maintain a neutral pelvis and straight line while knee hiking. This will translate to proper posture while running.