These 4 Moves Can Help to Build Stronger Knees
No matter how or why you exercise, you’re probably used to training to target specific muscles—just think about all of the biceps curls and crunches you’ve done in your life. Or as a cyclist, you might’ve worked on strengthening your quads.
But not every body part gets the same amount of love. That’s partly because some muscles are just easier to isolate, but others might be neglected because it’s less obvious exactly how to focus your attention on them.
Case in point: your knees. Yes, they’re joints, not muscles—but there are muscles supporting them which you can work to help to promote healthy function.
“The muscles of the thigh act on the knee by either bending or extending the leg,” says trainer Charlee Atkins, C.S.C.S.
That mean that your quads and hamstrings are largely responsible for that movement, and that you’ll want to work on strengthening those muscles when you train for stronger knees.
Atkins designed this four move series of exercises specifically to do just that. Each movement has a different focus; you’ll target your hamstrings and quads, and work to develop stability in your hips. You’ll need a yoga mat for your back, a short platform, and a chair or bench to do the workouts. If you’re more advanced, grab a weight for the chair get-up.
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Perform each exercise for either 45 seconds or 8 to 12 reps
Feet-Elevated Hip Raise (Hamstrings Focus)
Right Side-Lying Clamshell (Hip Stabilizer)
Left Side-Lying Clamshell (Hip Stabilizer)
Chair Get-Up (Quad Focus)
Hamstring Walk-Out
Take on the whole series on a lower body training day as a circuit or implement the exercises in your training split.
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