4 Knee Strengthening Exercises

It seems that the more we exercise there tends to be some joint, ligament, tendon or muscle that gets aggravated. Even when we apply excellent form, technique and biomechanics, if we love to exercise and we get in lots of frequency per week, the body will breakdown—especially if we do not let it rest.

How does your body tell you that it needs rest? Well, it will do so by giving you pain, exhaustion and sometimes getting a cold. The human body can be very stubborn when it comes to change, but when it needs to rest or it feels like we are over training, it will let us know. So listen to the body.

More: What Is Overtraining?

As we all know, the knees tend to give us the most problems, especially if we love to run or do activities that involve our legs. Try these four exercises to alleviate and strengthen the muscles that surround the knee joint and patella (knee cap).

IT Band Foam Rolling

When tight, the Iliotibial band can cause a lot of pain not only in the hip region of the body, but also around the knee joint and patella. When this area of the body is super tight, it can pull the knee cap over just a little bit, which can create a great deal of pain when doing simple things like going up and down stairs.

As stated earlier, the body can be very stubborn and when the kneecap is off by just a small amount, it can create a lot of pain. First apply light pressure on this part of the leg. When you build up a tolerance, you can start to roll it back on forth. Roll out both the right and left IT bands for two minutes per side.

MoreHow to Use a Foam Roller to Build Strength

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About the Author

Kisar S. Dhillon

Kisar S. Dhillon is a professional fitness trainer living in Portland, Oregon. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Kinesiology, Post Baccalaureate Studies in Exercise Physiology and a Master's in Business Administration. He has more than 17 years experience in the health and fitness industry and is currently the owner of The Art of Personal Training. You can follow him on Google Plus, Twitter and on YouTube.
Kisar S. Dhillon is a professional fitness trainer living in Portland, Oregon. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Kinesiology, Post Baccalaureate Studies in Exercise Physiology and a Master's in Business Administration. He has more than 17 years experience in the health and fitness industry and is currently the owner of The Art of Personal Training. You can follow him on Google Plus, Twitter and on YouTube.

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