These knee exercises are recommended for those with difficulty squatting, climbing stairs, or balancing on one foot. The first three exercises - quad sets, hamstring sets, and straight leg raises - involve minimal movement of the knee joint while strengthening muscles around the knee. Additional exercises include bridging to work the inner thighs, knee extensions to strengthen the thigh muscles, heel raises for balance, and butt kicks to stretch the hamstrings. Perform 1-2 sets of each exercise daily, holding contractions for 10 seconds and repeating 20 times to rebuild knee strength.

1. Knee exercises
Therapeutic strengthening for beginners.
These knee exercises are a great starting point if you have difficulty squatting, climbing stairs, or
balancing on 1 foot. Practice this routine 1-2 times per day to help rebuild the basic strength in
your knee.
1 Quad sets
Place a pillow lengthwise under your knee. Pull your toes back and push your leg down to
squash the pillow. Hold for 10 seconds and repeat up to 20 times. You should feel your thigh and
gluteus muscles during this exercise.
2 Hamstring sets
Lie on your back with knees bent and toes up. Dig your heels into the ground and pull back
without sliding your heels. Hold for 10 seconds and repeat up to 20 times. You should feel the
back of your thigh, the hamstrings, during this exercise. As with quad sets, start with a moderate
effort and increase your effort gradually.

2. 3 Straight leg raise
Tighten your thigh and pull your toes back just as you do for the quad set, then maintain the
muscle tightness as you slowly raise your leg 18 inches. Lower slowly, relax your muscles
briefly, then tighten your thigh, pull your toes back and repeat 20 times.
Note: These first 3 knee exercises are the least stressful on the knee joint as they require little to
no movement of the knee itself.
4 Bridging
Knees bent and feet flat on the floor as above with your heels spaced comfortably from your
bottom. Fold a bed pillow in half, and place it between your knees. Squeeze the pillow and hold
on to it tightly. Raise your bottom upward slowly lifting one vertebra at a time from your
exercise mat. Continue lifting your bottom upward until there is a straight line from your
shoulders to your knees. Hold this position 5-10 seconds. Repeat 6-8 times. Think of reaching
your knees forward over your ankles.
Note: If this exercise is uncomfortable, just squeeze the pillow and hold it 10 seconds. This is
called an adductor set, as it works the inner thigh muscles. Once you can do this (and knee
exercises #1 and 2) 20 times with a strong effort, try bridging again.

3. 5 Knee extension
Sit upright in a chair, straighten your leg, tighten your thigh and pull your toes back. Hold for 10
seconds and repeat up to 20 times. The more you tighten your muscles, the better results you’ll
get from this exercise. You may feel a stretch behind your knee during the exercise. For a greater
challenge, straighten both legs at the same time, or do this exercise with an adjustable ankle
weight up to 5 pounds.
I
6 Heel raises
Hold onto a chair or
countertop only as
much as you need to
for safety. Go up on
your toes as high as
possible without
leaning your body
weight forward. Stay up and maintain your balance for 2-3 seconds. Repeat up to 25 times. Keep
your weight over your big toes as you go up and down. Once you can easily do 25 repetitions, try
lowering back down on one foot. Then progress to single leg heel raises.

4. 7 Butt kicks
Keep your knees in line and lift your heel as high as possible. Stand upright when you lift your
heel. You will feel your hamstrings during this exercise, and you may feel a stretch in the front of
your thigh. Repeat up to 20 times on each side. Add an ankle weight to increase the challenge.
Note: Knee exercises #6 and 7 are balance exercises.