Having a knee injury is NEVER a fun thing. And you never really realize how much day to day activities need your knee to be in working order – until it’s not!
Since I’m currently in the process of recovering from a knee injury, I’ve been on the hunt for knee friendly workouts I can do at home to keep active even when my mobility is at an all time low. Going from working out 5-7 times a week to an abrupt stop definitely wasn’t easy. For some people they might think great now I have an excuse to not workout! For me, it had become such a habit that not doing it anymore felt like torture.
My Knee Injury Experience
Thankfully my injury didn’t result in anything being torn or broken. It was just a fall from snowboarding, sore muscles and trying to workout too soon that caused the knee to just basically give up for a while. My knee felt super unstable and as if there was fluid building up underneath my knee. The range of motion in my knee was completely gone and even walking became a challenge. After giving it some rest and an MRI I was finally in the clear to head to Physiotherapy to start my healing journey. As I share this blog post I’m still in the recovery but I can definitely say I’m doing much better than where I was a little over a month ago! Apparently our bodies don’t heal as quickly as we get older!
The following stretches and workouts I’m sharing are also great options for if you’re just starting out on your fitness journey. They are great low impact workouts to slowly build up your strength before you start adding more advanced moves to your routine.
As always, I’m just sharing what has worked for me on my personal journey. Everyone is at a different spot or may have a more serious injury than me. Please be sure to consult with your doctor to get the clear for fitness in order to stay safe!
Knee Friendly Workouts
5 Best Knee Strengthening Exercises (No More Knee Pain)
These moves plus a few extra have been part of my daily exercises as I work to get back that strength in my knees and all of the other muscles surrounding it.
Yoga
Sunrise Yoga | 15-Minute Morning Yoga Practice
This has been a perfect way for me to start my mornings. I definitely notice that my knees are more stiff in the morning after not moving at all for 8 hours. This helps stretch out those tight hamstrings and allows me to set the intention for the day
Yoga For Sensitive Knees | Yoga With Adriene
A great yoga practice to build strength and stability for your knees. You get a full body yoga workout in this 30 minute practice without putting too much pressure on your knees.
Core
10-Minute Lower-Core Blast With Khetanya Henderson | POPSUGAR FITNESS
This workout is great to do as you’re laying on the floor the whole time. I felt it was still challenging for my core but allowed me to complete the whole routine without pain. A good thing to add into your routine every other day to keep that core strong.
The BEST Lower Ab Workout For Women (No Equipment, 10-Minute Lower Abs)
20-Minute Seated Workout: Cardio + Core (No Equipment, No Repeat)
I was doing this one twice a week in the beginning weeks of not much movement. I still felt I was getting my heart rate up and making sure I was keeping my core nice and strong. With knee injuries it often can cause lower back pain as your body starts getting out of alignment but helping keep a strong core can help with eliminating some of that pain.
30 Minute Workouts
30 Minute Full Body Workout – Seated or Standing
Perfect full body workout. I love the challenge that this brought and I kept my knee safe while doing it.
30-Minute Full Body Mat Workout (No Standing)
35-Minute Full Body Mat Workout (For Leg/Knee Injury)
These two Mat workouts were a great go to. Love having no impact on the knee when you’re in those initial recovery weeks. Perfect to build strength without upsetting the knee joints.
30 Minute Arms & Abs Workout – Seated or Standing
I love that you can start off this workout seated and the next time you go to do it you try it standing and it feels like a completely different workout.
30-Minute Full Body Workout (Leg/Knee Injury Friendly)
This one brought the heat! 5 Circuits to work through. Arms, Legs, Arms, Legs and then Full Body. You’ll definitely feel accomplished after this!
30-Minute TONED ARMS Workout with Dumbbells | Arms + Abs Workout 💪
Now this workout wasn’t made entirely for knee injuries so I would definitely try this when you’re feeling more stable. But there wasn’t cardio and she shared many modifications that were helpful to make the moves more low impact and off the knee joints.
Final Thoughts
Having a knee injury isn’t fun. Thankfully there are knee friendly workouts that you can still do to ensure you’re staying healthy and fit. While it may sound nice to just sit on the couch with a bag of chips to let your knee heal, it could also do more damage. If you’re adding extra weight to your body that’s also adding extra weight onto your knees which may actually hinder the healing process. Of course, it’s bound to happen that you may experience some weight gain as you aren’t moving like you used to, but if you can do things to help minimize it that’s always great!
Let me know if you give any of these exercises a try or what happened to you that you were searching for safe ways to workout as well. If you did have a knee injury I wish you a quick and safe recovery!
