25-10 - Flipbook - Page 26
Hephzibah
Ministries
"That's when you start to very slowly lose muscle mass and bone density so that would be a
good time to focus on it, if you don't have strengthening as part of your regular exercise
programme," she says.
So what kinds of exercises should we be doing?
To keep the important muscle groups strong, Chhabra suggests spending 15 minutes a day,
three to four times per week on various knee exercises listed below, all of which you can do
at home without the need for any specialised equipment. He also recommends speaking to
a physio or a strength coach first to ensure you are performing them correctly.
Here are five quick, home-based exercises which will all help. For all of these exercises, as a
general rule, Colvin suggests starting with two sets of 10 reps, which means performing the
exercise 10 times, resting, and then performing it another 10 times.
Step-ups
All this one requires is either a stair or a low step. Leading with your preferred foot, simply
push up until both feet are on the step, and then back down again. When stepping up, alternate your lead foot each time.
"It's low impact because it's just body weight," says Chhabra. "You're building both your
hamstrings and most importantly the quadriceps muscles in your front thighs. The quadriceps are the key to the knee joint in some ways, because when they're weaker, the kneecap sits closer in, and you get more rubbing and pain."
Weaker quadriceps also put more stress onto the joint where the kneecap glides over the
thigh bone, causing pain and clicking.
Squats
