Anterior Knee Pain
Who out there has pain in the front of their knees?! It's an extremely common problem for both kids and adults. As with most aches and pains, not really something you should totally ignore & in many cases (especially if there was not a specific injury) this can be improved with some exercises!
For many people ( maybe you have Osgood Schlatter's Disease, Patellofemoral pain syndrome, or just general pain without a fancy name), improving overall hip strength can help. Also, how your foot works as well as how flexible your calf is plays a big role in knee pain too!
Here are a few things you can try:
Foam rolling - spend time going over the very front part of your thigh/quads, then move more toward the outside (staying a little more diagonal than directly on the side), then your inner thigh. Spend extra time in any sore areas.
Couch stretch- Working on rocking your hips back (a posterior pelvic tilt) to avoid an arch in your low back. Hold 1 min or for 6 SLOW breaths
Arch lifts- Work on pulling the ball of your foot toward your heel, lifting your arch up. Try to keep pressure on the ball of your foot, base of your pinky toe, and heel (so we are not rolling out to the side of our foot). Many people have feet that roll in (it's called pronation, and everyone should pronate some), and have little control of this movement, causing increased pressure on our knee. 30x
Soleus stretch- Work on stretching that calf out! Can just hold a bent leg calf stretch for 1 min- or move from a straight to bent knee 30x, just make sure when our knee is bent that your knee is going directly over the middle of your foot!
Seated leg raise with external rotation- Sitting up against something give 1 knee a hug then straighten the other. With the straight leg turn your leg out, point your foot, then keeping your knee perfectly straight, lift that let holding for 3 full seconds. Work up to 30 reps.
Clams- Bend knees up and place band around knees (if you have one available) then pull knees apart while keeping feet together. Pause at the top. Perform 30x (or to fatigue)
Single leg slow sit- Work on sitting as low as possible and as slow as possible on 1 leg. Work on keeping your knee right over the middle of your foot. If this is painful perform to a higher surface or stop exercise. 20-30x.
Medical Disclaimer: This information is intended as educational and instructional purposes only. Without a full assessment it is impossibly to know what exercises you specifically need for your condition. I encourage you to contact your doctor or other medical professional if concerned or experiencing activity limiting pain or illness.