19 Best Knee Mobility Exercises for Strength and Stability
glamour.com, program director at Stretch*d. As the largest joint in the human body, your knees carry a heavy load both literally and figuratively—stiffness or injuries here can throw your entire body out of balance. “When a joint doesn't function properly the muscles around it will be stressed in ways that they aren't meant to be, which can lead to pain and injury,” Brannigan explains. “Over time, these injuries will lead to further compensation throughout the body, making the situation worse and more systemic.” Stretching routines like the or the , often emphasize flexibility over everything.
But when it comes to knee stretches, a balance between knee mobility and knee stability is key, says , MSc.PT, founder of Stroma Physical Therapy and an advisory board member for the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) Rehabilitation Network. “Unlike flexibility—a muscle's ability to stretch—mobility is the joint's capacity to meet its full range of motion,” says , C.P.T.
a founding trainer at Fiture. Knee stability involves strengthening the muscles around the knee joint to prevent the dreaded over rotation that can cause injury.
Picture doing a squat. If your knees are tracking directly over your toes—which they should be—it's because the stabilizing muscles surrounding the joint are doing their thing.
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