This is a great knee strengthening exercise to help strengthen the thighs and help reduce knee pain . It is a very simple and easy exercise that you can do in a chair. Practicing this can help make you more aware of keeping your weight even on both legs. (When you’re experiencing knee pain, the tendency is to shift all your weight off the leg that hurts!) By practicing this exercise, not only are you helping to strengthen the leg that’s lifting, but by keeping your weight even and you lift one leg, you’re also working on the supporting leg strength for better balance and body control.
How To Do The Seated Knee Lift Exercise
- Sit Towards the Front Edge of a Chair with Your Legs Hip-Width Apart.
- Keep Your Weight Even on Both Hips and Maintain Good Posture.
- Feet Firmly Planted on the Ground. Both Shoulders Square, Level, and Even.
- Keep the Abs Lifted and the Shoulders Relaxed.
- Inhale and Exhale to pull your Abs up and Float One Knee Off the Floor and Hold.
- Inhale and Exhale to Lower the Knee.
- Repeat this with the Other Knee.
- Alternate Legs for 8-15 repetitions. Or to build endurance do 5-10 times lifting the Right Knee, then 5-10 times lifting the Left Knee.
Tips to Help Your Exercise Technique:
- Sit in front of a mirror to watch your posture and body alignment while performing the Seated Knee Lift Exercise.
- It will be easier to do the exercise if you are sitting in a tall chair, so your thighs start angled downward. If you are starting with your thighs horizontal to the floor, or knees higher than your hips, the exercise will be more difficult.
- If your shoulder drops, hips twist, or a butt cheek lifts off the floor as you do the exercise you’ve lost your posture and body alignment.
- Be sure that when you lift your knee the leg stays perpendicular on the floor. If the knee turns out or in – make an adjustment from your hips to correct your alignment.
- Keep your butt firmly planted on the chair.
- Be sure that your supporting leg stays still also. Watch that the standing knee doesn’t flop in our out while you’re lifting one leg up.
This is relatively easy and simple exercise, but if you have experienced a knee injury, or have knee pain, you might be surprised at how challenging it will be to do well. Ideally, you will feel your Abs and the front of your thighs working while you lift and lower the leg. You can practice this Seated Knee Lift Exercise anytime you’re sitting in a chair! Great to do while you’re watching TV!
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When we are in pain, our posture gets out of whack. With knee pain, you might discover that you are creating some muscle imbalances to stay off that sore knee. Being more conscious of your posture habits when you’re seated and standing can help strengthen the muscles you need for better support. Check out the benefits of the Posture Principles for Health system to keep you standing tall, healthy, and pain-free!
About Posture Principles for Health
“This 60-page study guide and DVD work exceptionally well to increase postural awareness, help reduce joint stress, and improve balance and control. Whether you’re a novice in need of developing workout programs to correct posture or an expert looking to teach posture principles to students, this collection is thorough and spot-on.”
–as reviewed in
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Thanks for the great video! Has been suffering from knee pain for quite some time. Will definitely try this out 🙂