Quick Tip: Avoiding Knee Injury

One of the most debilitating injuries for an athlete is trauma to the knee. To decrease your risk of knee injury, strengthen the surrounding muscles. The quads, hips, and hamstrings can be crucial in warding off knee pain and injury. Greater flexibility translates into more support for the knee. Here are some exercises for these important areas:

• Quads: quad extensions, quad sets, straight leg raises, squats, wall holds, lunges
• Hips: lying crossover, lying pretzel, seated pretzel, kneeling stretches, lying leg raises
• Hamstrings: side stretches, kickbacks, clean and jerk, exercise ball curls