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Knock Knees Exercises (genu valgum)
Body Part:
Legs
Equipment:
Midi Foam Roller
Level:
Beginner
Knock Knees Exercises for Pain Relief
Knock knees, also called genu valgum and knock knees syndrome, is a condition that causes your knees to curve inward even when you are standing with your feet apart. If you’re experiencing leg pain because of knock knees, our exercises may be able to help alleviate your discomfort. Jump to our routine if you want to start exercising, or keep reading to learn more about genu valgum.
Knock knees usually affect both knees, but in some cases, it may be present in only one. Although anyone can develop genu valgum at any age, the condition is more common in toddlers and young children. Most children outgrow genu valgum, their legs straightening out between six and eight years old.
Adults with knock knees are at risk of developing arthritis. Each leg’s hip, knee, and ankle should form a straight line, called a mechanical axis. When your knees are misaligned, the force through your legs is distributed unevenly; the outsides of the knees are overloaded while the insides are underloaded. This misdistribution of force can cause the cartilage on the outside of your knee joint and the ligaments on the inside to wear down faster than normal.
The most obvious sign that you have knock knees is that there is a distance of about three inches between your ankles when you are standing with your knees together.
Other symptoms of genu valgum are:
- a reduced range of motion in your hips,
- pain in your hips, knees, ankles, and feet,
- stiffness or soreness in your knee joints,
- pain or difficulty walking or running,
- limping.
Genu valgum can be caused by a combination of the following:
- hips that rotate outward,
- knees that are hyperextended,
- ankles that roll outward (supination),
- inner thigh muscles (adductors) that are too long,
- hamstrings, glute muscles, and tensor fasciae latae (abductors) that are too short.
An adult may develop knock knees as a result of:
- an injury to the knee,
- being overweight or obese,1)
- rheumatoid or osteoarthritis,
- osteomyelitis (inflammation or swelling in the bone).
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Take me to the shop.EXERCISES FOR KNOCK KNEES
IMPORTANT: If you are a child or teenager, you’re suffering from severe pain, or your knock knees result from an injury, please see a doctor before attempting these exercises.
Exercise intensely and intelligently to maximize the benefits of our knock knees routines. Challenge yourself to stretch and massage at a high intensity that may produce an uncomfortable sensation. (This is a sign that the exercise is working.) However, do not stretch or massage so intensely that your breaths become short and shallow or you find that you’re holding your breath or clenching your teeth. Please hold each stretch for at least 2 minutes.
Stretch 1: Leg Muscles Stretch
For this stretch, you’ll need a chair.
- Stand in front of the chair and step forward with your right foot.
- Keep your back and legs straight, and place your hands on the chair.
- You’ll feel a stretch down the back of your right leg.
- Intensify the stretch by placing your forearms flat on the chair.
- Hold the position for 2 to 2.5 minutes.
- Slowly come out of the position and finish.
- Repeat the stretch on your left leg.
Stretch 2: Thigh Stretch
- Sit in the chair with your back straight and your feet flat on the floor.
- Place your right ankle on your left knee and slowly lean forward. You’ll feel a stretch in your right thigh.
- Lean further forward.
- When you’re as far forward as possible, drop your head to intensify the stretch.
- Hold for 2 to 2.5 minutes.
- Slowly come out of the stretch and finish.
- Repeat on the other side.
Additional Exercises
Exercise 1: Buttock & Thigh Stretch
- Sit on the floor with your left leg behind you and your right leg in front of you.
- Bend your right leg until it’s at a 135° angle.
- With your back straight and your hips facing front, bend your upper body forward until you feel a stretch in your buttocks and thigh muscles.
- On each exhale, bend further forward to intensify the stretch.
As you go down, check that your back is straight and your hips are facing front.
- Hold the stretch for 2 to 2.5 minutes.
- Slowly come out of the position and repeat with your left leg in front and your right leg in back.
Exercise 2: Thigh Foam Roll Massage
For this exercise, you’ll need our Midi Foam Roller.
- Sit on the floor with your right leg straight in front of you and bend your left leg so that your foot is next to your right knee.
- Turn your right leg inward. Place the Midi Foam Roller on the side of your leg just under your knee.
- Apply pressure to the Midi Foam Roller for an intense massage.
- Roll along the outside of your thigh in the direction of your hip.
- Roll for about 1 minute and stop when you reach your buttocks.
- Repeat the foam roll massage between the side and front of your thigh.
- Roll for about 1 minute.
- Repeat, this time rolling along the front of your thigh.
- Roll for about 1 minute and stop when you reach the top of your hip.
- Finish, switch legs and repeat.
Alternative
- Stand sideways next to a wall.
- Place the Midi Foam Roller between your knee and the wall.
- Lean against the foam roller forcefully.
- Bend your knee and roll upward in the direction of your hip.
- As you bend down, move the Midi Foam Roller up with your hands.
- Repeat the foam roll massage along the area midway between the side and front of your thigh and the front of your thigh.
- Finish and repeat on the opposite leg.
Your Routine to Treat Knock Knees Pain
Perform our exercises for knock knees 6 days a week with 1 day of rest. When your pain has decreased, you can adjust how often you exercise. If you’re still in pain after 4 weeks of exercising, please see a doctor.
Sources & Studies
- ↑1 Soheilipour, F., Pazouki, A., Mazaherinezhad, A., Yagoubzadeh, K., Dadgostar, H., & Rouhani, F. (2020). The Prevalence of Genu Varum and Genu Valgum in Overweight and Obese Patients: Assessing the Relationship between Body Mass Index and Knee Angular Deformities. Acta bio-medica : Atenei Parmensis, 91(4), e2020121. https://doi.org/10.23750/abm.v91i4.9077.
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