The Best Isometric Knee Exercises to Maintain Your Strength

What You Should Know About Knee Isometrics Before Starting

Your knees are painful. You’re suffering a dull ache all the time, and when you move them – well, agony isn’t the word you’d use to describe the pain you feel. It’s like World War 3 burst into life around your kneecap.

You know you need to work on your knee strength to reduce the pain. But therein lies the problem. The pain when you move stops you from doing the exercise you need. If only there were an exercise regime that didn’t involve moving… and pigs might fly, right?

Welcome to isometric exercises for knee strengthening

No heavyweights, no movement, but stronger knees? What is this wizardry?

Isometric exercise is designed to help strengthen muscle groups with minimal movement or no movement at all. Most weight lifting exercises include an isometric component - like the brief pause between the lowering and lifting of a weight during a squat (which is called the isometric phase). 

That moment when nothing is moving – the gap between the eccentric and concentric phases of the exercise. This is what we call the isometric phase, and even though you’re not moving, your muscles are still working hard. Don’t believe us? Do a 30-second forearm plank and try to deny that you feel your body working!

Why do isometric exercises work to improve knee joints?

Firstly, it’s because the knee joint functions can be affected by the strength of the quadriceps muscles. Isometric exercises are designed to strengthen the thigh muscles without involving much movement around the knee joint. Learning to better contract your quadriceps in painful ranges of motion can have a protective effect on your knee joint.

Also, isometric exercises work to develop better coordination between your nervous system and your muscles. This helps your muscles to work more efficiently, potentially improving performance and reducing pain. It also helps your muscles to work more effectively for longer. This helps you to maintain rhythm and stability when training with weights, such as the kettlebell side swing.

What are the best isometric exercises for knee strengthening?

We use isometric exercises because they strengthen muscles, improve work capacity and help our clients build tolerance to new and uncomfortable positions - all while placing minimal stress on the joint. Here are seven such exercises:

1. Split Squat Hover

The split squat hover is a great isometric exercise for training the quadriceps.  It is performed by starting in a half-kneeling position (one knee down on the floor, one knee in front) and hovering the back knee.  This exercise should feel like a challenge to the quads on both legs, but the back quad in particular.

How to: Split Squat Hover

2. Wall sit with heel raise

This is another exercise that targets the quads, but with an additional focus on the calf muscles.  The calf muscles involved in this exercise are the soleus muscles since the knees are bent.  This exercise is great for practicing strength in the calves and quads with the knees bent.

How to: Wall Sit with Heel Raise

3. Heel raise

A standard heel raise isometric primarily targets the gastrocnemius muscles of the calves. It is performed by standing with straight legs and lifting the heels up from the floor.

How to: Heel Raise

4. Bridge (single/double leg)

The bridge is an excellent exercise for targeting the glutes and hamstrings.  An isometric bridge is performed by lying on your back with knees bent, pressing your feet into the floor, lifting your hips towards the ceiling, and holding at the top.

How to: Bridge (single/double leg)

5. Copenhagen Plank

The Copenhagen plank is focused on building strength in the hip adductors.  It is performed by lying on your side, placing your top leg on an elevated surface, and lifting your hips into a plank by pressing down with the elevated leg.  

How to: Copenhagen Plank

6. Beast

The beast focuses on developing full-body tension from the hands to the feet.  It is performed by starting in a hands and knees position and lifting the knees off the ground so that only the hands and toes are on the floor.

How to: Beast Hold Position

7. Reverse Nordic

The Reverse Nordic curl is a high-level quadriceps exercise.  It challenges the ability of the quadriceps to contract in a deep knee bent position.

How to: Reverse Nordic

Want to know more about knee isometrics?

There are many benefits to these exercises. Most importantly, they’re done while putting less strain on the joints or ligaments. This means that there is less risk for injury during exercise.

We’ve only outlined a few isometric exercises for knees in this article. If you are experiencing knee pain, it’s important to have completed a comprehensive evaluation before trying exercises on your own.  We will help you select the right exercises at the right dosage for you, as well as provide you with a clear plan to progress them towards your goals. 

What does a comprehensive evaluation involve? 

Evaluations take approximately 90 minutes. The first portion is a conversation between the client and a physical therapist and trainer which covers your pain, physical activity, lifestyle, and goals.  The physical evaluation entails physical testing to reveal deficits that will inform the beginning of a plan that the PT will develop with the client.  By the end of the evaluation, each client should have a clear picture of what they can expect during their physical therapy treatment, why they are doing it, and how it relates to their goals.

To benefit from a comprehensive evaluation of your condition, book an appointment with Reload.