Knee stability improving exercises

Firstly, I am a 21 year old male. I would consider myself very healthy, lean and relatively fit. For a military selection yesterday i performed 12.8 on the bleep test, 45 push ups and 40 sit ups in a minute each. I exercise 6 days a week, running, cycling, swimming and body weight exercises (push ups, pull ups etc).

6 Years ago I had a nasty mountain bike crash that resulted in a stretch to my PCL (shockingly this is what I THINK happened, the medical notes I have are so contrasting that I have no certainty). I was to be operated on as they thought it was a tear but under general anaesthetic I was examined and surgery was decided not to be the best option. I was in a leg brace for about a month solid then had some physio. Within about 3 months I was back on my bike and within 6 back to full fitness and I have never has a SINGLE problem since. I will note I have been engaged in constant exercise since then, at one point through a phase of weight lifting was squatting heavy weights with no problem at all though I don't do that now.

Yesterday I also had a full medical and some extra tests on my knee and it indicated there was some slight instability compared to my "good" knee (i even forgot which knee it was as it literally has given me not a single issue).

It is imperative that I strengthen this knee and reduce this instability (if possible) as my future (and dream) career may well depend on it. Can anyone suggest what I should be doing to focus on it? I currently run 3-4 times a week, 2 interval sprint sessions, 1 medium run (3-6miles) and 1 long one 10+ miles. Should I keep this up or focus more on knee/leg exercises.

Any help is GREATLY appreciated and sorry for the huge post, just thought i'd give as much infor as possible.

Thanks,

Neil

hi
I WOULD SUGGEST strnthening exercise for knee hips calvs.
2sets 8-12 reps
2 sets 1-4 reps sub maximal weight
2 sets over 100% max- mean eccentric contaction.

for proprioceptive develpement session on the vibrogym/power plate

all the best

Hey,
Unfortunately if the original injury did cause an injury to the PCL (or other ligament) you are likely to have some residual laxity in that ligament, which can't be changed and therefore on testing will always show up as some instability for that knee. However, these tests are designed to isolate those structures without the dynamic stabilisers being involved i.e the muscles around the knee, so when you take into consideration the overall stability of your knee including structural (ligaments, capsule, meniscus etc) and dynamic stabilisers, it sounds like your knee is already very stable taking in to consideration the activities you are and have been undertaking without any symptoms!
So it's just a case of maintaining the dynamic stabilisers as best you can, so I agree with the other post about strengthening the gluts, h/s, quads and calves. I would suggest also looking a lot at your core stability such as pilates exercises as these play an important role in lower limb stability. Strengthening should concentrate on concentric and eccentric strength and shouldnt just be using gym equipment as this doesnt reflect dynamic activities, so lots of plyometric exercsies aswell would be good!
Hope this gives you some ideas, any questions feel free to pm me!
Glenn

A good stability programme for the knee will include lots of muscle strengthening in a closed chain ie where there is load going through the leg. Slow controlled step downs building up reps to the point of fatigue.

Lots of balance activities

Your knee sounds quite functional so you can push the strengthening quite hard however you should avoid exercises where there are large shear forces through your knee eg heavy weights strapped onto the front of your knee and straightening your knee.

Keep in mind that even with all the good work and no symptoms the instability tests may still be positive because the PCL will not actually shorten. What you want to happen is that the muscle action stabilises the knee actively and that the muscles do not get fatigued too quickly.

Sounds quite achievable form what you have described.

These are the some tips to improve your knee stability..

If you are suffering from severe knee arthritis your first instinct will be to cut back on the activities that seem to aggravate the pain in the knee. In fact your doctor will advise you to take the elevator instead of the stairs and to avoid going on long, brisk walks or carrying heavy loads.

On the flip side, however, you cannot really afford to become totally inactive as this could cause other problems. Treating this condition effectively requires you to remaining as active as possible, so that you do not gain weight or worsen your overall health condition.

On the other hand try using a knee brace for excersize to your knee...
Get well soon dude..

Hi

I agree with all responses. The running programme or runner's knee programme (patellofemoral syndrome) on this website has some good stability exercises.

Rehabilitate prevent perform physiofixme

I personally would like to suggest some...one way to deal with knee pain, or knee instability is to take rest.It's really a nice idea and helpful.The other is.....
Mild Knee Braces-usually made from elastic. They are made from neoprene and are usually made in a sleeve like design, or a wrap around style. These supports will help to act as a reminder for you not to make certain and painful movements. The extra support can help to reduce your knee pain.