Core, Hip, Knee Stability Exercises

by westcoastsciJan 9, 2018Exercises

4 best exercises for your core, hips and knees

Core, hip, and knee stability are crucial for many sports, injury prevention, and our daily mobility, but often neglected by most people. Most of our regular activities and workouts are not engaging the deep stabilizing muscles, and our joints are not reaching their full ranges of motion. Imagining what your shoulders mobility would be like if you are only moving them in two directions – that’s what a lot of us are doing with our hips. (Read more about core muscles)

When a muscle group is weak, its function will be compensated by other muscles such as quads and buttocks in this case, causing tightness, knots, and fatigue. You may also adapt to poor postures due to weakness. Both overusing muscles and improper alignment could lead to secondary injuries.

Core, hip, knee stability workouts can help to activate the deeper muscles, make joints reach a full range of motion, to prevent injuries. With strengthened and balanced stabilizing muscles, joints are better supported, ligaments and cartilage are taking less pressure. Support from the muscles also makes maintaining proper alignment during movements easier, prevents overuse injuries, and can reduce hip, groin, and knee pain(click to see how knee pain is treated at Westcoast SCI) caused by poor alignment.

Single leg partial squat exercise with overhead movement can improve your core, hip stability significantly once you can make sure you’re keeping your knee and spine straight during the process. For beginners, try with no weight to start.

Swiss ball rollout is a moderate to advanced exercise. It challenges your core and hip stability because you’ll need to maintain a straight line of your body from head to knees.

Superman plank works similarly, maintaining balance and posture will put pressure on your hip and core stabilizers. If it’s too hard for you, start with raising one hand or one leg each time.

Copenhagen side plank and side plank with leg raise work the core muscles, inner and outer thighs. As we are always moving or legs back and forth, it’s good to add some side movements to your workout routine. Always keep your posture in mind while doing these exercises, the goal is to engage the deep muscles, neutral positions will make this process easier.

Always remember to consult your healthcare professional before trying at home, visit us for the routine that works best for you. Thanks for reading, good luck!