Be nice to your knees: if you want to keep running, jumping and lifting, do your knees a favor and follow this preventive program

Muscle & Fitness/Hers, May-June, 2003 by Erinn Morgan

single-leg balance

Standing on one leg, slowly move the opposite leg up and back behind you. Add a stretch to this exercise by grabbing the raised foot with the hand on the same side. Hold for 10 seconds and switch legs. Repeat 10 times on each side. Once this has become easy, try holding the pose for up to 60 seconds. Advanced exercisers can work on performing single-leg squats while balancing on one leg.

cool-down

hamstring stretch

Stand facing a wall, step or block. Place one foot with toe turned up and heel on floor either against the wall or on top of the step or block. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds, then switch feet. Repeat five times on each side.

heel cord (achilles) stretch

Face a wall, place your hands on the wall, and move one foot forward with your toe against the wall. Place your other foot back about two feet and feel the stretch through the back of your heel and calf. Hold for 30 seconds and switch feet. Repeat five times on each side.

Special thanks to John Garrett, MD, his book Knee Pain: The Self-Help Guide, and Dave Lacy, certified athletic trainer with Sierra Sports and Physical Therapy in Truckee, California, for assistance with this program.

RELATED ARTICLE: Bouncing Back: The Lisa Reed Story

This IFBB fitness pro has had a love/hate relationship with her knees. But Lisa Reed is an inspiration to all female athletes for coming back into the spotlight after several surgeries and long months of rehabilitation.

"In 1989, when I was a junior in high school and competing in gymnastics, I tore my ACL doing a dismount off the bars," says Lisa, who's currently the director of strength and conditioning at the National Cathedral School, a private girls' academy in Washington, D.C. After going through surgery and six months of rehab, she began competing once again. Unfortunately, her knee troubles were not over.

Lisa tore the same ACL in 1992 during gymnastics training. Even though she went through another surgery and rehab to strengthen the ailing joint, her hopes of being a competitive gymnast were permanently derailed.

Remaining optimistic about fitness, Lisa pursued other avenues, becoming an assistant strength and conditioning coach for the U.S. Naval Academy and then the performance coach for tennis pro Monica Seles. In the midst of her busy career, Lisa managed to compete in several fitness competitions, eventually earning her IFBB pro card. She placed 14th in the 2002 Fitness Olympia.

Today, Lisa continues to streng-then her knees through specific exercises. "Squats have helped me tremendously," she says. "They improve everything--the quads, hamstrings, and so on. I stretch after every set, making sure my flexibility is good throughout the workout." She also recommends a proper warm-up, so you're not lifting with a cold muscle.

Lisa advocates staying positive if an injury or chronic knee pain does occur. "I do different workouts to keep the rest of my body in shape," she says. "When I was rehabbing my knees, I worked on my upper body. When I broke my arm, I would do cardio on the machines I could use."