The patella is a vital part of your knee. It's a bone that covers the area where your femur in your upper leg meets your tibia and fibula bones in your lower leg. The most common conditions affecting the patella happen when the patella is no longer tracking properly in the groove along your femur. You can avoid this by strengthening the muscles that support the patella with leg curls.
How It Helps
The patella is supported by the quadriceps and the hamstrings. The quadriceps are a group of muscles in the front of your thigh. The hamstrings are a group of muscles in the back of your thigh. When these muscles are strong, they are able to better stabilize the knee cap and absorb the shock and stress you place on your knee joint. Doing leg curls will strengthen the hamstrings and help them do their job as efficiently as possible.
Standing Leg Curls
There are two types of leg curls. One is done standing and one is done lying down. To do a standing leg curl at home, stand behind a chair with your legs together. Raise your right foot behind you toward your buttocks so that your shin is parallel to the ground. Hold it for 3 seconds, then lower your leg. Repeat the exercise on the other leg. Do two sets of ten repetitions on each leg. Add ankle weights to make the leg curls more challenging.
Lying Leg Curls
To do lying leg curls at home, wear ankle weights and either lie on the floor or on a stability ball. For the floor, lie on your stomach with your legs straight out behind you and your head face-down resting on your arms. Flex your feet and then bring them to your buttocks. Hold the position for a few seconds, then lower your legs back to the floor and straighten your legs by going up on your toes. Do two sets of 20 repetitions. For a stability ball, lie on the ball with your stomach down. Reach your arms to the floor for support. Keep your legs straight behind you with your feet flexed and your toes touching the floor. Now bring one foot up to your buttocks, hold it for a few seconds and then lower your leg. Repeat the curl with the other leg. Do two sets of ten repetitions.
Considerations
You can do leg curls on exercise equipment at the gym with a trainer if you prefer not to do them at home. Remember that it is equally important to stretch your hamstrings after you strengthen them. Stretching will keep your muscles long and flexible and will prevent injury. It is also important to strengthen and stretch your quadriceps for optimum patella support, since both muscle groups support the knee.
Member Comments