Before, only adults experience bad knees, but not anymore. Today, even young persons are experiencing the same problem. Bad knees have physical and psychological effects that may affect your day-to-day works.

High-impact exercises such as running and jogging can be counterproductive if you have bad knees. Luckily, there are still certain exercises that help in reducing and preventing knee pain. But aside from that, there are exercise machines that you can use if you are suffering from any type of knee pain. Read Here: Is Spinning Bad For Your Knees? All You Need To Know!

Truth be told, exercising with bad knees is not easy and could be a real pain. Seeing other people have fun exercising and knowing you cannot do the same thing can be frustrating and depressing. Read Here: 15 Big Mistakes You’re Making on the Treadmill

To help you in achieving your fitness without making worsening the condition of your knees, in this article we have compiled the best exercise machines for bad knees. In addition to that, we will also include the best exercises for bad knees.

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Best Exercise Machines for Bad Knees

best exercises machines for bad knees

ROWING MACHINE

This exercise machine can offer strength-building as well as cardiovascular benefits. If you want to use a rowing machine, you will need to strap in your feet. Then, you’ll sit on a seat that is moving forward and backward on the railing. After that, you need to grab on a bar situated near your feet and pull the bar toward your stomach while pushing with your feet and outspreading your back.

The vast majority of rowing machines today come with a resistance setting that will increase the chain’s friction connected to the bar. It will also force you to utilize your upper body. Read Here: 5 Best Home Gyms of 2020 However, in the case of outdated rowing machines you need to set them before you start exercising, unlike the newer ones, you can adjust the resistance by just pressing a button.

ELLIPTICAL MACHINE

If you want to try a low-impact and a full-body workout then an elliptical machine is perfect for you. This one of the best exercise machines for bad knees are perfect for adults and people who experience shin splits while exercising.

Unlike treadmills, ellipticals are much better on the knees and joints. What’s more, an elliptical machine is best suited for people who prefer upright exercises.

On the other hand, the movements you will need to do when using an elliptical machine are a cross between running, walking, and biking. It means you’ll need to use your legs in order to thrust movement.

This exercise machine will also give a great workout for the arms that are considered the subordinate force in the movement by helping the dynamo of the exercise. Read Here: Top 5 Best Elliptical Under 1000

By the way, if your elliptical machine comes with a preset workout program, don’t use anything that features differing speed and resistance. Keep in mind that changes when it comes to the difficulty level of workout might be too abrupt for the knees to handle. Take note, this will make fall off the elliptical machine, thus you end up hurting yourself.

RESISTANCE TRAINING MACHINES

This exercise machine will allow you to work on your leg muscles as well as the lower body without harming your knees. Before you perform an exercise, for example, a leg extension or leg curls, make sure to adjust the weights.

A leg extension will work the quadriceps that are located on the front of the legs. Whereas the leg curl will work the hamstring muscles on the rear part of your legs. You can perform it by lying on your stomach. Also, you can seat on your back but make sure it is supported by the resistance training machine. Read Here: Top 5 Best Power Rack

When exercising, you need to start with a lightweight and then work your way up to a heavier weight gradually. By doing this, you are certain that you will not strain your knees.

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STATIONARY BIKE

One of the best exercise machines for those who are recovering from knee surgery or with a previous knee injury is the stationary bike. The huge majority of gyms today provide an upright bike or a recumbent bike. If you are just starting out, a recumbent bike is ideal for you, this is because it’s in a reclining position. 

An upright bike, on the other hand, is set up like mountain bikes. It means, it will force you to sit up, by means of your core muscles as you bike. Similar to a rowing machine, a stationary bike comes with a resistance setting that will allow you to elevate the friction on the pedal.

Usually, stationary bikes come with a strap on the pedal. As a piece of advice, avoid using it so that your feet will be able to naturally moving during workouts. Not only that, but you can also easily step on the ground which will prevent you from falling off. Read Here: Top 5 Best Spinning Bike To ensure that you will not strain your knees when exercising using this machine, don’t exercise at high rhythms. If possible, use between 80 and 100 RPMs.

TREADMILL

If your knee or ankle joints have an arthritis-related problem or injury, you should not be tempted to jog and run on a treadmill. But it is alright to walk at inclines. Walking on a treadmill may prove to be an excellent aerobic exercise without disturbing your joint pains as well as problems.

One of the best things about walking on this exercise machine compared to walking in the park is that the surface of the treadmill is uniform and even throughout your walk. This will prevent unexpected inclines and bumps that are not good for the joints. Read Here: Best Treadmill Machines For Walking

When using a treadmill, you should avoid choosing pre-programmed exercises that have changed in the difficulty of the workout. You need to select one that comes with uniform difficulty levels. Though you can also use manual programs in which you have full control over the incline settings and speeds all the time.

It is crucial that you make changes gradually and slowly so that your body will have the opportunity to adjust. One more thing, don’t program something that you can’t handle. Read Here: Top 10 Best Treadmills Under $1000

LEG PRESS MACHINE

You may possibly have bad knees, but that does not necessarily mean that you will not be able to things that you’re doing before.

A leg press machine is one of the most common equipment in the gym that helps in building key muscles in the legs. This exercise machine is available in two different types – a 45-degree leg press and standard horizontal leg press. Both leg machines can be utilized to develop the hamstrings and quadriceps of the gluteus as well as thigh.

Though it looks like a simple exercise, it is important that you use it properly to avoid any problem. By considering your form, you will be able to make the most of the strength building advantages and prevent knee injuries. Read Here: Top 5 Best Leg Extension

Further, when using this machine, try no lift more than the weight you can. If you do this, you will end up putting too much strain on your knees. Lastly, your head must be steady and comfortably laid contrary to the seatback.

EXERCISE MACHINES THAT YOU NEED TO AVOID IF YOU HAVE BAD KNEES

If you have arthritis or some type of knee pain, doing exercise is highly recommended. This will help in bringing more nutrients to the cartilage and circulating the blood. With regards to fighting this kind of pain, doctors advise their patients to perform the long-term exercise.

However, it is worth mentioning that if there are best exercise machines there is also equipment that you need to avoid if you have bad knees like knee curl and knee extension machines.

KNEE CURL MACHINE

Knee curl machines come in a wide variety some may give better results while others don’t. In actual fact, this the main reason why you should avoid this exercise machine. In addition to that, keep in mind that various positions of movement will target various muscles and that usually, the stronger muscles will activate to make the movement that you want intervening with the smaller stabilizers. Without such certain angles, further imbalances will become inferior that may lead to knee pains.

KNEE EXTENSIONS

The pain in the knees isn’t always but frequently halted from a weak muscle that supports and supports the knee. It may seem logical to make use of a certain exercise machine in an effort to target a particular muscle for collection. But unfortunately, a knee extension muscle is not ideal to be used in this concern

Making adjustments are extremely important to consider your overall height and certain mechanics of your patella alignment and knee joint. Now that you have an idea about the worst and best exercise machines for bad knees, let’s take a look at the best exercises that you can do when you’re dealing with such pain.

BEST EXERCISES FOR BAD KNEES

best exercises machines for bad knees

SWIMMING

One of the best exercises that you can do if you have bad knees is swimming. In case you didn’t know it is a versatile and low-impact exercise that will help in burning more calories more rapidly.

However, when you are kicking, proper form is very crucial. Make sure your knees are not tensed. Keep in mind that frog kick, as well as other techniques that will put stress on your knees, should be avoided. What’s more, you need to avoid the pre-lap push-off the wall most especially the traditional ones.

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WALKING

Aside from swimming, you can also do walking if you’re suffering from knee pain. Walking is also a great and low-impact exercise that will work out your entire body. For beginners, it is best that they stick to smooth and flat surfaces. After a few minutes of walk, your muscles will be strengthened.

HALF-JACK

This exercise will use half of the movement of the standard jumping jack. In fact, a half-jack will help in getting rid of stress in the joint generated in the active phase. For this exercise, begin with your arms dangling and feet together. Then raise your arms to shoulder level.

After that, move your one foot forward to the side while sustaining your weight on your motionless leg. From there, move the weight to your foot to the side while bringing your eg. For your other leg, repeat the process. To prevent further knee injury and pain, make sure that you do a warm-up before starting an exercise. Here are some of the best warm-ups that you can do that will not strain your knees.

  • For 5 minutes, march around your home or in place
  • Stretch the muscles in the lower part of the body such as the quads, calves, and hamstrings.
  • Perform every exercise for about one minute, perform every exercise. If possible, make the range between 30 seconds to one minute for every exercise.

CONCLUSION

Keep in mind that the best exercise machine for bad knees will depend on your personal requirements and condition. When recovery, as well as injuries, are concerned, it is crucial that you take into account your individual specifications to make the best choice possible. However, if you cannot decide which one should you use most especially when you are recovering, it is best that you consult a physiotherapist.

Bear in mind that recovery is very important. That is why you need to make a plan that is right for you. Once settled, you can match it with one of the above-mentioned best exercise machines for bad knees. Nevertheless, in this article, we listed six machines that are your best choice for a piece of exercise equipment for your bad knees. These are the rowing machine, elliptical machine, resistant training machine, stationary bike, and leg press machine.

If you are suffering from arthritis or recovering from a knee injury, the above-mentioned equipment will help you stay in shape and active. But still, you need to be careful about your conditions as well as the symptoms of injury. You don’t need to hurry, instead take it slow and easy to avoid further problems.

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