How to Modify Common Yoga Poses for Knee Injuries
While yoga is an excellent form of gentle exercise for many people with limited physical capabilities, some poses can aggravate knee injuries. You can modify common yoga poses to be gentle on the knees and even aid in the healing process. The following modifications allow you to continue to practice yoga and gain beneficial rehabilitation from the gentle stretching involved.
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Instructions
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Try to avoid yoga poses that involve deep knee bending for as long as possible after sustaining an injury to the knee. Once your knee has mostly healed but is still sensitive, you can use the following tips and modified poses to begin easing yourself back into your normal yoga routine.
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Glance down at your knee and make sure it is aligned with the ankle when performing any standing yoga pose. Avoid open leg stances which pull the knee inward and destabilize the knee joint.
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Use props to support your weight when doing any balancing postures to prevent knee instability.
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Bend the knee at only a 45 degree angle rather than a 90 degree angle when doing poses such as the Warrior Pose. Slowly bend the knee a little more every time you perform yoga as your knee gets back to its normal healthy state.
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Perform the Chair Pose, which helps build strength in the knee muscles. Standing, raise your arms above your head with your fingers extended. Slowly ease yourself into a sitting position as if there is an invisible chair under you. Do not over extend your knees. You will have to ease your knees into a bent position very gently.
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Stretch the knee joints gently with the Child Pose. Sit on the ground with your bent legs tucked underneath you. Place a blanket between your buttocks and your calves to ease the tension on your knees. Slowly bend forward, allowing the weight of your body to draw you into the pose. Do not extend into the pose fully until your knees can stand the tension.
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Increase the strength in your hamstrings using the Paschimottosana pose, the Uttanasana and the Downward Facing Dog. Stronger hamstrings will give you the support you need to perform yoga, walk and achieve other daily tasks while your knees are healing.
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