Knees are one of the most important parts of the human leg that supports your body and helps in locomotion. It consists of bones, tendons, ligaments and cartilage. Knee injuries are common in sports and depending upon the severity of the injury, it usually takes 3 weeks to 6months for recovery. However, diseases like Arthritis, Osteoarthritis, Osteoporosis, Bursitis, Tendonitis or Obesity can also bring injuries to your knees leading to pain and immobility.
As knees are an essential locomotive organs and also prone to injuries or diseases, so it is important for you to take care of them and adopt some effective exercises as preventive measures. However, you can also prevent your knees from getting injured or speed up recovery of your already injured knees by practicing Yoga. Some of the Yoga Asanas or Yoga postures, if performed regularly with good alignment will not only restore flexibility in your joints but will also prevent your knees from getting injured in the future by strengthening your knee muscles. So, performing the following Yoga Poses can help your knees in getting stronger, more flexible and decrease injury proneness:
- The Corpse Pose or Savasana
The Corpse pose is a relaxation Yoga pose which is performed before or after practicing other Yoga Asanas to achieve relaxation of your mind, body and soul. Although it may look deceptively simple but it can be quite difficult to perform as it needs total coordination of your mind and body to attain complete relaxation.
- Wind relieving pose or Pavanamuktasana
This pose helps your knees and abdomen to become stronger and more flexible. It also helps your digestive system by driving out excess gas present in your stomach.
- Stand spread and leg forward fold
This pose helps in strengthening and stretching your spine and your back legs. If you find it difficult to perform with your free body, then you can use a folding chair as props for supporting your forearms. However, people suffering from lower back problems should not try this pose as it involves a full forward bend which can instead further aggravate your back problems.
- Cobra Pose or Bhujangasana
The Cobra pose mainly improves the flexibility of your spinal cord and also helps in strengthening the muscles present in your back and also in your arms. Besides this, it can also help you in getting relief from your constipation and in women, it can be very effective in curing your menstrual irregularities.
- Single Leg Raising pose
Like Pranayama or the breathing exercise, Single leg raising pose is also performed to prepare your body for practicing other Yoga Asanas. The abdominal muscles, lower back muscles and your leg muscles can benefit greatly from this Yoga pose. In this pose, you lie down on your back and lift one of your legs up to your head while the other one is still staying on the floor.