Leg strengthening for weak knees (for an older person)

[Rolling Thunder]

Hey guys! I hope everyone is having a good new year. I would just like to ask a few questions about some exercises my dad could do to strengthen his legs. Right now it's hard for him to squat with just the bar. The issue is in his knees. I know you can't "strengthen" the knee but the doctor said strengthening the muscles around it would help. Any suggestions would be really greatly appreciated.

Thanks guys,
Rolling thunder

 

[selfcritical]

Do you know what injury or condition your dad has? Did your doctor have any particular advice on which muscles to strengthen? Did he prohibit any ranges of motion?

 

[Rolling Thunder]

Hey thanks for the reply

No range of motion restriction according to the doc, and basically the doctor just said it was an aging thing. All he said was to try body weight exercises or very light weights. Didn't really specify what kind. He does bjj with me and does well even during stand up and take down practice so it's not like it's at a very bad stage. But only a few years ago he was able to squat and power clean with me without trouble or injury.I just wanna try to help him make sure it doesn't get worse or get injured. He says it doesn't hurt, it is just very weak.
Thanks for taking time to respond.

 

[redaxe]

For someone who isn't strong or flexible enough to perform weighted back squats I would first look into bodyweight squats and some variations using dumbbells, such as goblet squats, plie squats, and split squats/lunges.

And if he's able to do it without knee pain, I'd have him keep practicing back squatting with light weight on the bar, just to parallel at first and going deeper as his flexibility improves, making sure to keep the weight back on his heels, not forward on his toes. It might be a slow process.

 

[xilliun]

Joint problem or muscular weakness? From your second post I'm leaning towards some type of degenerative problem the knee ligaments, correct?

Redaxe has hit the nail on the head. Though if he's unable to do bodyweight squats I'd advise some type of weighted step up, knee extension or a leg press with a load sufficient enough to make it challenging, before progressing to squat/lunge variations.

 

[Rolling Thunder]

Ok guys thank you so much. Yeah I think it is the ligaments. I'll try and implement those with him. Thanks for taking the time to post. Happy training!

 

[ballhawkdawk]

Time to sign him up for one of them aquatic classes for geriatrics.

 

[xilliun]

Find a knowledgable and capable doctor for your dad instead of asking
the fuck twats on here.

These "fuck twats" have a knack for all things S&C, and many of those have studied it some point. I'd take exercise advice from an exercise physiologist over a doctor any day of the week.

Time to sign him up for one of them aquatic classes for geriatrics.

I went to one of those for my knee rehab... never went back. Being 30 years younger than the next person was off-putting.

 

[Obscure Terror]

Goblet squats to a box are pretty easy for a novice to get right to learn the mechanics and reinforce proper form. Do a fair few reps to force blood into the lower body then progress from there. Only issue I find is that because the weight is out front people can tend to bend over too much, you gotta cue chest up a lot.

Good knee sleeves such as Rehband's or Tommy Kono's would be a great and wise investment. Since using TK's my knees feel great when squatting and had no pain or clicking with them on. Just make sure you do your warmup while wearing them.

 

[ssdd]

My right acl is currently fully torn and I'm still able to do unweighted box squats down to parallel. Just make sure shins are vertical throughout the movement. I read a study that found the most sheer force on the ligaments was near lockout, so I personally keep my ROM from around 90

 

[Deleted member 382931]

A safe take would be some variation of sled pulls/drags, goblet and box squats.
Regress as far as needed and the slowly progress in ROM, instability and weight, in that order.

I'd really start with sled stuff (or any kind of weighted drag/carry) as these can be done by almost everyone and you have minimal eccentric loading.