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9 Best Leg/Knee Injury Workouts on YouTube

If you’re recovering from a leg injury or looking to strengthen your knees, these are the nine best leg and knee injury workouts on YouTube. These workouts will prevent stiffness, build strength, increase blood flow and boost your heart rate while recovering from an injury.

Woman lying on her back performing a single leg glute bridge as part of mat workout when recovering from a knee injury.


 

Stay strong and healthy while recovering from an injury with these leg and knee injury workouts.

If you are recovering from a leg/knee injury that requires surgery (like me), or have knee pain and are looking for a workout that challenges you, I’ve rounded up my top knee and leg friendly workouts at home.

It is important to keep moving when recovering from a knee injury to prevent stiffness, reduce knee pain, increase blood  circulation, improve flexibility and strengthen your knees. Strengthening the muscles around your knee joints like your collateral ligaments and patellar tendon can help reduce the risk of injuries in the future too.

Most of these free knee friendly workouts require a chair/bench, set of medium-to-heavy dumbbells, and mini loop resistance band

Women doing a lower body exercises by sitting on a box with knees shoulder width distance apart a mini loop resistance band performing a squat abduction during a workout with a knee injury.

Knee/Leg Friendly Workouts At Home FAQs

Should I Exercise With An Injured Knee?

Rest is extremely important, especially in the early stages of an injury; but once you are cleared by your doctor, exercise can actually speed up recovery from a knee injury. Begin with one of our Leg/Knee Injury Workouts or Seated Workouts. You will need to be careful when performing weight-bearing exercises and avoid high-impact workouts to help you knee fully recover.

How Can I Stay in Shape With Knee Injury?

Recovering from a knee injury or experiencing knee pain can be a slow process. For those who were active prior to their knee injury, it can be frustrating to find a workout routine. But there are several ways you can stay active, with Chair/Mat Workouts and Upper Body Strength Training.

What Cardio Can I Do With Knee/Leg Injury?

While it may be challenging to imagine performing cardio exercises without putting stress on your knee joint, there are several cardio activities that are knee friendly. An exercise that speeds up your heart and breathing is a good cardio workout. Both upper body strength training workouts and chair workouts are cardio workouts you can do when recovering from a knee or leg injury that will raise your heart rate.

What Are Common Injuries To The Knees?

Common knee injuries include sprains, acute injuries, tears of soft tissues (meniscus tear, anterior cruciate ligament (acl) or posterior cruciate ligament). These can be caused by overuse injuries or sports injuries. Call your doctor and seek care if you are unable to bear weight on your knee or feel as if your knee is unstable, and if you are experiencing pain and swelling.

9 Best Workouts for Knee/Leg Injury

1. 30-Minute Full Body Workout for Knee Injury

2. 30-Minute Full Body Mat Workout

3. 20-Minute Seated Cardio and Core Workout

  • Equipment: Chair or Box/Bench.
  • Workout Focus: Cardio and Core

4. 5-Minute Seated Abs

  • Equipment: Chair or Box/Bench.
  • Workout Focus: Core

5. 30-Minute Seated Intense Arm Workout

6. 5-Minute Seated Abs

  • Equipment: Medium-to-Heavy Set of Dumbbells and Chair/Bench.
  • Workout Focus: Core

7. 30-Minute Chair Workout

8. 5 Best Knee Strengthening Exercises

  • Equipment: No Equipment Needed (Bodyweight Only). Option to add a chair/countertop to hold on to for balance support.
  • Workout Focus: Knee Strength

9. 10 Minute Rehab for Meniscus Tear

Women in a blue tank top seated on a box using a resistance band to work her upper body.

Find These Workouts On YouTube

youtube icon YouTube Playlist

Looking for more leg/knee injury exercises? Try our live-streamed chair workouts on YouTube!

Equipment: Medium-to-Heavy Dumbbells, Chair/Bench and optional Mini Loop Resistance Band.

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2 comments
  1. This is exactly where I’m at! I’m waiting on mri results, but my doctor thinks I have a partial tear in my right quadriceps tendon. It’s so frustrating! I was feeling like I was ready to level up to some heavier dumbbells for my legs. 😞 Now I can’t bend my knee. As annoying as it is, I’ve taken a lot of encouragement from watching you come back from a serious knee injury. I keep hearing you in my head saying, “You were made to do hard things.” So I’ve decided to take this time to work towards my first pull up. I’ll for sure be using this playlist to keep myself moving. Thank you for sharing all of your workouts and knowledge for FREE! NML is such a blessing. ❤️

    • Morgan! I’m so sorry! Injuries and setbacks are NEVER easy to navigate (such a physical and mental challenge). Praying you don’t need surgery and things can heal with some rest…and I LOVE your attitude about using this time to work on pull ups. That’s exactly what I did! You got this!! -Lindsey