lower body workout for someone with somewhat bad knees

[frank13]

in real need of a lower body/ leg workout routine for someone with troublesome knees need to workout legs but every time i do leg press or squats the next day sucks seen doc he said to do a lower impact workout but Im having a hard time putting one together i would just go balls to the wall but still have to get to work the next day so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated thanks

[max2extreme]

I've had 3 knee surgeries.. I know where you're comin from. Do you do full squats? If so, try partials and lower weight, prob best on smith machine if have access. Fulls are very hard on knees. Same with partial leg press. Step-ups are good, but never lunges. Leg extensions are hard on my knees too, but its very important for those with bad knees to strengthen their quads, so I lower weight and do what i can.. I've pretty much given into the fact that I will never have powerful legs again. So I do what I can to not have chicken legs with big upper body. Injury? or just bad knees?

[dec11]

its a toughie but as pointed out, avoid extensions and lunges and do not go near a hack squat. you might have to face the fact that legs are out. can you be more specific on the injury?

[frank13]

just bad knees as of right now. I've always had to deal with fluid in the knee witch causes swelling and stiffness it doesn't help that i work on the ground either. I"m OK if i only do one or the other so right now i just want to try to keep my legs in shape without killing myself . i was trying to get a cortisone shots but my doc really wants me to wait as long as possible

[Bill_boy2005]

Same here. Had a lateral meniscus tear last year. After that my pain free range of motion is drastically reduced. I do smith machine half squats. Stopping about 5 degrees before pain. Also do a leggpress machine that keeps me in a comfortable position. I do about 65% of my old orm. And do sets if 40 or 50 to pump my quads solid. Im a runner so I am not really shooting for massive legs. It works well for me.

Talk to a physical therapist. They can set you up with some good knee strengthening exercises. That made a huge difference for me.

[terraj]

In the worst case...... Can you deadlift? Deads will keep your lower body powerful. Try to stay away from cortisone shots

[Bill_boy2005]

just bad knees as of right now. I've always had to deal with fluid in the knee witch causes swelling and stiffness it doesn't help that i work on the ground either. I"m OK if i only do one or the other so right now i just want to try to keep my legs in shape without killing myself . i was trying to get a cortisone shots but my doc really wants me to wait as long as possible

Cortisone is great at hiding pain. But if your tearing something up you need to know it. Avoid it as much as you can. I did two after me knee surgery. But have not had any since. I do have them drain my knee after my long runs. Otherwise it feels unstable. Usually 3-4 oz of fluid in it.