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I can't tell you how many times I've worked with a client who has bad knees.  By now, I hope you've heard me say it enough that exercises like squats and lunges are some of the best types of exercises to do to burn off fat.  But what happens when your knees won't allow it?  Are there any ways to get around bad knees, but still be able to work on the lower body?  The answer is yes.

Before we get into lower body exercises to do, I first want to get into upper body exercises to do.  Your upper body is pain free, so you need to use that to your advantage.  When I have clients with bad knees, I throw in lower body exercises from time to time, but since their upper body is OK, that's what we stick with most of the time.  The important thing is to create circuit-type workouts that keep your upper body challenged during the entire workout.  I might have a client do a row exercise, straight into a chest exercise, and back to a row.  Or, if I'm in a gym, I may have a client do an upper body exercise, and then hop on a stationary bike, an elliptical, or a treadmill ... whichever their knees can handle.  I would have them do a short 30-second or so burst on this machine and come back for another round of the upper body exercise.  Whatever upper body exercises you do, make sure you have a general idea of what your workout is going to be because you want to make sure that you don't have a break in between wondering what to do next.

As far as lower body exercises go, we know that squats and lunges are out, so it's time to improvise.  If you have access to weight machines, there's always the option of hopping on one of those, but I like to stay away from machines for the most part.  Another option is to use a step.  Now I know that steps are painful most of the time, but the steps you want to create barely come off the ground.  Exercise steps, you know, those green or purple steps you can buy at any store with a fitness section, are perfect for these exercises.  There are all kinds of exercises to do with a step.  You can do balance exercises, side step ups, backward step ups, forward steps ups, you can add in shoulder presses, curls, raises, etc. with your step ups.  Like I said, an exercise step is a great option to incorporate into your workout.  Another great mode of exercise is using resistance/exercise tubes.  I love these little things because they're extremely versatile.  You can tie a big knot in it and wedge it under the door, or you can tie it around a pole.  Once you do one of these, you can then tie the other end around your foot and start doing different leg exercises like bringing your knee to your chest, leg extensions, leg curls, leg kickbacks, leg holds with the tube tight, raising your leg out to the side or bringing it across your body.  To incorporate a step into your exercise, you can place a step on top of the tube, and do different exercises while lying down on the tube.  You can do different leg holds, leg raises, Butt Blaster-type exercises (kneeling on the ground and pushing your foot up toward the ceiling), etc.  You need to be careful with these exercises, though, so make sure the tube is actually secure under the step so that it doesn't snap up and hit you.

So my suggestions, if you do have bad knees and want to lose weight, are make sure your calorie intake and eating habits are where they need to be.  Incorporate step exercises and resistance tube exercises into your workouts.  Make sure you maximize your effort with upper body exercises.  Have your workouts planned out.  Keep your intensity level up throughout your workouts.  If you don't have any health issues that would prevent you from doing circuit training, then do circuit training, and make sure you find some method of cardio you can do (i.e. bike, walk, row machine, etc.).  If you can incorporate these different techniques into your workouts, your bad knees shouldn't be what stops you from staying healthy and fit.  As always, though, these are just suggestions.  Make sure you get your doctor's approval before trying any of these exercise, as they may not be appropriate for your level of knee problems.

Dan Falkenberg, BA, ACE-CPT, NASM-PES

Dan Falkenberg is the cofounder of Your Live Trainers.  He can be reached at DanFalkenberg.com.

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Tags: exercise safety, exercise selection, weight loss