Pain Free Knees
How to build strong & stable knees that last decades
Knee pain. UGH! 😩
It’s one of the most common frustrations I hear from the women I coach—and it can quietly start limiting how you move, exercise, and enjoy everyday life.
But here’s the GOOD NEWS:
✨ Knee pain isn’t automatically just “part of getting older!”
While arthritis, previous injuries, and other joint issues can contribute to the pain, the most often-overlooked factors are MUSCLE & TENDON WEAKNESS.
When the muscles supporting your knees aren’t doing their job effectively and your tendons are weak,
everyday movements like climbing stairs, squatting, or even walking can become more challenging and painful.
This actually means your knees aren’t doomed.
✨Muscle and tendon strength is something you CAN improve! 💪
This week let’s explore how to give your knees the support they deserve.
The key to fat loss in midlife is to clearly understand the major contributing factors:
Why This Matters
Knee pain doesn’t just affect your knees—it can limit your FREEDOM. When pain causes you to move less, you may gradually lose strength, mobility, and confidence through your entire body. Strengthening the muscles that support your knees can help break that cycle and keep you moving for years to come!
FITNESS SIMPLIFIED
Muscle and tendon weakness can be a major contributor to knee pain. So what your knees REALLY need is strong support from all directions!
Fitness Tip to Relieve Knee Pain
Move and Strengthen (Don’t Avoid!)
Your glutes, hamstrings, quads, inner and outer thighs—even your core—all play a role in supporting healthy knee movement.
To build stronger, more comfortable knees, focus on TWO things:
👉 Move with good alignment: Keep your knees generally tracking in line with your toes during squats, lunges, and other movements. (Caving inward or outward as you step or bend down can make your tendons cranky.)
👉 Strengthen your knee support system: Build strength in the muscles and tendons surrounding your knees, hips, and trunk.
You have to make your knees work.
Placing them under appropriate and controlled demands gives your tendons and muscles a reason for the tissues to remodel and grow stronger.
When the structures around your knees all start working together and can handle your everyday loads better, you’ll experience greater control and less pain.
Watch this video below for simple knee exercises to get you started. 👇
3 Simple Knee Strengthening Exercises
- Straight Leg Raises (15 reps/side): Flex your foot toward you to activate your quads, then slowly lift your leg.
- Bear Crawl (10 reps): On all fours, lift knees off floor to hover and brace your core. For more challenge try cycling through lifting one limb at a time.
- Banded Chair Squats (10 reps): Keep gentle outward pressure against the band as you sit your hips back toward the chair. Only lower as far as feels comfortable.
Extra Tip: For the best results for your knees, combine these strengthening exercises with a quad stretch, a hip flexor stretch and a calf stretch.
Did You Know...
- Women undergo more knee replacements than men! In the U.S., knee replacements are also more common than hip replacements, with women accounting for roughtly 60% of knee procedures.
- Knee arthritis is incredibly common. Nearly 1 in 2 adults may develop symptomatic knee osteoarthritis during their lifetime.
- Your knees are meant to BEND. Regularly moving through a comfortable range of motion—including deeper bends as tolerated—helps maintain strength and mobility and supports everyday function.
NUTRITION SIMPLIFIED
Improving your nutrition doesn’t require changing EVERYTHING at once—sometime the smallest additions make the biggest difference!
Nutrition Tip of the Week
Add, Don’t Overhaul
Going ALL-IN on a new eating plan can feel exciting!
Until it becomes overwhelming, exhausting, and nearly impossible to maintain. 😩
Instead of focusing on everything you need to eliminate or change, try a more positive approach:
✨ Don’t overhaul—just ADD!✨
Look at what you’re already doing and find one small way to make it better.
💧 Drink one more glass of water.
🥕 Add one extra serving of colorful vegetables.
🥩 Include more PROtein with your breakfast.
These little additions might not seem like much, but they build momentum and create habits that actually STICK.
Because better nutrition isn’t about doing everything perfectly.
It’s about consistently doing something GOOD for your body.
Here’s a base recipe that’s my go-to breakfast—and it’s so versitile! Add ham or different veggies, the possibilities are endless.
Megan’s Signature Egg Scramble
More Ideas to Eat MORE
- Add two handfuls of mixed berries and a spoonful of raw pumpkin seeds to your Greek yogurt.
- For your lunchtime salad, add one fist-sized amount of cucumber, shredded carrots, and tomatoes to your mixed greens, along with a full can of tuna.
- Around your dinner PROtein of choice, add a fist-sized amount of roasted veggies, half an avocado and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar for a flavor boost.
MINDSET SIMPLIFIED
When something hurts, it’s tempting to either push through the pain or stop moving altogether—but there’s a better way.
The key? Take an ACTIVE role in getting better!
Neither ignoring it or waiting for it to heal on its own ever works.
For many common aches and pains, consistent strength and mobility exercises (along with good, adequate nutrition) can make a BIG difference. Probably far more than you realize.
Sometimes healing also requires guidance from a physical therapist, medical treatment, or other interventions.
But whatever your path looks like, stay engaged.
Ask questions.
Explore solutions.
Make adjustments.
And give your body the time and support it needs.
Don’t just wait for things to improve—take an active role in helping them improve!
Mindset Tip of the Week
Be an Active Participant in Your Healing Process
THE TAKEAWAY
The knee pain (or any kind of pain!) doesn’t have to define what your body is capable of. Improving how you feel and function isn’t about finding a quick fix or doing everything perfectly—it’s about making thoughtful, consistent choices that support your body. Small steps taken TODAY can make a BIG difference in how confidently you move and live tomorrow!
- Move and Strengthen (Don’t Avoid!)
- Add, Don’t Overhaul
- Be an Active Participant in Your Healing
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Self Care Simplified podcast
SELF CARE SIMPLIFIED PODCAST EP 249 Achy Knees? Building Strong & Pain-Free Knees as You Age
SELF CARE SIMPLIFIED PODCAST EP 372 How to Reduce Knee Pain & Build Healthy Knees for Life
SELF CARE SIMPLIFIED PODCAST EP 397 How to Manage Joint Pain & Inflammation in Midlife
SPECIAL RESOURCE
Feel ready to give your knee more focused attention and strength? Try this 10-minute routine with me! It’s filled with movements that are targeted for beginners and proven to build strength.
10-Minute Knee Strengthening Routine for Beginners
Until next week... Be strong
