The medical term used for knock knees is Genu Valgum. This is a bone deformity, in which your knees will touch each other when you stand straight and your ankles are more apart than usual. If a child has knock knees, the condition is rarely treated because most of the times it gets rectified with growth. If an adult has knock knees or the condition is severe in a child, there are some exercises and other ways to help strengthen and stabilize the knee joint. Let’s find out more about how to correct knock knees.

Exercises to Correct Knock Knees

With the following exercises, knock knees can be corrected. Make sure to do some warm up exercises, such as walking or cycling, before doing any of these.
1

Straight Leg Lift

Lie down on your back with left leg straight out along the exercise mat and your right knee bent with the foot flat on the floor. Tighten your thigh muscles and lift it for about a foot high from the ground. Hold it there for five seconds and make sure you do not arch or lift your back. Bring it down and repeat with the other leg. This exercise is very good to strengthen thigh muscles which help support your knee joints.

2

Wall Squats

Wall squats is an easy exercise that you can do when considering how to correct knock knees at home. Stand straight with your feet shoulder width apart and your back against a wall. Now bend your knees to a squatting position. Make sure that your knees are in line with your toes. Do a 90 degree squat but do not go lower than that. Keep your tummy sucked in and hold the position for five to ten seconds. Then resume the starting position. You can increase the time of holding the squat gradually.

3

Hamstring Curls

To perform hamstring curls, stand behind a chair or any piece of furniture and hold it. Put your weight on your right leg and stand on your toes. Now lift the left heel towards your buttocks. Hold for five seconds and then bring it back to the resting position. Repeat 10 curls on each leg. Make sure only to use your hamstrings while you lift your legs.

4

Knee Press

If you are searching about ways on how to correct knock knees, this exercise is really beneficial. To perform the knee press, sit on the floor or a bench with your one leg stretched in front of you. Roll a towel and place it under one of your knee. Press it down with your knee and hold for three to five seconds. Repeat a few times on both legs.

5

Side Lunges

Side lunge is a great exercise to strengthen the abductors, quadriceps and hamstrings, all of which can support the knee joint. When performing this exercise, stand with your feet shoulder width apart and your arms in front of your chest. Move your left leg laterally like you are taking a big step on that side and bend your knee. And when your foot touches the ground, push back on your butt. There will be a feeling of stretch in your hip and the other thigh. Get back to the starting position and do ten to twelve repeats on each side.

6

Side Step-Ups

You need a chair or a weight bench to do this exercise. Keep your right foot on the bench and lift your left leg up until your right leg is straight. Balance your weight on the foot placed on the chair or the bench. Do 10 to 12 reps for each side. For added resistance you can use a medicine ball.

7

Cable Abduction

You need a cable machine to perform this exercise. Attach an ankle cuff at a low setting and fasten it around your lower left leg. Stand with the weight stack facing your right shoulder. Lift the left leg up, laterally, as high as possible. Then slowly bring it down, repeat for ten to fifteen times on both sides.

8

Lying Abduction

Lying abduction is done from a side-lying position. Lie down on your side on the floor. If you are lying on your left side, move your right leg upwards. Bring it to 45 degrees from the floor and hold for a few seconds. Then bring it back and repeat for fifteen times on both sides.

9

Wall Abductor Squeeze

An exercise ball is required for this exercise. Stand against a wall with your left side towards it. Hold the exercise ball against the wall at stomach height. Bend your left knee and bring it up till your thigh is parallel to the floor. Now press on the ball with the bent knee. Hold for a couple of seconds and repeat. Do it with the other leg as well.

Surgical Correction of Knock Knees

There are many successful strategies to correct knock knees. Most of the times, exercises are enough but if the condition is very severe, surgery can be performed. There are two types of operations which can be performed:

  • Guided Growth: In this procedure, small metal plates are placed inside the knees to control and guide bone growth in correct direction. These can be removed after the deformity is corrected. The whole process takes around one year.

  • Osteotomy: In this procedure, a small wedge of bone is excised and the knee is aligned correctly. Then the bone is fixed with plates and screws.

Both of them are major surgical procedures and are performed under general anesthesia. For children the guided growth option is more suitable because the bones are still in growing stage. The surgery is only recommended when the condition is extremely severe and persistent. For adults an osteotomy is preferred.

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