Right now I have a friend who is going out for volleyball, and the doctor said she has to get a lot more knee muscle if she wants to play.  Now she will not step foot into a fitness center (even though the one in our town is free), And I'm basically just wondering if this will affect her in volleyball.  Like me, she is 14, and I think she said she was around 18% body fat, 5'3 and I'm guessing about 125 pounds (roughly)... Now I have been squatting and doing lunges and running for a while, so i think my knees are fine, but i am not sure about hers. The doctor specifically said "You need to gain a lot more knee strength if you want to play this year."  What can she do if she wont go into the gym (she already has been biking but im not sure how long how far and how vigorously), and if she doesn't get the strength what are the consequences?  For some reason the doctor signed the form so she is going to play, even if she shouldnt.

I tore my MCL a few years ago (I just HAD to win in a judo match against someone a lot bigger than me) and the physical therapist had me do specific knee exercises. These can all be done at home.

Leg extensions--Scooby has a video here, at the end he shows how you can do them at home --->

Leg Extensions	LQ | LQ+ | HQ

Scooby shows how to do them at home with dumbbells, but for improving her knee strength, she won't need very heavy weight. I'd recommend that she buy ankle weights, maybe 2 or 2.5 lbs. each, and do leg extensions with those. **HIGH REPS** 

Skateboard squats or my version, playground ball squats, are also good. She needs to be careful not to bend her knees all the way--not to 90 degrees, maybe just 80 degrees. Again, low weight, high reps.

And I don't know what to call these; use the ankle weights. Sit on the floor with one knee bent and the other straight; lean back slightly and support yourself with your hands on the floor behind you. Lift the straight leg up, keeping it straight, until your thighs are parallel (keep the bent leg bent the whole time, it's just for support) and then lower it again. Do NOT let your leg rest on the floor; hover it a second and lift it up again. Take turns with the legs, low weight, high reps.

The physical therapist told me to do these 3 times a week, each lift at a moderate pace; not fast, but not really slow either. And like in regular weight lifting, do enough reps till failure.

If she doesn't get her leg strength up, she'll likely get injured. My knee injury was relatively minor but it hurt like hell, and took me about 3 months until I was back to full strength, and another 3 months before it was pain-free. A little bit of preparation is a LOT better than dealing with a knee injury!

I had my share of knee and ankle injuries.

The solution is to build stronger leg muscles and to do balance exercises.

To build stronger leg muscles she can do lunges, squats, calf raises, and leg raises.

She can do balance exercises on the floor, but they are much more effective on an unstable base like a wobble disc or board.

I do 2 x 20 reps per leg of single-leg squats (no weights) on a wobble disc 3 times a week.

This is what a wobble disc is like:

http://www.physioroom.com/catalog/Wobble_Cushions/3184.html

It's a cheap and useful piece of exercise equipment to keep around the house.

Also elastic bands are useful for strengtening exercises.

http://www.physioroom.com/product/Mueller_ExerBand_76cm_/2026/36105.html

None of the above require going to the gym. They can be done at home while watching videos on youtube.

-d

Bulgarian Split Squats are another option.

-Sun

Bulgarian Split Squat!!!!!!!!!	DQ

For strength around the knees I think leg extensions are best. If she's not willing to go to the gym for whatever reason, guess she can try lunges or something, but she will not get the same benefit as those are mostly targeting different areas of the leg. Leg extensions will really build up the muscles around the knees, I know from experience.

Cool ty!  If I talk to her anytime soon ill tell her about those..  She says shes going to Physical Therapy though, and I havnt seen her in Volleyball yet.  She might be playing, but I'm not sure

Mmk Tyvm Scooby! The Volleyball season is like half over, but season or not, knee muscle is essential.  If you play sports or not.

I heard the sprinting barefoot in sandpits helps your knees and ankles gain muscle, does it really?  It makes sense but idk.

I get headaches when I max out my pushups or dips or pull ups... It hurts soooo bad! and it throbs and dosent go away!! But its cuz I don't breathe..  I try to but its hard to keep them rhythmic.