Cardio Exercises for Bad Knees – Introduction
What are the best cardio exercises for bad knees?
When it comes to cardio, most people tend to gravitate toward running and other high-impact exercises, such as plyometric circuit training and jump rope workouts.
And while these exercises are undoubtedly effective, they can be hard on your joints, and especially your knees.
Knee joint pain is very common.
The knee joint is prone to wear and tear, and the more active you are, the more likely you are to experience knee issues.
Being overweight also puts more pressure on your knees, and, like any joint, knee injuries can happen, too.
The good news is that bad knees do not have to stop your training, and there are plenty of low-impact exercises you can do instead of running and jumping, etc. that can further damage your knees.
In this article, we reveal seven of the best cardio exercises for bad knees, plus a low-impact workout you can do at home and with nothing but some light dumbbells, an adjustable bench, and a resistance band.
7 Best Cardio Exercises for Bad Knees
Bad knees?
With the okay from your doctor, use the following exercises to get fit, burn fat, and improve your cardiovascular wellbeing.
Try to clock up around 150 minutes per week to improve your fitness and health.
#1. Swimming
Cardio exercises don’t come much more joint-friendly than swimming.
The water supports your entire body weight, so there is next to no pressure on your joints.
Avoid swimming breaststroke though, which can be hard on your knees.
Instead, stick to swimming freestyle aka the front crawl, as it places less lateral stress on your knee joints.
Ironically, competitive breaststroke swimmers often end up with bad knees!
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#2. Rucking
Rucking is military slang for walking while carrying a backpack.
Because it’s a low-impact activity, it’s generally easier on your knees than running, despite the extra load on your back.
Rucking increases your heart rate like running does, but with less joint stress.
Start off with about ten percent of your body weight in your pack and increase gradually over the coming weeks and months.
Instead of a backpack, you could also use a weighted vest.
You can do urban rucking or, better still, head out into the countryside and work out in nature.
If you are new to exercise out or aren’t very fit, ditch the backpack and just walk.
Walking is also a great way to get fit and control your weight. Then, when you feel ready, you can progress to some light rucking.
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#3. Air bike
A stationary bike is a great knee-friendly, low-impact workout, but it only works your lower body.
An air bike has a large fan at the front instead of the more usual flywheel and arm levers so you can work your upper body at the same time as your legs.
The harder you work on an air bike, the more resistance there is, which makes this workout machine ideal for high-intensity interval training as well as lower-intensity steady-state workouts.
Air bikes are popular with CrossFit and are suitable for home use.
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#4. Elliptical machine
Ellipticals are a cross between a treadmill and an exercise bike.
The pedals follow an egg-shaped movement pattern, which is what gives this joint-friendly exercise its name.
An elliptical trainer is low impact and joint-friendly and has an upper-body function, so you can train all your major muscle groups simultaneously.
On the downside, most elliptical machines are big and heavy, so you’ll need a spacious home gym if you want one for personal use.
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#5. Rowing machine
Rowing involves a large and repetitive movement for your knees.
For some people, rowing could make existing knee pain worse.
But, if impact is your knee pain nemesis, you may be able to row without issue.
Like ellipticals and air bikes, rowing is a full-body workout which means it’s a great calorie burner.
In fact, a Harvard Health study estimates that a 185-pound person can achieve a tremendous calorie burn of up to 300 calories in 30 minutes of moderate stationary rowing. ²
You can do long, slow rows or interval training.
Stationary rowing is one of the best exercises you can do for your whole body with minimal risk of knee injury.
It’s one of the best options for great cardio exercise and building strength for the rest of your body simultaneously.
The best rowing machines have large fans for resistance, but there are also some decent machines that use electromagnets instead.
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#6. Weighted sled training
A weighted sled is just what it sounds like – a sled you load with weights!
Weighted sleds can be pushed or pulled to produce a joint-friendly, low-impact cardio workout.
You can use a weighted sled for low-intensity steady-state cardiovascular exercise, high-intensity interval training, and strength training too as an alternative to squats and deadlifts.
You can even use a sled for upper body training.
Providing you have space to use one, sleds are ideal for home training, and many gyms have them too.
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#7. Low-impact strength training exercises
Strength training exercises might seem out of place for a list of knee-friendly cardio workouts.
Still, when done as a circuit, you can use these exercises to improve your cardiovascular fitness even though none of them are actually cardio exercises.
You have plenty of options, including:
- Squats
- Deadlifts
- Step-ups
- Leg presses
- Bench presses
- Overhead presses
- Bent over rows
- Pull-ups
- Kettlebell swings
- Medicine ball slams
Done with light to moderate weights, medium to high reps, and short rests between exercises, these exercises can deliver a cardio workout that’s every bit as effective as running, cycling, or swimming.
Low Impact Cardio Workout Circuit
As mentioned above, you can get a great cardio workout without resorting to traditional cardio exercises.
The next time you need a knee-friendly cardio workout but don’t want to head out for a hike or bike ride, try this circuit instead!
Before you start, warm up with a few minutes of easy, low-impact cardio followed by some joint mobility and dynamic flexibility exercises.
Pay extra attention to your knees to make sure they’re well-lubricated and working as smoothly as possible.
For each exercise, do as many reps as you can in 40 seconds, rest for 20 seconds, and then move on to the next activity.
Work your way down the list doing each one in turn.
After completing the final exercise, rest 1-2 minutes and then do another round.
Do 2-4 circuits in total.
Low Impact Cardio Exercises for Bad Knees
Exercise descriptions
Get the most from these cardio exercises for bad knees by doing them properly!
Never sacrifice speed for correct form, or you could end up injured.
1. Bodyweight box squats
Target muscles: Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes
Box squats stop you from descending too far, making them a little easier on your knees than a regular full squat.
Done without weights and high reps, this exercise will quickly increase your heart and breathing rate.
How to do it:
- Stand with your back to your exercise bench with your feet about shoulder-width apart, toes turned slightly outward.
- Bend your legs and squat down until your butt lightly touches the bench.
- Do not drop and bounce, which can hurt your back.
- Stand back up and repeat.
2. Push-ups
Target muscles: Pectoralis major, deltoids, triceps
Push-ups are a useful alternative to bench presses.
They require next to no time to get into position, making them a good choice for this cardio circuit workout.
How to do it:
- Put your hands on the floor, about shoulder-width apart, and walk your feet back, so your body is straight.
- Brace your abs.
- Bend your arms and lower your chest down toward the floor.
- Push yourself back up and repeat.
- Bend your legs and rest on your knees to make push-ups a little easier.
3. Resistance band bent over rows
Target muscles: Latissimus dorsi, trapezius, rhomboids, biceps
Bent over rows work the opposite muscles to push-ups and are good for your posture.
Using a band is easier on your lower back than free weights.
How to do it:
- Stand on the middle of your band and hold one end in either hand.
- Bend your knees slightly for stability.
- Without rounding your lower back, lean forward, so your upper body is inclined to about 45 degrees, arms extended toward the floor.
- Bend your arms and pull your hands up and into the side of your abdomen.
- Extend your arms and repeat.
4. Reverse lunges
Target muscles: Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes
Reverse lunges are much more knee-friendly than forward lunges.
Lunges work one leg at a time, which means they’re good for fixing strength imbalances and are also good for balance and coordination.
How to do it:
- Stand with your feet together, arms by your sides.
- Take a large step backward, bend your legs, and lower your rearmost knee to just above the floor.
- Push off your back leg, return to the starting position, and repeat.
- Continue alternating legs for the allotted time.
5. Seated dumbbell overhead press
Target muscles: Deltoids, triceps
Overhead presses work your shoulders and triceps, which is the muscle on the back of your upper arms.
Doing them seated takes stress off your lower back but, if you prefer, you can do this exercise standing instead.
How to do it:
- Set your bench, so the back rest is almost vertical.
- With a dumbbell in each hand, sit on the bench and raise the weights to your shoulders, hands facing forward.
- Press the weights up and overhead and then lower them back down.
6. Resistance band lat pulldowns
Target muscles: Latissimus dorsi, biceps
Just because you don’t have a lat pulldown machine doesn’t mean you can’t do this effective exercise. Use a resistance band instead to work the exact same muscles in the comfort of your own home.
How to do it:
- Attach the middle of your resistance band to an overhead anchor.
- Hold one end in each hand and kneel down, arms extended above you.
- Bend your arms and pull your hands down to your shoulders.
- Reach back up and repeat.
7. Alternating step-ups
Target muscles: Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes
Step-ups work your legs like lunges but, instead of horizontally, you’ll be moving vertically.
This makes them a little more demanding but still very knee-friendly.
How to do it:
- Stand facing the side of your exercise bench.
- Bend one leg and place your foot on the top.
- Step up with your opposite leg, so your feet are together.
- Step down with the same leg, and then do your next rep leading with the other leg.
- Continue alternating legs for the allotted time.
8. Dumbbell skull crushers
Target muscles: Triceps
Contrary to its name, this exercise is perfectly safe, providing you do it with a bit of care and attention.
In fact, using dumbbells instead of a barbell makes it a lot less risky.
By the way, it’s also a very effective triceps exercise!
How to do it:
- With a dumbbell in each hand, lie on your back on a flat exercise bench.
- Press the weights up and hold them over your shoulders, hands turned inward.
- Keeping your upper arms stationary, bend your elbows, and lower the weights to your temples.
- Extend your arms and repeat.
9. Dumbbell biceps curls
Target muscles: Biceps
Working the muscles on the front of your upper arm, this exercise will help balance your arm development.
You can do dumbbell biceps curls seated or standing.
How to do it:
- Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing your legs.
- Keeping your upper arms close to your sides and your torso upright, bend your elbows and raise the weights to your shoulders, turning your palms uppermost as your elbows break 90 degrees.
- Lower the weights and repeat.
10. Planks
Target muscles: Core
Your last exercise works your core or, more specifically, your rectus abdominus, which is the muscle on the front of your abdomen.
This is the muscle that gives you a six-pack but to see it, you’ll need to be pretty lean.
How to do it:
- Lie on your front and rest your upper body on your elbows and forearms.
- Lift your hips up, so your weight is supported on your arms and feet only, and your body is straight.
- Brace your abs.
- Hold this position but NOT your breath for the allocated time.
Cardio Exercises for Bad Knees – Wrapping Up
Bad knees are no one’s idea of fun.
They can make many exercises and activities of daily living uncomfortable and unpleasant.
However, in many cases, exercise can help alleviate the causes and symptoms of knee pain or, at least, make them easier to live with.
If you have knee problems, make sure you speak to your doctor before you start or continue exercising, just in case there is a danger that you’ll make things worse.
But, if you’re okay to do so, use the information and workout in this article to stay fit and lose or maintain your weight while being as kind to your knees as possible.
Knee pain does not have to be a barrier to exercise.
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Footnotes:
¹ The pain-relieving qualities of exercise in knee osteoarthritis – National Institutes of Health
² Calories burned in 30 minutes for people of 3 different weights – Harvard Health Study
Rich is a NASM-CPT (Certified Personal Trainer), an