5 Yoga Poses for Knee & Hip Arthritis

Yoga poses tend to be among the best natural approaches to alleviate pain for people suffering from knee and hip arthritis.

Arthritis can have a negative impact on both your hip and knee joints, sometimes even making everyday activities painful. Incorporating yoga poses into your daily routine will help in strengthening the affected joints along with reducing pain and stabilizing your joints.

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Yoga Poses for Knee and Hip Arthritis

1. Extended Side Angle Pose

Extended side angle poses tend to be the best yoga poses for reducing knee pain and hip arthritis. This yoga pose will help in effectively stretching your hamstrings along with stretching your posterior chain.

Here's how to do this yoga pose:

• Begin the extended side angle pose in a standard Warrior II pose with your right foot positioned at the front.
• Press your right forearm onto your right thigh or to the outside of your foot depending upon the flexibility of your body.
• Place your left forearm over your head in an extended manner with them extending to the front.
• Reach out to your front thigh with your waist extended and your abdominals engaged.
• Bring your gaze to the hand that extends towards the ceiling.
• Hold for a few breaths before gently releasing. Continue on the other side.

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2. Gate Pose

Gate poses belong to the group of underutilized yoga poses that people suffering from knee and hip arthritis should definitely include in their workout routine. This yoga pose will help in stretching and strengthening your lower body.

Here's how to do this yoga pose:

• Start in a tall kneeling position before stepping to the front with one leg so that the toes are angled to the front and the knee is straightened.
• Keep your hips in proper alignment to your knees.
• Extend both your hands to the sky before stretching through the opposite side and bending your body towards the extended leg. Hold before gently releasing.
• Continue on the alternate sides.

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3. Tree Pose

Tree poses are amongst the easier yoga poses that will activate your hip abductors and knee extensors. This yoga pose will also help alleviate your tight muscles by opening up your hip region as well as building strength in your hips.

Here's how to do this yoga pose:

• Begin in a mountain pose before raising your one foot and pressing it to the inner thigh of the opposite side.
• Extend both your hands over your head in a prayer position, and hold before gently releasing.
• Repeat on the alternate side.

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4. Warrior I Pose

Warrior I is also a decent yoga pose that will strengthen your quads along with building greater knee stability. This yoga exercise helps you build stronger legs. You can also easily modify this yoga pose by adjusting the length of the stance that you adopt.

Here's how to do this yoga pose:

• Begin the Warrior I pose in a standard downward facing dog pose before stepping one foot forward in between your palms.
• Rotate the rear heel to about forty-five degrees while bringing its outer edge down.
• With your front thigh parallel to the ground and knees bent, bring your arms to the sky with both your palms angled to one another.
• Your fingers should be pointed at the ceiling as your hips remain square and your rear leg remains strong.
• Keep your shoulders drawn back with your tailbone lengthened and abdomen lifted upward.
• Bring your gaze either to the ceiling or in between both your hands.
• Hold before gently releasing.

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5. Side Plank Pose

Side planks are also dynamic yoga poses for knee and hip arthritis as it will help in strengthening your glute muscles, particularly your hip abductors. Weak hip abductors tend to increase the pressure on your knee joints along with causing pain when you are simply walking.

Here's how to do this yoga pose:

• Begin this yoga pose in a standard forearm plank before rotating your left forearm so that it is angled at forty-five degrees and pointing to the front.
• Roll your body to the outer edge of the left foot, with your right foot stacked over the left one.
• Elevate your hips in the air and away from the ground with your core muscles engaged and your inner thighs pressing to one another.
• Raise your right fingertips to the ceiling with your left forearm pressing down on the ground and shoulders stacked.
• Keep your gaze either to the front or towards your extended hand.
• Hold before gently releasing and continuing on the alternate side.

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Bottom Line

The aforementioned yoga poses tend to be highly effective for people suffering from knee and hip arthritis pain. This condition causes pain in your joints, which increases over time and negatively impacts the condition every day.

Regularly practicing the aforementioned yoga poses will build strength in your muscles and reduce pain related to arthritis.