Preparation exercises for preventing knee injuries in sport
Knee injuries in sport are extremely common and can sometimes have large consequences.
Injury to the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) is one of the more significant injuries that can occur to the knee. Unfortunately, ACL injury is common, representing approximately 25% of serious injuries annually in netball (Netball Australia National Insurance Data).
Thankfully, some sporting organisations have developed warm-up exercise programs to help reduce the incidence of knee injuries from occurring.
Netball Australia have established a program called The KNEE Program. The KNEE Program is an on court warm up program designed to enhance movement efficiency and prevent injury
- Junior
- Recreational
- Elite level athletes
All with different exercises that match the demands of each group.
The KNEE Program is made up of 4 sections:
- Warm Up/Footwork
- Strength
- Balance/Landing
- Agility
Please follow the link below for access to the netball knee program:
A similar program has also been developed in soccer.
FIFA 11+ is an effective injury prevention program developed by FIFA. Similar to the Netball KNEE Program, it is designed as a warm-up, which can be used for both training and games. Many studies have confirmed the effectiveness of the FIFA 11+ program, showing significantly reduced injury rates of around 45%.
The exercises take around 20 minutes to perform, and involves these components:
- Running
- Plyometrics
- Strength
- Balance
Please see below the detailed exercises of the FIFA 11+ program:
Both programs are very easy to follow and require little to no equipment to set up and complete making it applicable for all ages and levels of competition.
Our Physiotherapists can help take you through these programs and help you perform all the exercises with the correct technique in order to complete the programs to the best of your ability. Please chat with one of our Sport Physios if you require any further info!
Author: Michael Wilson Senior Physiotherapist at myPhysioSA Payneham
