Knock Knees

Do your knees move to the middle when you sit down? (My left one tends to do it.) Or even just walking along?

Women suffer from knee injuries more than men. How so? Women's hips are naturally wider than men's. This has a knock on effect down to the knee and ankle and can make running and jumping more tricky.

Women have a bigger Q angle from the hip to the knee - your thigh bone is at a wider angle from your knee than a man's. It can mean your patella (knee bone) doesn't slide in its groove quite as neatly or lead to tearing a ligament (usually the ACL). 

Women are more vulnerable to having knock knees and pronated feet (roll in). And joints (tissues like collagen) can also be hyper mobile - more 'wiggling about' around the knee.

How do you avoid injury? 

1. Strengthen your back body. Women naturally tend to use the strength in their front body, especially their quads (thighs). You should concentrate on strengthening your posterior chain: backside, back, obliques so you stand up straighter and move as a solid unit in a straight line.

2. Mind muscle connection. Think about engaging your muscles beforeyou move.

Illustration courtesy of Stacy Sims, Roar