Avoiding sudden jolting movements and rough running surfaces can help prevent knee injuries. Obesity adds pressure to the vulnerable knee joint, so weight reduction may help.

Exercises considered better for the knees include small (not deep) knee bends and straightening motions – done while in supination with most weight on the outside of the foot.

Sports that are easier on the knees include walking, swimming (flutter kicks, knees straight), skating, baseball, cross-country skiing, and, depending on the state of the knee, cycling (seat high, low gear, avoiding hills).

Choose activities to suit your own knee strength and capacity, and remember that sports especially “hard on the knees” include football, sprinting, soccer, rugby, hockey, squash, volleyball, basketball, downhill skiing, tennis and jogging – anything that pounds, jolts, or twists the knees.

The legs, especially the knees, are the most injury-prone parts of the body. Knee injuries are the leading cause of long-term disability among athletes.

Although most commonly due to sport, anyone can hurt their knees if they make an awkward movement or give the knee a hard blow. Some women may be especially susceptible because their wider pelvis tends to make them knock-kneed. Besides the knock-kneed, those prone to knee problems are the flat-footed, whose feet pronate or turn inward too much, those with unstable or loose kneecaps (patella), and those who have imbalanced thigh muscles.