Full Question
I have bad knees and they get really sore after a work out.  Is there a way to relieve the tension in my knees while I am working out and exercises I can do to strengthen them?

Answer

This is a tough question to answer without actually watching your body mechanics while you're working out.   Keep in mind if you're experiencing pain you should seek the help of a professional to solve your problem before making it worse.  If you're experiencing knee pain after a workout you need to listen to your body because pain is a warning sign.   It's a sign that you have some sort of muscle imbalance or your mechanics are off.    A significant number of studies have linked knee pain to weak muscles that surround your hips (gluteus medius and  gluteus minimus).  There are a series of muscles surrounding the hips that need to be strengthened to help overcome knee pain.   There  may be other  factors that  could be contributing to your knee pain. Such as a limited range of motion in the ankle and foot.

The  knee is just a hinge joint which compensates for imbalances in the hip and lower leg.  So it is really important that you strengthen these areas and improve range of motion.

Here's an exercise I would recommend to strengthen your hip muscles (which could be related to your knee pain):

Start postion:  Lie on your back about a foot away from the wall.
 
Lift the leg closest to the wall about 30 degrees and push that leg into the wall for 6 seconds.  Repeat this 3 times with a 10 second rest in between each set.  The first set you should use about 30% of your maximum force.  The 2nd set you should use 60% of your maximum force.  Finally, the 3rd set you should use 80% of your maximum force. This exercise will strengthen and activate your gluteus medius and
minimus muscles.

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