What can I do for cardio if I have knee pain?

Swimming is usually pretty nice on knees.

If walking/treadmills give you too much, might want to try out an AMT, elliptical, bike, recumbent bike or nu-step. If all of those aggravate your knee you might have to look into alternative forms of exercise.

Hi Riley,

if you cannot do any lower body exercises at all, you may need to look at an upper body ergometer, sometimes also called arm crank machine. Swimming is great but breast stroke usually needs to be avoided. Water walking can provide a good workout, and so does water aerobics.

Wish you good luck.
Karin Singleton

Hi Riley,

I saw one of your earlier questions was about Tough Mudder training. Do you still plan to do a race? Depending on your injury you will need to rehab your knee first and avoid any running for now (especially on uneven surfaces). Swimming is a great alternative and perhaps running/walking in the water will help with your cardio. Like Karin suggested, upper body ergometer could be an excellent alternative as well. Have you done any PT yet? Physical therapists can give you some great tips in getting your knee back in shape and work on any imbalances you might have. Muscle activation therapy can also be beneficial for you.

I hope this helps.

Best,
Harris

I agree with the other answers
Also, remember, Cardio isn’t the end all.You can get a great strength training workout with weights and body weight resistance work, if you don’t rest between sets, your heart rate will go up.

Don’t ignore your knee pain, get it checked out by your doctor

If you have a gym membership, try different cardio machines to get an idea of which machine(s) may be tolerable. Assuming you are treating the injured knee based on a medical diagnosis, then this Gould only be a temporary issue and you’ll soon have the mobility you once had to enjoy a wider range of cardio options.