Anatomy – Know Your Knees : MCL-LCL

Know your Knees - MCL & LCL

Looking at how to use the wall and a few props to work to protect the knee joint. We look at the MCL and PCL ligaments and how they work with the knee in asana Using research on ski injury, Cora talks about the similarity of injury in asana.

Three bones meet to form your knee joint: your thighbone (femur), shinbone (tibia), and kneecap (patella). Your kneecap sits in front of the joint to provide some protection. Bones are connected to other bones by ligaments. There are four primary ligaments in your knee. They act like strong ropes to hold the bones together and keep your knee stable.
Collateral Ligaments
These are found on the sides of your knee. The medial or "inside" collateral ligament (MCL) connects the femur to the tibia. The lateral or "outside" collateral ligament (LCL) connects the femur to the smaller bone in the lower leg (fibula). The collateral ligaments control the sideways motion of your knee and brace it against unusual movement. Because the knee joint relies just on these ligaments and surrounding muscles for stability, it is easily injured. Any direct contact to the knee or hard muscle contraction — such as changing direction rapidly while running — can injure a knee ligament.