HOW: Follow this foolproof guide to wake your quad back up! Use a stretch strap or towel and place it around the balls of your feet, holding onto both ends of the towel with your hands. Laying on the ground or on a table with your knee straight and foot supported, attempt to push your knee down and lift your heel off the ground by squeezing your quadriceps muscle until your knee is fully straight. Help your quad lift your heel up by pulling on the strap to lift your heel up at the same time. You should be able to lift it higher with the assistance of the strap. Return to starting position and repeat.
FEEL: Really focus on squeezing your quad. Sometimes touching the muscle, massaging it, or hitting it can help. Think about moving your kneecap up and towards your hip socket. Push your knee down into the ground. Move your shin bone in the shape of a “J” by moving your knee down and your heel up at the same time. Squeeze both quadriceps at the same time to improve the quality of the quad contraction.
COMPENSATION: Do not lift your entire leg off the ground, focus on getting your knee fully straight similar to the other side.
