As I’ve been training for this dammed half marathon I’m doing soon.

I’ve started to develop a pain in my left knee, it’s on the outside of the knee below the knee cap, where the indentation is as you flex your knee.

THe further I’m running in training the more it hurts the next day, any ideas as to what it is?

Also I’m contemplating not doing the run now as I don’t want to bugger my knee up for later life. It was already damaged @ high school about 18 years ago and I thought it was fine to be honest.

perhaps the pain is telling you something ?

Yeah I’m not goign to be able to run a half marathon

Steve – I get what sounds exactly the same problem. It sounds like it is a loose patella. I used one of these simple knee straps and it works wonders – I am normally fine running without it on up to around 2 or 3 miles, but if I run further it can hurt a bit (and sort of ‘itch’) the next day. When I was training hard, I also used a cold compress and took anti-inflammatories after runs (10 mile + runs).

Remember – spend time warming up/down and stretching! Have fun

DON’T STRAP IT!!!!
You may have an inflammation, sometimes caused by friction in or around the knee. If you strap it you will push the inflamed area harder on the area and make it worse.
Best thing would be is to take some ibuprofen and see a specialist. You will probably just need to rest it a bit and then stretch the area once the swelling has gone. Stretching will stop the area from being so tight and should prevent it from happening again.
If you are careful and don’t over-do it your knees will be fine.
Get it checked first though.

Illiotobial band syndrome?

Quite common and fixed by stretching

Well it works for me…

don’t strap it! Mask the pain, do more damage in the long run. Best to find the root cause of the pain and work on that.

Does sound like ITBS. Which gives you knee pain because usually of tight hips. This can be due to the different muscles used in running and cycling.

Try the stretches mentioned here

http://forum.fellrunner.org.uk/showthread.php?t=2506&highlight=itbs

If you have caught it fast enough you can get rid of it reasonably fast so no excuses for a half. Main question is why not a full?

Have you tried going to a specialist running shop? Explain the problem, show them your trainers and get them to film you and do a gate analysis. You may be in the wrong shoes?

Talk to a specialist first before you do anything, or you might just make matter worse.

I’d recommend going to a sports injuries clinic for a diagnosis. They are usually very good at this sort of thing.

The thing that made the biggest difference for me in terms of running and knee pain, was to start running off road. Pavements really seem to bu gger my knees up. Good shoes make a big difference too.

Bluebird makes a good point. I had knee pains and I went to a specialist shop. The owner looked at the wear pattern on the sole of my existing shoes and was able to identify exactly how I run. I’ve had no problems since with the pair he recommended and which I’ve continued to purchase.

How old are your trainers Steve?

Funnily enough I did a half marathon in a pair of trainers I bought from a discount place on the internet.

Then I decided to get a proper pair fitted by Up & Running in Harrogate (explaining the knee pain etc) and I prefer the cheapo internet pair if I am honest (although it pains me to say it after spending nearly £100 on the ‘good’ trainers).

Of course this doesn’t say that I am right and anyone else is wrong – just relaying my experience…

That’s what delighted my wife. The design I use now cost £40 less than the one I used to buy.

Sounds like ITB syndrome to me.

Ice regularly and look for hip/ITB stretches on the internet. Tight hip/ass muscles make it worse as it pulls your IT band tighter over the area where you get the pain.
It can also be aggravated by weak muscles around the top of your thighs/hip flexors and that area OR weak hamstrings for some reason. Google something like ITB exercises and you should find some stuff.

I have had this problem for ages, been to see 5 or 6 different physios who have all said 4 weeks of this and that and you’ll be sorted. I must have a very sever case of it, because none of them have solved it. Last consultant I went to did an ultrasound, MRI, I had gait analysis done and insoles made, bought some more supportive shoes and was doing daily stretches/exercises. Still didn’t clear it up, even with regular visits to the physio.
I have given up on it!

The physio said he’s never seen a case of it as bad as mine though, so you should be OK with some rest/ice/stretching.

Cheers guys,

It sounds exactly like it, infact some of the exercises described are very similar to what a French Doctor said to me when I buggered my knee while I was living in France in 1996.

As for trainers they’re about 4 months old, and very comfortable (not sure if this means they’re good :?) They’re Nike Air Triax II’s or summit like that.

So hopefully it shouldn’t cause too much of an issue once i get things sorted.

As for why the 1/2 marathon, thats what I signed up to do, although I may give it a miss and concentrate on the Manchester 10k in May as I can do 10k quite comfortably at the moment in 55 minutes.

Steve

I had ITB for 11 months in total. The symptoms are as you describe and the pain almost always comes on at the same point in a run. Mine was 10 minutes regardless of distance. I was doing in the region of 60mpw and running at a reasonable standard. When it went away it did so quickly however stretching does help but it is frustrating as it takes a long time.
If you can run for 55 minutes then that is more than enough to get fit.
Its not an impact injury so its one time I would recommend running on the road as it is level. Any additional twisting on grass etc may make things worse.

Stumpy, I also gave up after 20 years of competitive running. Of all the injuries I have had this one was the worst in terms of time to recover. I even resorted to Cortisone in desperation. It cleared up some years ago but I haven’t been able to return to form other than a couple of decent runs when I turned 40.
I’m sounding depressing however I know of many athletes who get this for very short periods and it clears up quickly, mine was exceptional and I have never experienced it since.

Good luck

See your GP or sports injury specialist rather than ask a forum of guessers without any information.

Obviously rest but check your trainers, running style, how long have you trained in what time period.

Joints take longer to develop than muscles!

Anyone mentioned patella tendonitis?
Sounds similar to what I had from running after a layoff. Had to have keyhole to put it right.

surfer…..I think my problem came about because I went from running loads to almost zero…….then started cycling loads……then tried to start running again, but the cycling has tightened all my hip muscles up that they don’t seem to want to relax. I have tried regular yoga, stretching, strengthening etc. and more as above. The only things I haven’t tried are cortisone (consultant suggested it, but doesn’t seem like a long term fix) or getting a camera stuck in for a look-see.

At the moment, I have given up on it. Mine generally comes on between 20 and 22 mins. If I run on a treadmill with a decent gradient I can get that up to about 35 mins for some reason.

With regard to running on the road……just make sure there isn’t a significant camber….that can make the problem worse, even though the surface should be flatter.