Question for the runners

treegirl97

I started the C210K program in January and was running a comfortable 10km by the summer. At the end of July I did a 16km race and definitely pushed myself too far and ended up with a bad case of runner's knee. I've been taking it pretty easy since then but decided today to go for a short run. After about 15 minutes I started feeling pain in my knee so slacked off and walked. I have started doing some leg and core strength training but would it be better to just focus on getting stronger and hold off on running for a bit longer or maybe start the C210K program again to slowly build up. I love running and don't want to be sidelined any longer. It's so frustrating.

The_Enginerd

Biking is a great way to keep up your cardiovascular conditioning while letting your knee heal.

Have you had the doctor look at your knee to see what is going on? I had issues with my knee, but it was a case of tendonitis caused by going out too fast, too soon. Slowing my training runs down helped quite a lot with that issue, and I'm doing 4-5X the mileage I was back then. I still have some issues with that, but it's manageable.

meritage4

walking, running in the water-with a deep water running vest, and biking are all good options.

ashenriver

Physiotherapists are great to help you figure out what is going on with your body. Agree with meritage4 on other option to keep your fitness up. Water running has been shown to keep the training up. With time off you are not going to be at the same level you were before. I would suggest starting the program again as well as physio.

AverageJoeFit

Also make sure you are working out your other muscles in your legs. Just running can creat an imbalance in strength. You need to also do focus work on your quads as well.

Also check your running form too. Knees under your torso at all times. Look at your running shoes do you have uneven wear on the bottom. All things that can lead to injury.

jcsgirl86

Loomisj72 wrote: »

Also make sure you are working out your other muscles in your legs. Just running can creat an imbalance in strength. You need to also do focus work on your quads as well.

Also check your running form too. Knees under your torso at all times. Look at your running shoes do you have uneven wear on the bottom. All things that can lead to injury.

Definitely this ^^^^^

jdscrubs32

I would suggest getting a physio to have a look at your knees. When I first started having knee problems from running, I went to physio who said that because I had weak hamstrings and glutes, they were putting pressure on my weak quads which in turn were putting pressure on my knees. Said I needed to build all those areas up by doing squats, walking lunges and the like.

Hiker_Rob

I'd also strongly suggest seeing a physiotherapist and/or a sports med doctor. I have been dealing with lower leg issues myself, my sports medicine doctor has been instrumental in helping me with what to do. In my doctor's words: If you like running, you are better off deal with the problem now and to take extra time off to heal up rather than suffer the risk of not being able to run in the future.

mitch16

I would suggest seeing someone who either specializes in sports medicine or a non-surgical orthopaedist for a diagnosis, and then you'll probably get a referral to a physical therapist for rehab. It might be more than just laying off running for a while--you might actually have to work on building strength in your hips (weak hips are a common issue in runners--and running more won't actually help you build more hip strength).

BeeerRunner

As others have mentioned, do see a doctor or specialist to ensure you don't have an injury that can be further damaged by continuing to run on it. Once you're given the OK, do strength exercises to build your quads, glutes, hamstrings, and hips. Also, do some research about proper running form. I have arthritis in my left knee (years of ice skating, ballet, and then getting kicked in the knee by a horse...) Once I started using proper running form, I no longer had pain in my knee. I also take a glucosamine supplement. which helps to rebuild cartilage. You can ask your doctor to see if it would help you.

mgalovic01

Second that on the bike riding. It will help repair your knees. When you start running again try to absorb more impact with your calf by land more so on your toes. It will have your calves really sore so you probably will not be able to run every day, but if you let them recover, they'll rebuild stronger. You'll build killer calves, and save your knees.