IT Band causing pain in knee
sisu1975
Posts: 28 Member
I’ve had problems with my IT Band being very tight which causes my knee not to track right when it moves. This causes swelling and pain when I finally sit down to relax or sleep. I saw a physiotherapist who gave me some strengthening exercises to do but a year an a half later the pain is still the same. My knee is stronger and has the full range of motion but there has not been a change in the level of pain at all. Any one else have this experience and did you find something that worked for you? Please share!
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Replies
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I had issues in the past with my IT bands being tight. I never saw anyone for it and started using a foam roller per ashley borden(shes a famous trainer) and to roll my legs out. have to say it helped and I have no issue now, I rolled out before a workout and after for about 3 months or so. from time to time it it feels a little off I "roll out" again. I had knee pain but not sure if its from that or not as my knees arent the greatest as it is3
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Every time I hear about foam rollers I have to laugh
My college strength n conditioning coach was one of the pioneers who first used foam rollers
I thought he was crazy!!
Sounds like sound advice to use the foam rollers on your IT band.1 -
competeagain wrote: »Every time I hear about foam rollers I have to laugh
My college strength n conditioning coach was one of the pioneers who first used foam rollers
I thought he was crazy!!
Sounds like sound advice to use the foam rollers on your IT band.
hey it helped me so and its so much better than having to take meds for pain.1 -
My suggestion would be a second opinion either in terms of a different orthopedic surgeon (surgery may or may not be necessary - typically orthos prefer not to perform surgery on someone who could be helped with more conservative approaches) and/or physical therapist.1
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CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »competeagain wrote: »Every time I hear about foam rollers I have to laugh
My college strength n conditioning coach was one of the pioneers who first used foam rollers
I thought he was crazy!!
Sounds like sound advice to use the foam rollers on your IT band.
hey it helped me so and its so much better than having to take meds for pain.
Yea, they’re awesome!! But when he first introduced them I was like “huh?!”
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Talk to your doctor first.
Edit- ah i meant to post my experience but then I accidently hit, "post." Sorry!
My experience.
I had IT band pain for months and months. My doctor suggested a cortisone shot in my IT band. I got it in 2015 and I haven't had IT band pain since!
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I would do least invasive first1
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Big fan of foam rolling or dry needling which is like acupuncture. Helped me a ton.1
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competeagain wrote: »I would do least invasive first
Any reputable doctor, surgeon included, would say the same.2 -
competeagain wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »competeagain wrote: »Every time I hear about foam rollers I have to laugh
My college strength n conditioning coach was one of the pioneers who first used foam rollers
I thought he was crazy!!
Sounds like sound advice to use the foam rollers on your IT band.
hey it helped me so and its so much better than having to take meds for pain.
Yea, they’re awesome!! But when he first introduced them I was like “huh?!”
yeah I had NO idea what one was before I talked to ashley. she is the one who suggested it
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I dont see where trying a foam roller would hurt. if it doesnt improve after awhile then see a dr.it was a life save for me and helped me to where I didnt need meds for pain and I didnt have to see a dr luckily enough. trying to get something like that diagnosed here would take FOREVER and dr after dr. time and gas money I dont have to get to those appts2
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I don't think trying a foam roller would hurt. Well no I mean they are painful when you aren't used to it/haven't done it in a while, but I don't know that it would cause or worsen an injury.1
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Foam rollers and stretching all are great. KT taping has also worked wonders for me, doesn't hurt to try it out.
There seem to be two schools of thought on this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3FSPx8TEtA
and
http://elitebot.club/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/kt-tape-back-of-knee-it-band-taping-instructions-kt-tape-lateral-knee-support.jpg1 -
CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »I dont see where trying a foam roller would hurt. if it doesnt improve after awhile then see a dr.it was a life save for me and helped me to where I didnt need meds for pain and I didnt have to see a dr luckily enough. trying to get something like that diagnosed here would take FOREVER and dr after dr. time and gas money I dont have to get to those appts
It depends on the underlying problem. The IT Band shouldn't increase in length, it's not muscular.1 -
I’ve had problems with my IT Band being very tight which causes my knee not to track right when it moves. This causes swelling and pain when I finally sit down to relax or sleep. I saw a physiotherapist who gave me some strengthening exercises to do but a year an a half later the pain is still the same. My knee is stronger and has the full range of motion but there has not been a change in the level of pain at all. Any one else have this experience and did you find something that worked for you? Please share!
Where were the strengthening exercises focused?
I would generally suggest that ITB issues should be dealt with by a physiotherapist, rather than anyone unqualified. That said, from a running coaching perspective I would expect a physio to be prescribing core strength training rather than leg strength. The length of the ITB should remain fixed but addressing the core strength issue better enables the hands to move around as required by your needs.
I would not recommend a foam roller on the IT Band as that breaks down the tissue, something that's not recoverable there. They're good for muscular issues as they've got a need to be flexible.2 -
Interesting because the same thing is true for me!!! And my knee dislocated from not tracking right.
Except my physiotherapist had me foam roll the IT band and my calves which were both extremely tight. I was also referred to a chiropodist for orthotics to help how I walk that is part of the issue.
I recommend foam rolling carefully (if you go too close to the knee joint it can actually make things worse, and I definitely did that because I didn’t know) & seeing the physiotherapist again - if you’re experiencing pain your doctor should give you a referral.1 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »I’ve had problems with my IT Band being very tight which causes my knee not to track right when it moves. This causes swelling and pain when I finally sit down to relax or sleep. I saw a physiotherapist who gave me some strengthening exercises to do but a year an a half later the pain is still the same. My knee is stronger and has the full range of motion but there has not been a change in the level of pain at all. Any one else have this experience and did you find something that worked for you? Please share!
Where were the strengthening exercises focused?
I would generally suggest that ITB issues should be dealt with by a physiotherapist, rather than anyone unqualified. That said, from a running coaching perspective I would expect a physio to be prescribing core strength training rather than leg strength. The length of the ITB should remain fixed but addressing the core strength issue better enables the hands to move around as required by your needs.
I would not recommend a foam roller on the IT Band as that breaks down the tissue, something that's not recoverable there. They're good for muscular issues as they've got a need to be flexible.
That is very interesting because I haven’t heard these things (and I have the exact same issue as OP) and my physiotherapist- I actually asked her about if I needed to do any core exercises- and she said it wasn’t necessary and that foam rolling used my core enough to help. She has me foam roll my IT band and calves 2x/day for a minute each. Now I definitely need to look this up because tissue breaking down sounds very bad....0 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »I’ve had problems with my IT Band being very tight which causes my knee not to track right when it moves. This causes swelling and pain when I finally sit down to relax or sleep. I saw a physiotherapist who gave me some strengthening exercises to do but a year an a half later the pain is still the same. My knee is stronger and has the full range of motion but there has not been a change in the level of pain at all. Any one else have this experience and did you find something that worked for you? Please share!
Where were the strengthening exercises focused?
I would generally suggest that ITB issues should be dealt with by a physiotherapist, rather than anyone unqualified. That said, from a running coaching perspective I would expect a physio to be prescribing core strength training rather than leg strength. The length of the ITB should remain fixed but addressing the core strength issue better enables the hands to move around as required by your needs.
I would not recommend a foam roller on the IT Band as that breaks down the tissue, something that's not recoverable there. They're good for muscular issues as they've got a need to be flexible.
That is very interesting because I haven’t heard these things (and I have the exact same issue as OP) and my physiotherapist- I actually asked her about if I needed to do any core exercises- and she said it wasn’t necessary and that foam rolling used my core enough to help. She has me foam roll my IT band and calves 2x/day for a minute each. Now I definitely need to look this up because tissue breaking down sounds very bad....
It may depend on when they trainer, and how up to date they keep themselves.0 -
I am in one hundred percent agreement with trying out a foam roller. I use one on my IT bands when I start to feel them tightening and I also use it on my groin area (I have my own). If you find it helps you, my suggestion would be to purchase your own instead of relying on a gym/condo building/ health club one. Too many chances of picking up crud in my opinion since they can't be sanitized. If it's very painful in the beginning, start slowly and add time. If that's what is causing you pain, it'll make a world of difference. Best of luck.1
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About 8 years ago I had a problem with my IT band (overuse.....my own fault for running a half-marathon the week after a 100km bike ride) and missed about 6 weeks of trying to self-treat with foam rolling, stretching etc.
I ended up seeing a registered massage therapist and she had me running again after 2 beatings, I mean sessions. Hurt like crazy, but I've gotten regular massages since then and have, by and large, run injury free for the past 8 years (no recurrence of the IT band issue).
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MeanderingMammal wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »I dont see where trying a foam roller would hurt. if it doesnt improve after awhile then see a dr.it was a life save for me and helped me to where I didnt need meds for pain and I didnt have to see a dr luckily enough. trying to get something like that diagnosed here would take FOREVER and dr after dr. time and gas money I dont have to get to those appts
It depends on the underlying problem. The IT Band shouldn't increase in length, it's not muscular.
I never mentioned anything about it increasing in length . I just said it helped mine out.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5294943/
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CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »MeanderingMammal wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »I dont see where trying a foam roller would hurt. if it doesnt improve after awhile then see a dr.it was a life save for me and helped me to where I didnt need meds for pain and I didnt have to see a dr luckily enough. trying to get something like that diagnosed here would take FOREVER and dr after dr. time and gas money I dont have to get to those appts
It depends on the underlying problem. The IT Band shouldn't increase in length, it's not muscular.
I never mentioned anything about it increasing in length . I just said it helped mine out.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5294943/
Whilst I am not a physio, it's a topic of some discussion on coaching. Whilst that study is interesting the applicability to athletic overuse injury isn't particularly strong. I don't imagine any of the cadavers used their ITB after the study.
Most coaching guidance had moved on from foam rollers as a primary therapy towards improving the strength and range of motion of the surrounding musculature. Essentially the mechanical system around the knee and the pelvic basket. Addressing issues there avoid the need for an intervention that alleviates pain but does appear to reduce longer term stability around the knee.
Foam rolling can help with the pain. So can icing and compression of the knee when not running/ riding. Brufen does the trick as well.
This is one of the reasons that runners benefit from resistance training.1 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »MeanderingMammal wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »I dont see where trying a foam roller would hurt. if it doesnt improve after awhile then see a dr.it was a life save for me and helped me to where I didnt need meds for pain and I didnt have to see a dr luckily enough. trying to get something like that diagnosed here would take FOREVER and dr after dr. time and gas money I dont have to get to those appts
It depends on the underlying problem. The IT Band shouldn't increase in length, it's not muscular.
I never mentioned anything about it increasing in length . I just said it helped mine out.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5294943/
Whilst I am not a physio, it's a topic of some discussion on coaching. Whilst that study is interesting the applicability to athletic overuse injury isn't particularly strong. I don't imagine any of the cadavers used their ITB after the study.
Most coaching guidance had moved on from foam rollers as a primary therapy towards improving the strength and range of motion of the surrounding musculature. Essentially the mechanical system around the knee and the pelvic basket. Addressing issues there avoid the need for an intervention that alleviates pain but does appear to reduce longer term stability around the knee.
Foam rolling can help with the pain. So can icing and compression of the knee when not running/ riding. Brufen does the trick as well.
This is one of the reasons that runners benefit from resistance training.
the point of the link was you said IT band shouldnt increase in length this said it can be done. as for icing and so on for me it didnt help at all. weight training prevents it from hurting even more but once I stop for awhile it hurts again but so doesnt the rest of my body0 -
I think the other question is, "is your IT band the root of the problem?" You can have a tight IT band and a knee that doesn't track correctly with the knee maltracking not being related to the IT band. That's part of why I suggested getting a second opinion.2
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CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »MeanderingMammal wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »MeanderingMammal wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »I dont see where trying a foam roller would hurt. if it doesnt improve after awhile then see a dr.it was a life save for me and helped me to where I didnt need meds for pain and I didnt have to see a dr luckily enough. trying to get something like that diagnosed here would take FOREVER and dr after dr. time and gas money I dont have to get to those appts
It depends on the underlying problem. The IT Band shouldn't increase in length, it's not muscular.
I never mentioned anything about it increasing in length . I just said it helped mine out.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5294943/
Whilst I am not a physio, it's a topic of some discussion on coaching. Whilst that study is interesting the applicability to athletic overuse injury isn't particularly strong. I don't imagine any of the cadavers used their ITB after the study.
Most coaching guidance had moved on from foam rollers as a primary therapy towards improving the strength and range of motion of the surrounding musculature. Essentially the mechanical system around the knee and the pelvic basket. Addressing issues there avoid the need for an intervention that alleviates pain but does appear to reduce longer term stability around the knee.
Foam rolling can help with the pain. So can icing and compression of the knee when not running/ riding. Brufen does the trick as well.
This is one of the reasons that runners benefit from resistance training.
the point of the link was you said IT band shouldnt increase in length this said it can be done. as for icing and so on for me it didnt help at all. weight training prevents it from hurting even more but once I stop for awhile it hurts again but so doesnt the rest of my body
Shouldn't, not can't. Stretching it just brings other problems into play.0 -
I think the other question is, "is your IT band the root of the problem?" You can have a tight IT band and a knee that doesn't track correctly with the knee maltracking not being related to the IT band. That's part of why I suggested getting a second opinion.
I had an x-ray done to make sure there was nothing wrong with the bones or arthritis starting in the knee. It came back clear. My doctor said he could investigate further because the X-ray wouldn’t show if there was any soft tissue injury. At he time I felt that the physiotherapy was starting to help, which it did as I was able to fully straighten my knee and flex the leg but the pain has always stayed the same. I think it may be time to ask for further investigation into this. I have good strength in my core, glutes, quads and hamstrings. The physiotherapist said strengthening my abductor muscles would help but still no improvement after a year and a half of this.0 -
I think the other question is, "is your IT band the root of the problem?" You can have a tight IT band and a knee that doesn't track correctly with the knee maltracking not being related to the IT band. That's part of why I suggested getting a second opinion.
I had an x-ray done to make sure there was nothing wrong with the bones or arthritis starting in the knee. It came back clear. My doctor said he could investigate further because the X-ray wouldn’t show if there was any soft tissue injury. At he time I felt that the physiotherapy was starting to help, which it did as I was able to fully straighten my knee and flex the leg but the pain has always stayed the same. I think it may be time to ask for further investigation into this. I have good strength in my core, glutes, quads and hamstrings. The physiotherapist said strengthening my abductor muscles would help but still no improvement after a year and a half of this.
yeah I would look into it further and good luck and let us know if you find anything out otherwise. if you know something isnt right keep pushing for them to look into it.
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