RUNNERS: knees that go kablooey?

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Samerah12
Samerah12 Posts: 610 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Alright, sorry in advance for another knee pain thread, but here goes...

I have a knee that hyper-extends. I am training for a marathon and all has been going really well for the first 1/3rd of training. Going into week 6 though the knee is starting to bug me and the miles are going to get higher, so here I am looking for advice.

I do my strength training, stretching (before and after everything I do, religiously) and ice like I ought to (going to start upping the icing to more than once a day if I can manage).

What else can I do? Anyone have brace recommendations for hyper-extension?

Replies

  • Athena413
    Athena413 Posts: 1,709 Member
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    I reposted your question on the Joplin Road Runners facebook page...it's a running club that I'm involved in...there are a lot of physical therapists and veteran runners in the group...maybe one of them can help. :smile:
  • Samerah12
    Samerah12 Posts: 610 Member
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    I reposted your question on the Joplin Road Runners facebook page...it's a running club that I'm involved in...there are a lot of physical therapists and veteran runners in the group...maybe one of them can help. :smile:

    Thank you!!
  • jmijaressf
    jmijaressf Posts: 215
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    I used to get runners knee that would sideline me for a few days. Or just a slight pain while running, and then suddenly it felt like my knee would just totally collapse on me.

    I managed to eliminate knee pain by shortening my stride and making sure that my foot lands under my center-of-gravity/center-of-mass. It took some practice, but in the end I was able to run a half marathon last month without any knee pain or other running pains. And I'm still pain-free today.
  • Samerah12
    Samerah12 Posts: 610 Member
    Options
    I used to get runners knee that would sideline me for a few days. Or just a slight pain while running, and then suddenly it felt like my knee would just totally collapse on me.

    I managed to eliminate knee pain by shortening my stride and making sure that my foot lands under my center-of-gravity/center-of-mass. It took some practice, but in the end I was able to run a half marathon last month without any knee pain or other running pains. And I'm still pain-free today.

    I've been working really hard on my form but it is still way less than perfect. Do you feel like the 5 fingers helped with your form? I have a pair but never worked up to using them for big miles, I love my brooks too much...
  • Athena413
    Athena413 Posts: 1,709 Member
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    Do you run the whole thing, or do you take walk breaks? Jeff Galloway's training method swears by taking strategic walk breaks. He and his wife run/walk a marathon every month with no trouble at all and they're in their 60's!
  • Samerah12
    Samerah12 Posts: 610 Member
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    Do you run the whole thing, or do you take walk breaks? Jeff Galloway's training method swears by taking strategic walk breaks. He and his wife run/walk a marathon every month with no trouble at all and they're in their 60's!


    I take a short walk break every 3 miles when I'm doing 6 or more. I used to feel like it was cheating but I got over that. It improves my overall times and I get less stressed out about long runs before I go out.
  • Athena413
    Athena413 Posts: 1,709 Member
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    Jeff and his wife do intervals of 30 seconds running/30 seconds walking for the ENTIRE marathon...which I think sounds crazy...but his methods are proven to improve your time...has something to do with allowing your muscles to recover so you can keep on keepin' on. I've been reading the books that I bought from him when he was in Joplin and there's a lot of interesting things I didn't really know about running.
  • Samerah12
    Samerah12 Posts: 610 Member
    Options
    Jeff and his wife do intervals of 30 seconds running/30 seconds walking for the ENTIRE marathon...which I think sounds crazy...but his methods are proven to improve your time...has something to do with allowing your muscles to recover so you can keep on keepin' on. I've been reading the books that I bought from him when he was in Joplin and there's a lot of interesting things I didn't really know about running.

    A couple of ladies at my first half did this and they finished at the same time as me! They were just much faster on their running intervals. I really prefer to run longer stretches though.
  • NatalieWinning
    NatalieWinning Posts: 999 Member
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    I used to get runners knee that would sideline me for a few days. Or just a slight pain while running, and then suddenly it felt like my knee would just totally collapse on me.

    I managed to eliminate knee pain by shortening my stride and making sure that my foot lands under my center-of-gravity/center-of-mass. It took some practice, but in the end I was able to run a half marathon last month without any knee pain or other running pains. And I'm still pain-free today.

    Maybe there's something to that. I did squats keeping my knee aligned and it made a difference. I was never able to do much knee stuff, and now I can even do the breast stroke kick without my knee clicking out. Thats a first in my lifetime.
  • UpToAnyCool
    UpToAnyCool Posts: 1,673
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    bump
  • jmijaressf
    jmijaressf Posts: 215
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    I've been working really hard on my form but it is still way less than perfect. Do you feel like the 5 fingers helped with your form? I have a pair but never worked up to using them for big miles, I love my brooks too much...

    VFFs are awesome! Initially when I started out I did too much too soon and ended up injuring myself, but after a proper transition period in them just getting that feedback from the ground due to the VFFs having no cushioning has helped a lot.

    Check out this video:

    http://www.newtonrunning.com/run-better/newton-running-videos/injury-prevention/47-injury-prevention/102-run-right-video

    It's actually an advertisement for Newton shoes, but there's some sound technique in it.

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