Knee Pain

shellshalla

I've been working out for 2 weeks now consistently. I've been using a treadmill the whole time. Mainly I do intervals of 3-3.5 mph to 6-7 mph for 30-40 minutes. I may do some incline work after that at 3 mph depending on the day. A few days ago my knee starting aching. It hurts on the front of it, when pressure is applied. I can feel it when walking, but more when walking up stairs or running. I've been icing the last 2 nights and I tried to run at a light 5 mph today and it definitely was no comfortable and hurt. It's not a stabbing pain, more dull.

Anyone have any suggestions on how to get this to heal fastest? Any tricks of the trade? It's really discouraging to not be working out and getting my heart rate going, I really need this to feel better ASAP. I've done some strength training and tried a version of yoga/pilates today to help, but it's just not as intense for me. Thanks for anything and everything!

elisamckane

My knees bother me too. The only thing that has worked for me is Joint therapy pills. I get mine at costco because it is cheaper. They are filled with chondritin and glucosomine which is supposed to re-build your cartilege and provide fluid. I am a jogger not a runner but when I do not take it every day I sure can tell. My knees will ache or even throb. The downside to them is that you have to take them every day and you will not notice a difference until they are in your system for about a week and a half. I will take them for the rest of my life if that is what it takes to work out pain free!! Good luck!

ktmunchie

Make sure you are using you butt muscles when you are walking and running. If you are using too much quad and not enough butt that can make your knees hurt. Focus on using your bottom muscles when you walk and run and see if that helps.

TalonaCat

Do you feel grinding or dull throbbing pain when extending your knee while sitting after a walk?

I ask because I have something in my right knee called chondromalacia and just a crappy range of movement in my left knee. It's the exacerbated wear and tear of the cartiledge under your knee cap. This is more common in women, especially ones who are over weight. The GOOD news is that it will improve as you lose weight. The bad news is that there aren't many treatments for it besides steroid injections (which I have a few times a year) ibuprofen and icing and heating the knee.

Hopefully yours is just stiff and soreness from working out.

Edited because I realized I skipped a whole part of a sentence.

TalonaCat

I forgot to mention, there are excercises that you can do to strengthen and reallign the kneecap after the softening of the cartiledge, but I honestly don't remember what they are. I was told about them when I was too lazy to do them.. >.< I can research it for you, though.

Jnklian

I have been dealing with knee pain. I will share what has been working for me. First of all I love running, but when the knee pain started kept getting worse, I had to stop running. It especially hurt when I climb stairs. I have seen many recommendations on strengthening you thigh muscles, Quadriceps and Hamstrings. I tried doing weights on legs to work on those muscles but it becomes more painful so I stopped using weights on my legs.

I switched to Elliptical for cardio and help strengthen those muscles(BTW doctors recommend elliptical for knee pain). I noticed that my knee does not hurt or the pain is very minimal. I am also using Core Fusion's Pilates Plus along with this. This specific DVD does not put any stress on joints so..its perfect for my situation. I have only used this DVD for about a week and I noticed that pain has gone done down drastically.

My goal is to keep using the Elliptical (even though i don't enjoy it as much) and use Core Fusion DVD to build my Thigh muscles. Once the pain is gone completely, I will go back to running.

Good luck!

CallieM15

The elliptical is easier on the joints. Maybe try "running" on that when youre feeling sore.

Good luck!

Callie

ropsnik

Try an ice bag on your knees after you work out.

Azdak

The type of pain you are experiencing is most commonly caused by poor tracking of the kneecap when you run. There can be a number of different causes, but often it is due to weak quadriceps muscles. There are therapy programs to treat this condition, but there is no way to describe a routine in this space. I will say that you have to deal with two issues--the first is to relieve the immediate symptoms and inflammation. Then you have the deal with the underlying biomechanical issues that are causing the problem. Treating the symptoms without addressing the problem will not solve anything.

Depending on the degree of inflammation, you may need complete rest or alternate activities. Sometimes it is possible to use a special tape that holds the patella in place while you exercise, so you can continue to do some activity while addressing the big picture.

The best thing to do is to seek treatment from a sports medicine practitioner with experience in treating running injuries.

kwardklinck

I've heard if it hurts when you run, then you shouldn't run. I get quite a bit of achiness in mine at night sometimes but it doesn't usually bother me when I run. I think in my case it might be a touch of arthritis. If i'm hurting, I just do yoga or pilates instead because it doesn't cause the pressure in my knees. I know it's not as intense as the running but it's better than nothing.

aareeyesee

http://www.time-to-run.com/injuries/thebig5/runnersknee.htm

kwardklinck

I get sore and tender on the outside and inside of my left knee. It doesn't happen when I'm running. It's usually at night and in the morning. I get a little ache in the knee and the sides of it feel bruised even though it looks fine. There hasn't been any swelling at all but I do have some small bruised looking areas on the kneecap area that have been there since I started running. They actually don't hurt, they just look funny. Is this a normal thing for new runners?