Knee pain?

Amy_B
Amy_B Posts: 2,317 Member
edited September 20 in Fitness and Exercise
I have recently discovered some on again/off again knee pain in my left knee. The pain is pretty much under the knee cap and slightly to the left. It hasn't been hurting consistently, and it usually doesn't hurt when I workout. I noticed it one day after I ran (as I was coming down some steps about 20 minutes after the run). It's been hurting me consistently for about 3 hours now, which is unusual compared to what it has been doing. Any ideas? Should I take a break or something from exercise? See a doctor? Thanks!

Replies

  • kellygirl5538
    kellygirl5538 Posts: 597 Member
    I have the same problem, I have been working out too much and not getting a rest day. I would like to see what others say.

    I also think that i don't stretch well enough.
  • SunshineLady
    SunshineLady Posts: 36 Member
    If this is new pain it keeps popping back up, I say see a doctor. Pain is your bodies way of telling you when something is wrong. I have almost no cartlilage in my knees and I cannot do weight bearing exercises....steps, squatting, eliptical, running, dancing and etc....painful!
  • jlvgriffin
    jlvgriffin Posts: 23 Member
    Try taking some anti-nflammatories (advil or aleve) regularly for a day or so if you are able to (no stomach or kidney problems) and ice your knee (15-20 minutes a couple times a day). Do non impact activities for a couple of days. Once the pain is gone, you want to take a good look at your shoes and your running technique. It is important to wear the correct supportive shoe to prevent excessive pronation with running to avoid knee pain. As far as technique, you want to make sure that your hamstrings, calves and hips are well stretched out after a warm up, before a run...these can alter your mechanics and make your knee hurt. If your knee continues to hurt after a couple of days of anti-inflammatories, ice and non impact activities, or hurts again when you resume activity, see a doctor and perhaps a physical therapist to improve your mechanics of running.

    Hope this helps. Keep with the exercise!
  • TXBlockhead
    TXBlockhead Posts: 169 Member
    I have a lot of knee pain too. Mine is because of my weight and I am trying to get it off before I do too much damage. My knees hurt worse when I am going down stairs than going up stairs. I figure that the pain will subside when I am able to lose the weight.
  • shanli
    shanli Posts: 19
    Pain is 'your body's way of telling you that something is wrong'. It may not be too serious right now, but I wouldn't wait for it to get to that point. If at all possible I would swap some of your high-impact(running) workouts for something that's just as effective but less aggressive (swimming).
  • poustotah
    poustotah Posts: 1,121 Member
    I had this too and eventually went to an orthopedic surgeon and had knee surgery. What happened in my case was that I shattered the interior lining of the meniscus when I was 14 and never had it repaired. It never hurt. Well as I got fatter and fatter, my knees started to buckle. Again, no pain in the knee. So I started losing weight and once I lost some weight, the knees started to straighten which crushed that lining in the knee and was causing the pain. To the point that I had to have surgery. My surgeon told me that this is a common problem with women that are overweight. I just went back to the doctor last week for a 1 year checkup on the knee. He told me that because I have been exercising the legs and strengthening them, the bones have actually gained mass to hold the weight of the muscle which has now fused in that spot. Essentially, the developed muscle is holding my knee in place and preventing the pain. I have 12 more pounds to lose and the doctor has assured me that if I continue along this path, I will feel some pain when the weather changes and that will be it.
  • Chenoachem
    Chenoachem Posts: 1,758 Member
    When I had pain like that I went to a PT. They told me that my quads were weaker than my hamstrings, since I did a lot of running and not enough cross training. Work on getting it feeling better and try doing some squats or something to build up the quads to match the muscles in the back of the leg.

    Awesome job on your weight loss so far.
  • Amy_B
    Amy_B Posts: 2,317 Member
    Thanks for all the replies! I'm not sure I hurt it while running. It has been a couple of weeks, but it seems that it might have been after a workout video. Nonetheless, I'm going to lay off the exercise for 2-3 days and see how it feels. (That's going to be difficult for someone who loves to workout!)
  • TByrd1325
    TByrd1325 Posts: 920 Member
    Definately see a doctor. You don't want anything to get worse (especially with the knees!)
    I was having a pain in my knee also. It normally only hurt when I did squats with my toes pointed out (strange, yes), or long yoga sessions. The physical therapist told my my left leg was significantly less stronger than my right.
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