Pain?

reddevil29
reddevil29 Posts: 169 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Just wondering if anyone has experienced pain in their knee and had trouble putting weight or running on it. My left knee can play up at times and other times it is fine, its very difficult to run on as I am afraid i will hurt it even more. Anyone any ideas why this is happening and what I can do to stop this from happening??

Replies

  • sarahrbraun
    sarahrbraun Posts: 2,261 Member
    other than pain, are there any other symptoms? Does it feel weak in any particular area? Have you had your ACL and MCL checked out?
  • skinnyme213
    skinnyme213 Posts: 5
    I have been told to run on non hard surfaces - so if you are jogging along the footpath, try and get onto the grass..
    It's better if you have supportive shoes too, they don't have to be expensive, just do the job - Support you in your fitness.

    I wouldn't do anything that is actually causing pain - thats the body's sign that something is wrong. Maybe strap it & go see a doctor asap, better safe than sorry.

    This doesn't mean stopping exercise! :) You can walk & swim and cycle to strengthen muscles and loose weight - just avoid anything that is painful :)

    Good luck
  • CDG1013
    CDG1013 Posts: 106 Member
    It's hard to say what's going on with your knee without having it examined. I was having severe pain in my right knee, so I had it checked out. Some of my pain is from osteoarthritis caused by wear and tear over the years. Extra weight can cause this. To counter it, I get injections every 9 months. If you are just starting running, the new stress on your joint may be causing pain and may get better with time. I have been a runner off and on since high school, but these days I do most of my running on the treadmill to reduce the impact. By varying incline, you can get effective workouts (my proof is that I ran a 5K last week that has a monster hill in it...ran a 22:41 and maintained 8 min pace up the hill) Since I am not a doctor, my recommendation is that you have it checked out.
  • reddevil29
    reddevil29 Posts: 169 Member
    other than pain, are there any other symptoms? Does it feel weak in any particular area? Have you had your ACL and MCL checked out?

    It feels like there may be something on it, its not swollen though and sorry but i dont know what ACl and MCL is??
  • reddevil29
    reddevil29 Posts: 169 Member
    I have been told to run on non hard surfaces - so if you are jogging along the footpath, try and get onto the grass..
    It's better if you have supportive shoes too, they don't have to be expensive, just do the job - Support you in your fitness.

    I wouldn't do anything that is actually causing pain - thats the body's sign that something is wrong. Maybe strap it & go see a doctor asap, better safe than sorry.

    This doesn't mean stopping exercise! :) You can walk & swim and cycle to strengthen muscles and loose weight - just avoid anything that is painful :)

    Good luck

    Thank you, i run on the treadmill but yeah maybe the doctor might be able to shine some light on the matter
  • reddevil29
    reddevil29 Posts: 169 Member
    It's hard to say what's going on with your knee without having it examined. I was having severe pain in my right knee, so I had it checked out. Some of my pain is from osteoarthritis caused by wear and tear over the years. Extra weight can cause this. To counter it, I get injections every 9 months. If you are just starting running, the new stress on your joint may be causing pain and may get better with time. Since I am not a doctor, my recommendation is that you have it checked out.

    Thank you, yes I think i will see the doctor as it is quite painful and I do not want it to hinder my weight loss and fitness in the long run
  • sarahrbraun
    sarahrbraun Posts: 2,261 Member
    other than pain, are there any other symptoms? Does it feel weak in any particular area? Have you had your ACL and MCL checked out?

    It feels like there may be something on it, its not swollen though and sorry but i dont know what ACl and MCL is??

    ACL is the ligament on the outside of your knee, MCL is the ligament on the inside of your knee. About 14 months ago I fell in my garage, and landed on my knee. It bruised like crazy, and when I went to urgent care they said that I slightly pulled my MCL. I had to baby it for a month or 6 weeks, but now it is 100%.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    My knees are a mess (ruptured PCL, lost a complete cartilege, fractured patella).
    If you are getting sharp pain you really must go and get them checked out properly - complex joints but sometimes simple cures or surgeries.
    Maybe start with a sport's physio and ask their advice if you need to see a specialist.
  • polishmehappy
    polishmehappy Posts: 92 Member
    First advice is for you to see a doctor if you can afford it. Second is to stop running, walk instead. The ortho docs I see at work say that running is too hard on your knees and it is better to walk. I work in an ortho, neuro, and peds unit so I hear them docs talk about this sort of stuff often.
    Personally I don't risk running because of my right knee (it is fragile) so I just put a knee support on (got it at Walmart) and go for my long walks on a treadmill. :)
  • reddevil29
    reddevil29 Posts: 169 Member
    Thanks guys I appreciate your help, yeah I might just do walking and see how I get on with that, and also see the doc....Its very unusual as some days there is no issue with it....
  • CDG1013
    CDG1013 Posts: 106 Member
    Good luck!

    I also have reduced the amount of running I do and have increased my time on the elliptical trainer. By varying the resistance, I can burn as many calories as I do with a run without beating my knees up. My typical workout on the elliptical is something like:

    - Start at level 9 for 3-5 min to get warmed up
    - Increase level to 10 and leave it there until 10 min elapsed time
    - Increase level by 1 every 2 minutes until I hit 16
    - Decrease level by 1 every 2 minutes until I hit 10
    - Repeat. This gives me 2 cycles in 50 min and I burn on the order of 600 calories. I also do 2 min of reverse pedaling when I am at level 10 or 11.

    Adapt to your own fitness level. It works quite well for me and my knees thank me.

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