ITBS remedy?
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allie7383
Posts: 865 Member
Hi all,
I fell victim to ITBS in the beginning of Sept while training for what was going to be my first marathon. After seeing the doc I spent a month in PT which went well and afterwards I was able to get through an 8 mile run doing run/walk intervals. Now the knee pain has come back this week and my friend loaned me a small electric stimulator which he used for back pain. I was just wondering if anyone has used a device like this for IT band issues, and if they have found success. The race is next weekend, but at this point I'm unfortunately throwing in the towel since today I just barely made it through 3 miles. Thanks!
I fell victim to ITBS in the beginning of Sept while training for what was going to be my first marathon. After seeing the doc I spent a month in PT which went well and afterwards I was able to get through an 8 mile run doing run/walk intervals. Now the knee pain has come back this week and my friend loaned me a small electric stimulator which he used for back pain. I was just wondering if anyone has used a device like this for IT band issues, and if they have found success. The race is next weekend, but at this point I'm unfortunately throwing in the towel since today I just barely made it through 3 miles. Thanks!
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Replies
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Sorry to hear about your situation, I missed 6 weeks of running last years due to ITBS.
My treatment / recovery / prevention has been 3 pronged:
1) Stretching & foam rolling, I'm sure your PT has shown you all these but.....
http://www.runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=6099
2) Massage therapy - I'm very fortunate to have a sports therapy clinic literally across the road from my office (plus my insurance covers some of the cost). I may feel like I've been hit by a truck after my monthly session but I've been running pain free for a year.
3) Strength training. There has been some recent research suggesting that hip strength has more of an impact on treating / preventing ITBS than stretching etc
http://news.menshealth.com/it-band-syndrome/2012/07/27/
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/fitness/running/strengthening-beats-stretching-when-it-comes-to-this-common-running-injury/article4365074/
Get better!0 -
3) Strength training. There has been some recent research suggesting that hip strength has more of an impact on treating / preventing ITBS than stretching etc
http://news.menshealth.com/it-band-syndrome/2012/07/27/
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/fitness/running/strengthening-beats-stretching-when-it-comes-to-this-common-running-injury/article4365074/
Brian, thanks for posting that. I've not been laid low by ITBS, but it definiately has impacted my running. I had only been doing the roling, which eased the symptoms.
However, I've been working on my hip muscles (totally un-running related exercises) and now that I think about it my IT's haven't bothered me as much during my most recent round of HALF training. I'm going to do some more research on this item - but I'll vouch for the fact that it has validity.0 -
Thanks for the replies! Right now I'm at just over 2 months since the initial injury and missed so much. They had me doing running for the bulk of my time in PT but it was just a couple miles. I've heard from a couple places now that strengthening is key so I've been doing some leg lifts with a resistance band and rolling. By the end of my time in PT my guy suggested not rolling as he thought it could be aggravating the problem so I haven't been doing that as much and instead bought a massage roller. Guess it's back to the doc and more sessions.0
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stretch strengthen and this exercise helped me loads
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SE7uUVhMVkQ , no running for a few weeks also 0 -
I had some major IT issues about three years ago. I tried the stretches, the rollers, and a specialist. The thing that helped the most was changing shoes. I went from a Saucony light weight trainer to the Mizuno Wave Elixir. The IT pain went away in about 3 weeks and only returned once when I tried a Books shoe.0
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What did the physical therapist say the root cause of your ITBS was? It can be attributed to many things. Overuse, poor form, muscle imbalances, lack of flexibility, etc. Address the root cause and you'll be on your way to fixing the issue. For me I was quad dominant and had poor flexibility in my hips and glutes. I was down for 6 weeks to address the inflammation, fix my form, and work through my muscular issues. After that I have not been bothered by it again.0
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Some great feedback here!!! I agree on the shoes...and I love my Mizunos.
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I had been struggling with what I thought was an IT issue really painful after 3+ miles. I did lots of stretching and rolling with little relief. My Physical Therapist is now treating me for lateral patella tracking, same kind o f symptoms as ITBS and really the same strength treatment.. But either way it looks like the solution to my issue is going to be about 6 weeks of leg strengthening. Good luck with your recovery!0
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I've just recovered from an ITB injury. I spent a month in physiotherapy. Running very little. 10k was my max. Usually 5k's. I found running on the treadmill easier as well. My PT gave me strength and stretching exercises to do. Which I did faithfully everyday. And they he followed up with ultrasound and another machine, I forget what it's called now. The electric pins and needles thingy. HAHA!! Sorry.
What was interesting was that the exercises he was giving me were either the same as or variations of yoga poses that I had been doing. I had been taking a yoga class twice a week for almost a year. It wasn't long after I stopped that I developed the injury.
So, it's my anecdotal hypothesis that a good yoga program will help relieve and reduce ITB pain and injury.0 -
I am going to see a Sports Medicine doc on Friday, for what I believe is ITBS. It's setting me back in my training as well. It's so DEPRESSING!! Anyway, good luck with your recovery, if the doc gives me any good info, I'll pass it on! Hopefully we can get over it quickly and get back on the road!!0
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I had a severe case of ITBS that required months of PT as well as more months with trainers to adress my muscle imbalances and strength issues. I didn't run for over a year. (knock on wood, I've been symptom free for over a year, but I still need to pay attention to it)
In addition to everything that's been said here (roll, stretch, massage, strength, cross-train and take some time off from running), I found the Graston Technique to be very beneficial in my case. The chiropractor I was going to also offered it as a service and it really helped break up the lingering spasms I was getting and break the pattern that my body kept reverting to.
You also might want to try out a different PT... It doesn't sound quite right that they are having you run and suggesting that you don't foam roll. Get someone who has lots of experience specifically with runners (ask around and get references).
Good luck!0 -
I've been using a TENS unit for hip and IT issues. It's an electrical stimulator / massager.
I had tried foam roller, ART, chiropractic, and massage therapy.
The TENS is great for pain relief. Massage and chiropractic are awesome, but I can't afford to go every day. I go to massage once a week and the chiro once a month or so. ART didn't do much for me.
TENS I use 4-6 times a day and foam roller at least twice for the last few days and I am just about pain free for the first time in months.0
