Runners knee and how to treat/avoid

dawnna76
dawnna76 Posts: 987 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have been plagued by not so strong knees most of my adult life but it has never stopped me from doing any activities for the most part. For the last year I have been running, doing cross circuit, HIIT and all sorts of other things with no issues. I recently trained for a half marathon and had no issues during any training runs. But in my half last Sunday at mile 9 my knee just gave out. It's a pain right in the front on the bottom part of my kneecap. I had to walk the rest of the half. Anytime I tried to jog again the pain was just to much. It doesn't hurt to walk just the impact from jogging or even going up or downstair right now hurt. I finished but unfortunately not in the time I was hoping for.

How to treat this injury? When can I resume daily workouts and not cause more damage? Would braces or tape help me in future long distance runs?

Replies

  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,646 Member
    if it's classic tendonitis, NSAIDS and rest...

    stop using it and let it heal properly.
  • sassycraftyfit
    sassycraftyfit Posts: 31
    Sounds like patella tendonitis. I had a mild flare up a few weeks prior to my recent half marathon, this past Saturday. I took it easy for a week, iced everyday, I also have a tens unit, so I used that on my knee. My stomach can't handle motrin or ibuprofin so I just took some tylenol. I've started doing more leg strengthening exercises. The pain had gone away by my half, but to be safe I used KT Tape on my knee and I was pain free during the half marathon. I would look into exercises specifically for "runner's knee", and if the pain is really bad, maybe see a physical therapist!

    Edited for a typo.
  • wonderbeard101
    wonderbeard101 Posts: 75 Member
    There are a lot of potential reasons for knee pain. Here's a video for some postural cues that might be helpful for running or day to day activity:

    http://youtu.be/Gyh5ZCLbSSk

    He's got a lot of really great videos for all kinds of rehab and mobility items. Definitely worth a look through.
  • _Josee_
    _Josee_ Posts: 625 Member
    Go see a medical sport specialist of your choice... Nobody can tell you what's wrong with you from behind their computer. And ignoring the problem can only make things worst.
  • MagnumBurrito
    MagnumBurrito Posts: 1,070 Member
    Try stretching your hammies. They (and the quads) crisscross around the knee and shorten with exercise (especially cardio). Thus causing constant knee pain that gets worse over time.

    Also, take some IB profin to lessen the fluid build up.
  • HornedFrogPride
    HornedFrogPride Posts: 283 Member
    Kinesiology tape (KT tape), I use it when needed. Rest-Ice-Compression-Elevation (RICE).
  • Escape_Artist
    Escape_Artist Posts: 1,155 Member
    Best advice i can give you is to go see a physiotherapist.
    Don't keep working out with pain. I did it and it got me nowhere. When i finally decided to see the physio he told me i needed to stop the heavy lifting/running for 2 months. I could only do rehab exercises and as for cardio i could go swim, except i couldnt use my legs (how convenient)
    I had to ice my knee twice a day and take ibuprofen for the first whole week.

    I since then have been back to my regular workouts and getting stronger but the 2 months off really pissed me off. I can only be mad at my own self cause really i should have stopped way before.

    Go see a specialist before it gets too bad and always listen to your body
  • barnettsa
    barnettsa Posts: 15 Member
    I had the exact same symptoms under the lower inside of my knee cap. Thought I was doing the right quad muscle exercises and it never got better. I got a referal for physical therapy and the therapist identified the problem and after just 2 sessions of doing the right strength exercises for my knee the pain had significantly reduced. He massaged the heck out of the outside quad and had me work on strengthening the inner quad. That pulled my kneecap back to where it was supposed to track properly. I would have been back to running sooner had I just gone to an expert in the first place.

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