My knees & Running?

I ran cross country and coach long distance running.

I agree with a lot of posters here. Get to fleet feet and have them suggest a shoe after watching you run. Shoes are a must to avoid injury.

Proper warm up and cool down activities are also a must and the type of workout and pacing you choose can impact you. I totally get how we think mileage and time are indicators of growth...but they can also lead to focus on the wrong things in training and building endurance...that’s why a training program is beneficial bc most people have not been trained in how to coach long distance running.

I have years of experience running competitively. I also am a teacher who coaches long distance running (read several books, and took some college courses on coaching). I would never suggest simply increasing the distance or speed for training. Especially in the beginning, we focus more on run time and type of running than distance and activities that ensure proper form. I can suggest some wonderful training plans for running, but I need to know your goals—are you looking to build up to a half marathon, or other road races? Are you looking to be competitive or simply healthy? What are your exact goals?

Someone suggested softer turf, which a track is pretty soft, but not the softest. If it’s a synthetic track—that’s better for speed training, so that’s the appropriate place for shorter distance interval training. A cinder track is better, but can get too slick in the summer heat or in rain. Grass is absolutely the best...or trails. So hit your local parks for runs if you can. Also, for now, try to make your runs flat and slowly add in hills...running a hill correctly takes lots of training and can be a huge cause of injury. I will say, people to exaggerate the impact of running surface so it might not make a dramatic difference in your knees, but certainly try it out.

Avoid HIIT training for the legs if you are working on becoming a runner—that will kill the condition of your legs over time and you will hurt yourself. Core and arm HIIT might help improve your form—but if you’re mixing leg HIIT and running, that’s going to lead to pain. There are different forms of interval training for long distance running, such as Fartlek running. Do appropriate interval training for running, not HIIT. Save the squats for appropriate warm ups and cool downs on a training plan where appropriate—not as intensity workouts.

is the pain in the front or back/side part of the knee? (Does it hurt when you apply pressure to the kneecap (front) or the little bump on the side of your knee? Does it hurt more going up or down stairs?). You could be developing a common condition known as Runners Knee (different varieties based on where the pain is).

If so, scale back right away, ice, compress, elevate, and heal. A lot of stuff online will tell you it’s hip weakness or imbalance and to work on that area...but that’s not really proven science and I have plenty of teen runners without hip weakness that have issue with this. If you’re really overweight or out of shape, you might need some hip training to help reduce. Best bet is to slow it down and do a proper training plan as others have suggested. It’s likely fact that you’re increasing your volume too quickly that is causing this. But, a slower pace can actually cause back knee pain, which is why I’m asking exactly where the pain is.

Go to a running store and get analyzed...ask them about your form and improving it while getting proper shoes ($150 shoes like Brooks last me years and prevent injury so it’s worth it). The way you roll on your foot can cause knee issues...if you’re leaning too far forward/backward or not swinging your arms enough to build proper stride and form—that can also cause these issues.

I’d give yourself a few days off at this point. If it’s in the front part of your knee, the elliptical can make the injury worse, so I don’t recommend. Try a few different ellipticals and choose one with a stride that doesn’t hurt your knee at all, run forwards and backwards to also see which is less painful. If you have ANY pain using the elliptical during or after the workout, STOP. If you let this perpetuate you could require surgery and much more time away from the gym.

Sorry for the long post...I cracked my kneecap as a teen, and it impacts my knee pain a lot in my adulthood—so I feel you. Very hard to upkeep running with knee pain!