Positive Cartilage stories needed !!!

KonaMike

I am suffering a bit with my left knee at the moment,mostly with a dull ache under the kneecap and it bit more clicking than I have ever noticed before,I am 37 . I plan to see a Physio in the new year once my wifes health improves as she is currently having an MS relapse which obviously puts a sore knee into perspective !!!
I was just wondering if anyone had got over Cartilage issues and carried on cycling ??
I need to be able to ride for work transport and for my sanity !!!

essex-commuter

According to my physio, aches and clicks do not always indicate cartilage problems, that is usually associated with excessive grinding.

I suffer with soreness at the bottom of the cap and my knee has developed a click, mine is caused by a problem with my IT band. Apparently.

essex-commuter

Oh and mine is the right knee so if you fancy swapping and taking it in turns to have a decent pair...PM me

KonaMike

I am definately up for a knee share scheme

Good to hear grinding isnt always Cartilage!!

Cheers.

bigmat

I have dodgy knees from when I used to play rugby. They don't affect my cycling too much, but can be a nightmatre when hiking / running. Your symptoms sound similar to mine - uncomfortable around the kneecap. I saw a physio and was told that I had extremely tight quads and thigh muscles, probably due to the amount of cycling that I do (he also commented on my "extraordinarily strong legs "). Anyway, I was given a series of stretches to do which helped.

I had more serious issues when training for the marathon - developed a small baker's cyst behind the knee and atrophy of the thigh muscle (ended up with odd legs for a while), I saw another physio and was recommended a series of core strength exercises (mainly stretches). I also had a session of massage / accupuncture which seemed to help. I managed to get round anyway, and haven't had any real problems since (although I have avoided running!)

EKE_38BPM

When I was a teenager I had bouts of really bad knee pain. When I sat down I'd hear all sorts of grinding and clicking and it was so bad that a couple of times I went to school with a walking stick (yeah, a cool look).
I went to the docs and was referred to specialists who told me cartilage isn't great and basically said that I should exercise more (especially cycling) to build up the muscles around my knee, rather than rest and make the knee do all of the work.
I'm glad to say that my knees are much better now, but as an adult I found that the more I ride the better my knees are. When I don't ride for a while, I get pain in my knees again.

My advice: keep cycling, lower the weight you are carrying on the bike (you and your kit) where possible, spin rather than grinding, keep cycling (I know I said this twice, but I think its important).

KonaMike

I have stayed off the bike for three weeks now (nearly killed me) and,as in your case,I think it feels worse for it.

KonaMike

Worth mentioning that I use Keo pedals with 9 degree flaot(changed from 4.5) which was what my LBS recommended for my knees. They also set up my cleats for me with the Keo Fit system but put me on the Turbo on a different bike to do so,which I found a bit wierd as I had ridden there on own my bike !!

tailwindhome

I knew a Cartilage who helped out in the local old peoples home, did their shopping, ran wee bingo nights and generally took a bit of time out to sit and give the old folks a bit of company.

greg66_tri_v2.0

KonaMike wrote:

I am suffering a bit with my left knee at the moment,mostly with a dull ache under the kneecap and it bit more clicking than I have ever noticed before,I am 37 . I plan to see a Physio in the new year once my wifes health improves as she is currently having an MS relapse which obviously puts a sore knee into perspective !!!
I was just wondering if anyone had got over Cartilage issues and carried on cycling ??
I need to be able to ride for work transport and for my sanity !!!

Doesn't sound like cartilage to me. IME cartilage is more often white hot sudden acute OMFG that hurts-type pain.

If it is cartilage, relax. I had my first one done whilst at University and second one in my late 20s. 5 days after the op for the second one I was cycling (after a fashion - didn't have full flex) and 5 days after that I was skiing bumps. Both of 'em still work just fine now.

secretdancer

I know you asked for positive stories but the clicking, pain and soreness after resting could also be symptoms of osteoarthritis. I'm currently recovering from a ligament repair and cartilage trim surgery and have done a little reading in this area. I suffered my original injury a long time ago and was getting more grief in my knee so I decided to get something done. Anyway, the surgeons found medium grade osteoarthritis behind my knee cap. I'm only 36. Anyway, my reading has revealed catilage injuries can be related to early onset arthritis.

Having said all that I'd rely on the physio's diagnosis rather than us lot on here!Certainly a question you can ask and hopefully you'll be able to rule it out. Like you I rely on the bike for fun and getting to work (although am in the car at the moment until the physios tell me I'm allowed out on the bike again).

Good luck.

KonaMike

TailWindHome wrote:

I knew a Cartilage who helped out in the local old peoples home, did their shopping, ran wee bingo nights and generally took a bit of time out to sit and give the old folks a bit of company.

Thats the most positive Cartilage story I have ever heard thanks !!

Thanks all for the replies

flimflam_machine

KonaMike wrote:

I am suffering a bit with my left knee at the moment,mostly with a dull ache under the kneecap and it bit more clicking than I have ever noticed before,I am 37 . I plan to see a Physio in the new year once my wifes health improves as she is currently having an MS relapse which obviously puts a sore knee into perspective !!!
I was just wondering if anyone had got over Cartilage issues and carried on cycling ??
I need to be able to ride for work transport and for my sanity !!!

I'm suffereing from something vaguely similar. After overdoing it on the back of no conditioning whatsoever I got a sudden twinge just above and lateral to my knee which made stairs a real issue. I don't get the twinge so much any more but it's settled down into a dull ache when I cycle, which feels a bit like someone inflating a balloon behind my knee, and lots of clicking.

I got to see a physio within a few weeks on the NHS and her opinion is that it wasn't any of the exotic things that I feared, but rather a fairly standard patella-femoral issue caused by a overtight ITB causing my kneecap to track too far out and rub over my lateral femoral condyle. She told me that cartilage issues are usually accompanied by the knee actually giving way, rather than just feeling like it's giving way. So unless you've found yourself on the floor, I wouldn't be too convinced that yours is a cartilage issue, (which is good!) The treatment I'm getting is ITB massage (fantastically painful), exercises (boring), stretches (difficult to remember) and roller work (quite painful but also effective and highly recommended). I've tried to stay on my bike because totally resting made it feel worse rather than better and hopefully, like my previous knee issues, it will resolve itself.

So, nil desperandum etc. I'd say get a physio appointment, stay on your bike but keep the resistance low, do some quad, hamsting and ITB stretches, and have some general massage/hot baths in case you've got any overly tight muscles. Good luck!

essex-commuter

flimflam_machine wrote:

settled down into a dull ache when I cycle....
and lots of clicking.......
overtight ITB causing my kneecap to track too far out and rub....
ITB massage (fantastically painful), exercises (boring), stretches (difficult to remember) and roller work (quite painful but also effective and highly recommended). ....

Exactly my ailments, same diagnosis, same treatment, same massage pain!

flimflam_machine

essex-commuter wrote:

flimflam_machine wrote:

settled down into a dull ache when I cycle....
and lots of clicking.......
overtight ITB causing my kneecap to track too far out and rub....
ITB massage (fantastically painful), exercises (boring), stretches (difficult to remember) and roller work (quite painful but also effective and highly recommended). ....

Exactly my ailments, same diagnosis, same treatment, same massage pain!

That massage is quite an experience isn't it? Previously I'd had to go to certain select clubs in Soho to take some of my clothes off and have an attractive woman cause me pain

graham1871

Same here...
I've been cycling to and from work (30 miles most week days) for about 3 years until this summer.
From doing about 6000 miles a year I've now hardly got on the bike for 6 months.

I'd also been topping it up with a couple of 100 mile sportives each year. This year wasn't any different but I totally failed to recover after the Dragon Ride (which didn't cause any problems and no pain during the ride). Initially I thought it would fix itself with a week or two off the bike but when it didn't I had to go to the doc.

I've had a couple of months with the physio. About a dozen appointments with an osteopath and sports massage. I've done all the exercises, a couple of months of foam rolling the ITB - and the result - no change at all. As soon as I do anything (cycling, walking, stairs, any kind of movement) I get burning pain under both kneecaps. The more I do the more it hurts and the knees feel really weak. Driving is just as bad as cycling - it's causing me big issues on a daily basis and I've done no exercise for 6 months! I've at last managed to get an appointment with a surgeon to see what the deal is - but I'm fearing the worst now.

Has anyone been off the bike for this long and managed to return to "proper" cycling?
Has anyone had a similar condition diagnosed?
I'm also 36. Is it time to sell the bikes?

mudcow007

Do everybody else's knees "crack" when they bend down?

thinking about it most of my joint click an crack - knees, ankles, hips (more of a clunk) and shoulders

i have got wobbly/ lapse joints in my shoulders though so they dislocated at least a few times a week

veronese68

All of my joints crack, except possibly the ones between the plates of my skull. When I sneeze I can even feel a crack in my ribcage. Cracking is not a problem in itself.

graham1871

That's another symptom.
It's a 2 mile roll to the station to get the train to work since I can't commute on the bike any more.
The knees feel "locked" for the first 20 seconds and then there's a big crack and they loosen up a touch.
And then they hurt at the end of the short, zero-effort ride.
I can't think that's good either.
Doomed??