overtrain or weak leg

macroadie

Started cycling in May 2013.
Had a lingering pain in the back of my left knee 3 weeks ago. Starts to hurt when I push it or do 40 miles or so. I took the last 2 weeks off from cycling and started working on my legs (squats, lunges, etc) plus one day on eliptical machine. Yesterday after 2 weeks off I rode 32 miles easy but the pain came up again. Am I not resting enough or my legs need more strength training? It's my first winter so not sure what I'm doing wrong.

imposter2.0

Your legs shouldn't need any 'strength' training. That's unlikely to be helping, tbh...

dennisn

macroadie wrote:

Started cycling in May 2013.
Had a lingering pain in the back of my left knee 3 weeks ago.

I'm going to cast my vote for your leg not being "ready" for what you're demanding it to do. It takes time for muscles and tendons to adapt to harder and harder work. The good news is that everyone has aches and pains at one time or another, and it's likely because they pushed things too hard for too long, and something(muscles, joints, tendons) sort of give out or revolt(if you will). Happens to all of us, so welcome to the club.

If you're doing something and it aggravates something you need to back off and build back up slowly.

macroadie

madasahattersley wrote:

How often do you do a good stretching routine?

I stretch before I ride and after. Started to use rollers and I also get a sports massage once a week.

Mikey23

Stretching cold muscles is not a good idea...

macroadie

madasahattersley wrote:

macroadie wrote:

madasahattersley wrote:

How often do you do a good stretching routine?

I stretch before I ride and after. Started to use rollers and I also get a sports massage once a week.

Stretching before riding is a bit of a grey area, but probably best to stay away from it.

Make sure you're not overdoing the stretching though - just as likely to cause injury as to prevent it if overdone. Kit Laughlin for instance only recommends a good stretch 1-2 times per week, to allow time for the body to recover, just as with a hard ride.

Other than that, have you had a good bike fit? It's not uncommon (in fact it's very common) for somebody new to cycling to not be set up correctly, and I've seen some horrendous riding styles from people new to the sport, which I'm sure are causing no end of problems

I spend less time stretching before riding but more stretching after a ride.
Yes I've had one bike fit and a second one after 3 months.

kajjal

Did you ride much on the injury when it first appears ?

This can increase healing time a lot , especially if you ride hard. I would have suggested looking at you bikes fit as the pain you suggest can be from having the saddle too far back and over stretching the leg / knee which was true in my case.

dw300

macroadie wrote:

Started cycling in May 2013.
Had a lingering pain in the back of my left knee 3 weeks ago. Starts to hurt when I push it or do 40 miles or so. I took the last 2 weeks off from cycling and started working on my legs (squats, lunges, etc) plus one day on eliptical machine. Yesterday after 2 weeks off I rode 32 miles easy but the pain came up again. Am I not resting enough or my legs need more strength training? It's my first winter so not sure what I'm doing wrong.

Developing a base is not just about fitness, its about preparing your body to step up the training. If you went too hard too soon and injured yourself and never let it heal properly then you havent got a base yet.

You need to keep the torque your legs are developing to a minimum till it heals, and then work your way up slowly. Especially if you are only new to cycling. So granny ring, no sprint or hard inclines, keep the revs up, that's the reason people suggest this type of training for newbies or people coming back from injury or layoff.

I had something similar. Just dont push yourself. Muscles adapt fast. Tendons, ligament and bone take months and years to develop their strength. Train smart, all this drilling yourself into the ground is for Hollywood movies, you only need to be pushing yourself beyond what you can handle now, then you get the training effect whilst keeping the risk of injury to a minimum.

I wouldn't weight train it at all. Do as above over the winter, and increase everything gradually. And sleep more, you cant have too much sleep.

macroadie

Kajjal wrote:

Did you ride much on the injury when it first appears ?

This can increase healing time a lot , especially if you ride hard. I would have suggested looking at you bikes fit as the pain you suggest can be from having the saddle too far back and over stretching the leg / knee which was true in my case.

No, when the pain started I took 2 weeks off and started doing strength work. When I ride on my bike trainer for 1.5hrs I'm okay but when I get on the road for 35 + that's when it hurts. My knee is okay it's the back of the knee.
I've had 2 bike fits in the last 7 months.

macroadie

dw300 wrote:

macroadie wrote:

Started cycling in May 2013.
Had a lingering pain in the back of my left knee 3 weeks ago. Starts to hurt when I push it or do 40 miles or so. I took the last 2 weeks off from cycling and started working on my legs (squats, lunges, etc) plus one day on eliptical machine. Yesterday after 2 weeks off I rode 32 miles easy but the pain came up again. Am I not resting enough or my legs need more strength training? It's my first winter so not sure what I'm doing wrong.

Developing a base is not just about fitness, its about preparing your body to step up the training. If you went too hard too soon and injured yourself and never let it heal properly then you havent got a base yet.

You need to keep the torque your legs are developing to a minimum till it heals, and then work your way up slowly. Especially if you are only new to cycling. So granny ring, no sprint or hard inclines, keep the revs up, that's th*+reason people suggest this type of training for newbies or people coming back from injury or layoff.

I had something similar. Just dont push yourself. Muscles adapt fast. Tendons, ligament and bone take months and years to develop their strength. Train smart, all this drilling yourself into the ground is for Hollywood movies, you only need to be pushing yourself beyond what you can handle now, then you get the training effect whilst keeping the risk of injury to a minimum.

I wouldn't weight train it at all. Do as above over the winter, and increase everything gradually. And sleep more, you cant have too much sleep.

I appreciate the detailed input. I'll lay off the bike and strength training for 2 weeks then start slowly on my bike trainer. I plan on doing my first Cit in May 14' , just anxious.

macroadie

Thanks everyone, I appreciate your input. Seems that I need to lay off the bike and strength training for sometime

dw300

Oh just FYI, i think my problem was a bit of tendinitis of the hamstring where it connects to the bone of your lower leg. Ha, I injured myself from not mashing the pedals enough! After so many miles your tendon starts to stick in its sheath and causes inflammation and discomfort. Ibuprofen and ice would be a good remedy, and the ibuprofen before the ride if you can stomach it might delay the onset a bit.