I've been an idiot.... knackered knee

Ferrals

So I've got right back into mountain biking recently and have ended up overdoing it and getting severe left knee pain :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: I hadn't done much cycling/running recently till being re-invigorated about a month ago.

Sunday did 20kms, didnt stretch down, had a bit of a niggle in my left knee in the evening/night, but my commute (approx 7kms) is really fun with some great singletrack so i decided to cycle anyway, and like a tit, it didnt hurt to start off with so I started thrashing it. All good, till sitting in the office it started to niggle again. Riding back in the evening was agony on my knee as soon as I started cycling. I ended up granny ring /pushing all the way home. Walking up and down stairs / putting pressure on it was painful/difficult. Been on the nurofen and its not so painful now but driving and pushing the clutch was uncomfortable.

I guess if it doesnt clear up in a few days it will be a trip to the physio, but does anyone have any thoughts/advice? I'm thinking of getting a knee support to protect it and then I guess lots of stretching. The pain seems largely on the outside of the knee, but not exclusively. I haven't injurged that knee that I'm aware of. I want to just jump straight back on the bike but realistically I know I shouldn't. Annoying as I was planning on entering an xc race in a month and need to train if I'm going to do that.

kajjal

You need to see a medical professional like your GP to get proper tests done if the pain does not go away. That way they can prescribe the right treatment. Not being able to walk up stairs or drive a car is not good and make sure you don't over exercise making it worse. I injured my knee slightly by not warming up properly and really going for it. A week of rest, walking the dog every day and it was fine.

It is possible your riding position on your mountain bike is slightly off, have a read on the web about bike setup to give you an idea. If you use clipless pedals rather than flats this can make things worse if not setup right for you.

gregwari

I suffer too unfortunately, my experience was that a knee support does f**k all, your leg muscles are too strong for the support to do anything of real use. Better off spending your money on physio or a bike fit. As above, cleat position can affect pain as can saddle position. There's a good article on bikeradar somewhere, google "knee pain cycling". Things that helped me:

1. Physio - 2 sessions was enough
2. Getting my saddle position right and my cleat position right.
3. Running crank brothers pedals on the MTB and look keo's on the road bike - both have float
4. Rest...

Ferrals

Cheers both, I've been running flats, but they are ridiculously grippy (shimano saints with vans skate shoes) so when I'm pounding on the pedals they are fully locked in, so i guess i need to be a bit mindful of my positioning. I'll make sure my bike is set up properly - new bike too so it might be slightly off. Luckily a few days rest and I can walk up stairs again without pain so I'll wait till the weekend and go for a light ride and hope it doesnt recur if I warm up and down better. I was freaking out a bit as I only got a new bike 2 weeks ago so time of would have been hard to handle!!

kajjal

It sounds like you just over did as you were enjoying yourself too much

Ferrals

Yeah I reckon :oops: :oops:

Wayneg88

Did a few days rest help ?
I had the same problem and checked online for suggestions and as above the seat height and pedal positions seemed to be the main reason , I played about with the saddle height a couple of times and am glad to say the pain has gone now :-)

Ferrals

I ended up fully resting for a week, going for an easy 5k spin with the mrs last weekend and then did 16k yesterday with no issues. I used good old doctor Google and came to the conclusion my IT band might the issue so have been doing IT band specific stretches as well as general hamstring, glute etc stretches every night. Not sure if the rest was enough or if the stretches helped but I'm going to keep up the stretches as they can't be doing any harm and I'm horrifically inflexible so trying to get a bit looser has got to be good. Will give the knees a good hammering tomorrow and see if they hold up!

Ferrals

cheers oxoman. yes trying to keep it up but not everyday now. the main thing for me is warming up and down properly afer a ride. do you do specific exercises to strengthen your inner leg?

King_Pin_Rich

I've had the dreaded IT (Iliotibial band) friction syndrome for over 2.5yrs now.
Long story short, bought a new bike a while back and went from zero to hero in terms of milage - my knee did not thank me.
With regards to bike fit, while this can aggrevate the issue, I suspect this is not the root cause of the pain.

Ferrals:
Did your physio check for any mechanical issue of the knee? What about your range of movment?
Pronation of the foot can be a predisposing factor in IT issues, have you been checked out for this?

Ferrals

I never went to the physio, I self diagnosed with google and repeated it band stretches seems to have solved the problem. I'm not starting to get pains on the other side of the knee :oops: so might have to visit a physio if that doesn't improve.