Knee problems (again)
NGale
Posts: 1,866
Once again the old issue of crunchy knees has occured 
After taking a number of months of any major bike riding on the advice of the doctor and taking cod liver oil and glucosomine supplements I managed to make three days in a row cycling to work last week, I wanted to cycle on day four, but my knees just hurt too much.
There is no ' mechanical' problem with my knee (been checked off the record by a friendly doctor
)
Would it be possible something as simple as saddle height and position could be causing the problem, or even the position of the SPD clips??
Has anyone got a similar problem and if so how was it treated or rectified?
I have to be a little careful at the moment on what GP treatment I have as I am currently going through selection for the RAF reserves so want to keep GP contact down to a minimum until after final medical (passed fitness test already, surprisingly)
Of course it worst comes to worst then a GP visit will be needed.
After taking a number of months of any major bike riding on the advice of the doctor and taking cod liver oil and glucosomine supplements I managed to make three days in a row cycling to work last week, I wanted to cycle on day four, but my knees just hurt too much.
There is no ' mechanical' problem with my knee (been checked off the record by a friendly doctor
)Would it be possible something as simple as saddle height and position could be causing the problem, or even the position of the SPD clips??
Has anyone got a similar problem and if so how was it treated or rectified?
I have to be a little careful at the moment on what GP treatment I have as I am currently going through selection for the RAF reserves so want to keep GP contact down to a minimum until after final medical (passed fitness test already, surprisingly)
Of course it worst comes to worst then a GP visit will be needed.
Officers don't run, it's undignified and panics the men
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Comments
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If my saddle is too low I know about very quickly, I now have to judge between it being high enough so that my knees dont hurt and not too high that I get saddle sore from my hips rocking.
Just up your saddle a few mm at a time, thats all I have done, its that a fine a margin with me.0 -
What length are your cranks? I've just gone from 175 to 170 and it's elminated a sore knee problem I was having.- - - - - - - - - -
On Strava.{/url}0 -
Do you do leg stretches after cycling?
My quads get quite tight and can cause me knee pain, according to my osteopath anyway. Keeping a straight back, put your heel to your bum by holding your ankle, straighten up. You should, after about 10 seconds, feel your muscles burn, keep holding that position until you feel the burning go away, then do the other leg. Then wok on your other leg muscles.
If your cleats aren't set up properly for you, this can also cause knee pain, just twisting them a mm or two can make a difference.0 -
You could check whether you need to have your cleats angled - after wearing spds on a longer hilly ride I realised I need to have mine angled out at approx 40 degrees \ / a bit like that! When I went to the Bike Whisperer they confirmed it. No knee pain since I made that change. I just have sticky out duck feet!0
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Wnat do you mean by crunchy knees though?
2 years ago I bought myself a Trek Madone and started using it to get to work each day (about 30KM round trip). Not long after though I started to get knee problems.
After a couple of weeks worth of trying every saddle height, cleat position, stem length under the sun I went to the NHS doctor who first checked me for sign of cartilige wear and then told me that I had weakness in my ligaments. Then he gave me some exercises to do that he said would, "Help to strengthen the ligament tissue."
:roll:
Anyway, it didn't go away and I mentioned it in passing to a friend of mine who at the time was doing a degree in sports something. He laughed and told me that I'd been fobbed off and recommended me to a good physio.
So I went to Sports Wise (http://www.sportswise.org.uk/physiother ... swise.html) and had a consultation.
It turned out to be that I had an unbalanced structure to the quad muscles and one of them needed to be exercised in isolation to get the balance right and prevent my kneecap moving outward when cycling.
6 weeks later the pain had gone and I haven't been back since.
So maybe find a decent physio in your area and stomach the fact that you're paying for the care that should have been provided to you by the UK's compulsory health insurance scheme in the first place.
:roll:Rule 64:
Cornering confidence generally increases with time and experience. This pattern continues until it falls sharply and suddenly.
http://www.velominati.com/blog/the-rules/0 -
Sometimes it something you're doing off the bike that only becomes apparent when you're on the bike:
If your car's steering wheel is offset from the pedals and how you use the clutch (knees togther now ladies).
How your computer desk is set up (you take any of your weight on your feet?)
How you stand up from sitting/kneeling/squatting.
Sometimes it you, not the bike:
Do you spin or mash the gears?
Always right foot forward and/or right foot to push off?
Wearing shorts in too cold weather.
Trying too hard before you've warmed up?FCN16 - 1970 BSA Wayfarer
FCN4 - Fixie Inc0
