I thought I'd share since there seems to be many dealing with this .
Last year I had my first bout of Iliotibial Band Syndrome on both knees brought on by increasing both my bike and run mileage while training for IM USA.
Tried everything under the sun including Cortisone shots, the foam rollers, the stick..i found that none of them really worked,and being a Type A athlete..it drove me insane!
After much research I learned about how crucial it is to develop strenght and flexiblilty of the middle of ones body.
The 3 muscles that need to be addressed are the Psoas, the Hip Abductors and the front Quads.This group ,at least in my case were never stretched,especially the Psoas.
IT Band pain in the lower knees ,or upper hips happens because of tightness in this long band of tissue muscle that runs the lenght of our leg on the outside edge.When tight it slaps on the knees as we pound on the pavement 20,000 + times per hour and causes heat and trauma.
The first thing I suggest is spend a week with what I call the tennis ball roll.
Lie down on a carpeted floor and place a new tennis ball under your leg on the outside...the area of your IT band.Now roll with your weight the lenght of your IT Band,and let the ball get into the muscle.IT will HURT! The pain is a spasm,and an area full of Lactic Acid..the ball will slowly flush this out.As you progress thru the weeks, the pain will go away.This is the indicator that your IT Band is starting to loosen up and ready for full stretching.Also do this treatment to the front of your quads,and on your lower back.
Along with this,stretch your Psoas muscle by lying on the floor as if your are doing a push up.But keep your stomach to the floor and lift your head up towards the ceilng with your arms holding you in that position.This is a Pilates move actually.This move is amazing in core strenght development.
If you have access to a good gym they willl probably have a Hip Abductor machine..this is the one that you mostly see women using..Get on IT..and Fall in love with it!
Both the inside pull and outside pull ones!
The stronger your Abductors.Psoas and Quads are, the more stability your legs will have.The automatic results are better BIOMECHANICS!
Make sure you are doing the proper IT Band stretches too.There are many illustrations on the web.
I think the best is the one where you are lying down with your leg crossed over the other,shoulders flat to the floor.
When you return to running start out with high cadence runs 90-95 footstrikes per min.If you do this right, you can get back to a full load faster than you think.
I myself now work w/ the tennis ball and above mentioned exercises every morning for an hour,and also at night before I go to sleep.
Since I've been doing this, I have not once had a repeat of IT Band problems(800+ miles in the log book!)
I eat up the hills once again!
And as a last note...stay away from shoes that are for stability,as that side cushion piece transfers a lot of weight and pressure to the outside of the leg..where your IT Band is.
Cushioning type shoes with good socks is all you need.
I know this will help you if your are suffering from ITBS.
I hope this helps you get back to the line.
There's nothing like being able to HAMMER!
Cheers!
SWORDFISH
_______________________________________________________
Seeing him in deep torment, I said. " You can have my last GU , but its been down my pants for most of the run". - John Hirsch
Take care of your body, its by far the coolest thing you're going to ever own.- Can't remember who told me this, but I love it.
Last year I had my first bout of Iliotibial Band Syndrome on both knees brought on by increasing both my bike and run mileage while training for IM USA.
Tried everything under the sun including Cortisone shots, the foam rollers, the stick..i found that none of them really worked,and being a Type A athlete..it drove me insane!
After much research I learned about how crucial it is to develop strenght and flexiblilty of the middle of ones body.
The 3 muscles that need to be addressed are the Psoas, the Hip Abductors and the front Quads.This group ,at least in my case were never stretched,especially the Psoas.
IT Band pain in the lower knees ,or upper hips happens because of tightness in this long band of tissue muscle that runs the lenght of our leg on the outside edge.When tight it slaps on the knees as we pound on the pavement 20,000 + times per hour and causes heat and trauma.
The first thing I suggest is spend a week with what I call the tennis ball roll.
Lie down on a carpeted floor and place a new tennis ball under your leg on the outside...the area of your IT band.Now roll with your weight the lenght of your IT Band,and let the ball get into the muscle.IT will HURT! The pain is a spasm,and an area full of Lactic Acid..the ball will slowly flush this out.As you progress thru the weeks, the pain will go away.This is the indicator that your IT Band is starting to loosen up and ready for full stretching.Also do this treatment to the front of your quads,and on your lower back.
Along with this,stretch your Psoas muscle by lying on the floor as if your are doing a push up.But keep your stomach to the floor and lift your head up towards the ceilng with your arms holding you in that position.This is a Pilates move actually.This move is amazing in core strenght development.
If you have access to a good gym they willl probably have a Hip Abductor machine..this is the one that you mostly see women using..Get on IT..and Fall in love with it!
Both the inside pull and outside pull ones!
The stronger your Abductors.Psoas and Quads are, the more stability your legs will have.The automatic results are better BIOMECHANICS!
Make sure you are doing the proper IT Band stretches too.There are many illustrations on the web.
I think the best is the one where you are lying down with your leg crossed over the other,shoulders flat to the floor.
When you return to running start out with high cadence runs 90-95 footstrikes per min.If you do this right, you can get back to a full load faster than you think.
I myself now work w/ the tennis ball and above mentioned exercises every morning for an hour,and also at night before I go to sleep.
Since I've been doing this, I have not once had a repeat of IT Band problems(800+ miles in the log book!)
I eat up the hills once again!
And as a last note...stay away from shoes that are for stability,as that side cushion piece transfers a lot of weight and pressure to the outside of the leg..where your IT Band is.
Cushioning type shoes with good socks is all you need.
I know this will help you if your are suffering from ITBS.
I hope this helps you get back to the line.
There's nothing like being able to HAMMER!
Cheers!
SWORDFISH
_______________________________________________________
Seeing him in deep torment, I said. " You can have my last GU , but its been down my pants for most of the run". - John Hirsch
Take care of your body, its by far the coolest thing you're going to ever own.- Can't remember who told me this, but I love it.