More IT Band Syndrome

Triathlon Forum
1

I posted a while back about my recent ITB troubles:

http://forum.slowtwitch.com/gforum.cgi?post=421719

After 2 weeks off of running, with 2 physio visits (massage and ultrasound), and daily stretching and excercises prescribed by physio, I thought it time to give running a go again. I have continued to swim and bike with no trouble during these 2 weeks.

I lined up for a club sprint triathlon (actually shorter than a sprint - 500m, 15km, 4km). The swim and bike when fine, as usual. I made it 1km before the ITB pain kicked in on the run. About the same as my two 5 minute training runs 2-3 weeks ago that ended in pain. So in other words - no improvement after dedicated excercising/stretching and treatment for 2 weeks.

I’m frustrated and highly annoyed. My first olympic tri is in 2 weeks - probably will cancel, as I don’t intend to walk 9km to finish the race.

I’m feeling like I probably need to lay off of running for more than a month. Maybe 2 - in order to straighten this thing out. What about cycling. I don’t feel the slightest abnormality or twinge of pain while cycling. Is it possible that I am prolonging this condition with my cycling?

I have a third physio visit scheduled for this afternoon, but don’t feel like I’m getting any benefit from the treatments. Should I continue or not?

What the hell should I do?

2

Continue therepy. It should only help - maybe not in time to get you ready for the Olympic-distance race in two weeks but it should help. How many sessions did your doctor prescribe, anyway? It took me 6 sessions and about 4 weeks of super light running before I could return to running AND THEN building up my mileage.

Good luck!

3

FWIW this is my first post… but have had the same issues ramping up to IMCDA. Just can’t shake the pain, and haven’t up to this point found the root cause. So I ordered the Protec it band from road runner sport and have been able to run ever since. I know that this is only a temporary fix to the problem as some of the pain does come after a run walking up my stairs at home after I take off the band…

Just a thought to consider instead of not doing your race

4

I saw the podiatrist for a run gait analysis, and said “oh, by the way - I have this knee problem.” He didn’t really suggest a number of physio sessions. When you say “super light” running. What do you mean? If I can run something less than 1000m without pain, should I be doing it - or just resting?

5

I saw the podiatrist for a run gait analysis, and said “oh, by the way - I have this knee problem.” He didn’t really suggest a number of physio sessions. When you say “super light” running. What do you mean? If I can run something less than 1000m without pain, should I be doing it - or just resting?

Who made the protocol for your physio sessions? He/she should be able to tell you how many you need before you can expect some results.

I was only able to run 2x a week and no more than 30 minutes and at a very slow pace. No intervals, no hills and no fartlek. Just very easy slow runs in front of a mirror on a treadmill - ITB problem comes from a leg length discrepancy that made my left leg’s gait move inwards. They corrected it with strengthening and some custom orthotics and I’ve been okay since.

I guess maybe you can consult with your podiatrist or physiatrist or sports med guy on what you can expect from your physio and what you need to do get back on track. Sometimes ITB seems easy to solve with rest and stretching, but sometimes it may need more than that.

6

Hillrunner – I’m totally feeling your pain here – figuratively and literally! I had IT band problems about 3 yrs ago, when I switched to different bike. I had always ridden a “tri” bike, and bought a road bike to complement my bike training. I put a lot miles on my new road bike in March and April, and although I was aerobically fit, I was working slightly different muscles and really made my IT bands tight. Like most things, I kind of ignored at first, and then over time realized how much I feeling this rubbing on the outside of my knees. Eventually the tightness was accompanied by pain………but the thing is it bothered me more cycling that running. I don’t think I ever had “shut-down” type pain though. It became annoying enough that I went to a massage therapist for 2 sessions, and she showed me a bunch of stretches. Even with a steady diet of stretching, icing, ibuprofen and glucosamine it took a good couple months to work itself out!! This is not a 2 or 3 weeks thing unfortunately.

Now to the current – I attempted to do an Olympic distance a couple weeks ago after some huge weeks of training (300 – 400 bike miles, 50 run miles)………no taper. Had an all-time worst race and woke up the next mornings with my IT bands all knotted up (crap!). This time running is bothering the heck out of me. After a 3hr bike Sat morning, I went out late Sat afternoon for a 6 mile tempo run. First 30 minutes felt okay then out of the blue my knee just locked up like a “mother” had to walk it in. Couldn’t believe how much pain I was in. I’ve come to the realization, that I may have give up running for a couple weeks, and see how things feel.

7

As has been said about IT band issues–it is different for everybody. It took me a year to find the right fix and i’m finally doing my first race in quite a while this weekend–my fix–the pat strap (that band around the thigh that people talk about I use on the bike and run or even if I go for a long walk) and the Quadballer by Trigger point technologies…these two therpies and some stretching have worked well for me…that and quality rest. Try the strap, it is at least a temporary fix.

sz

8

It absolutey sucks. I’ve pretty much lost this season at least through July. I’ve been fighting it for 12+ weeks but I’m not giving up. Stretching, PT, foam roller, icing, etc. Haven’t figured out the root cause yet.

All right, something constructive - I’ve just started with a new PT, she has me taking Bromelain, a supplement. I think it’s helping me.

Described a bit here:

http://www.wholehealthmd.com/refshelf/substances_view/1,1525,760,00.html

Hang in.

9

if you can find somebody in your area that does active release therapy, I’d highly recommend it. I dealt with ITB issues for almost a year…3 or 4 sessions of A.R.T. and I was all set to go. It’s not a feel good experience, by any means, but it worked wonders. I tried PT, ultrasound, e-stim, ice, rest, accupuncture and a cortisone injection…none of them did a thing (except the cortisone, which eventually wore off).

the quad baller/roller also helps a lot.

10

ART was the best thing for me to recover from ITB. I dont know what caused it but Im running on grass fields only and it hasnt come back so far.

11

The root of my IT Band problems was in my hips, glutes, and running form. I realized my hip muscles and glutes were extremely tight, and I had them massaged frequently. That really helped. It got me running again. Then, I realized that I was heal striking. I changed to fore-foot striking and that worked wonders as well. I have done 6 sprint races since I first got ITBFS back in March. I can’t run fast, but I can finish a 5k!

12

My encounter with ITB came a few years ago when due to a job relocation was forced to run on sidewalks where I had been use to trails. I stopped running for about a month and during that time got PT (2-3 x/week), stretched, foam roller, iced, and did strengthing exercises for glutes, hips (many have been listed in the forum in the past). Bought some shoes with a little more cushioning and found some trails. 4 IMs later (and all the training) and no repeat occurrence.

13

Did you continue to bike???

14

Actually I was not doing much biking at the time other than some spin classes due to all the snow. One other thing I did was get into Pilates about 3x a week to build up my core strength as another precaution.

15

ITB (and other injuries in general) can be very frustrating to solve. In my case, I needed several months of therapy before I could run decent mileage. Sometimes it can seem the therapy is going nowhere.

Do you run a lot of hills? (Your username suggests you might). I ran flatter ground and softer surfaces at first.

It doesn’t sound like the root cause of your ITB problem has been found, either that or not enough off-time. It sounds like the running is setting it off, could be impact related.

For me : iced the pain site; then heated the thigh area (with heating pad or hot-tub is good). Frequent stretching

Possible causes to look into: leg-length discrepancy; muscle imbalances; bio-mechanics; inflexibility; footwear; etc. A good sports-medicine evaulation is crucial.

Stick with it.

16

I was a runner in high school and college and never had ITB problems until I picked up cycling in grad school. I think I developed muscle imbalances I was unused to during my running only days. Something to think about IMO. I use the foam roller and do exercises to strengthen my glutes (gluteus medius especially) which seem to be helping some. I’m also backing off from any hard cycling until I can get my running back to where it should be.

17

ITB (and other injuries in general) can be very frustrating to solve. In my case, I needed several months of therapy before I could run decent mileage. Sometimes it can seem the therapy is going nowhere.

Do you run a lot of hills? (Your username suggests you might). I ran flatter ground and softer surfaces at first.

It doesn’t sound like the root cause of your ITB problem has been found, either that or not enough off-time. It sounds like the running is setting it off, could be impact related.

For me : iced the pain site; then heated the thigh area (with heating pad or hot-tub is good). Frequent stretching

Possible causes to look into: leg-length discrepancy; muscle imbalances; bio-mechanics; inflexibility; footwear; etc. A good sports-medicine evaulation is crucial.

Stick with it.

Yeah - frustrating - no kidding. For the past 5 years, I’ve been mostly a middle of the pack runner. I did a lot of 5ks to start, but lately (last 3 years) have been going longer and longer. I have a few “ultras” under my belt (2 50k’s, 2 100k’s) in the last 2 years along with 4 marathons. In that time I’ve done very little biking and swimming - and nothing else really. No gym, no pilates, no yoga. I’ve been pretty one dimensional, but had no ITB problems.

The problem, for me, started after the marathon on May 15th, which I ran significantly faster than my training would suggest possible. I did some damage there, as indicated by the immediate muscle soreness. That night, the IT Bands on both knees were very sore. Two weeks later I participated in a 5 hour adventure race (only one slow 5k run in between) and experienced significant IT Band pain on the right side during the late running stage of the race.

As far as causes, I would buy in to the hip/gluteus medius weakness, along with undertraining and overuse. I’m going to swear off running for 4 weeks and hopefully do all of the stretching and excercising recommended by the physio - along with some other excercises I’ve picked up here and there. I"m going to have bullet-proof hips. I probably need to have a good sports medicine evaluation. I feel like I’ve kind of self-diagnosed. The podiatrist agreed with me, but still. I’m particulary interested in the leg length discrepancy. The podiatrist said leg length measurements are notoriously inaccurate (other than getting an xray), and that he’d be able to tell from his evaluation, whether a look at leg length was necessary (it wasn’t). For those of you with leg-length discrepancies - how were you diagnosed? My legs from floor to knee look to be different lengths, but I realize that might not mean anything.

Another quetion. Cycling causes me no discomfort whatsoever. However, the only place to ride around here is a very hilly course (for me) - about 1200 feet per 25km. Should I lay off of that, too? It’s not a huge priority now that the only triathlon on the horizon (in 2 weeks) is going to be a no-go. I’ll continue to swim. But I’ve been told that as long as it doesn’t cause any pain (it doesn’t), cycling can’t hurt. What say you.