I have recently started running due to the fact that my son needs a training partner for cross country. I am planning my first 5k race in mid Novermber. I am a road/crit/time trial racer looking to stay off my bike as much as possible until January. The question I have for any informed soul is, I am experiencing some joint pain mostly in my knees, is this just an adjusment to the non-impact sport?. The unusual thing is that my legs mostly hurt after a ride on a cool to cold day. Any input will be appreciated
No wonder you’re grumpy, guy. While self-styling myself as an “informed soul” might be going a bit overboard, I have blown my knee out while not listening to signs that I was overdoing it in the running. It cost me six months of no running to recuperate, although I could ride up a 45% grade with no twinges whatsoever. Go figure. So learn from my lunacy of years past - take it easy and listen to your body, especially if you are jumping into running with the Kross-Kountry Kid after only cycling all summer. Here is a link to info from someone we could safely regard as an informed soul: http://www.ultrafit.com/newsletter/october02.html#dirk
It sounds to me like your body is telling you that you are skating close to the edge. Be careful, and good luck.
Dan
Knee pain is one of the most common running problems. There are lots of versions of knee problems that affect runners, but they all stem from muscles putting unbalanced forces on your knee(s).
First: ease into it. As a TT racer you probably have an aerobic engine that’s capable of pushing you pretty fast. As a parent trying to keep up with a kid on a cross country team, you probably have a lot of incentive to try to keep up with someone who is faster than you. Your muscles probably aren’t ready for it yet, even though they’re well trained from cycling. Give yourself time to adapt. Knee problems only get worse, and stick with you for a long time. Don’t start down that road if you can avoid it.
Second: go a local running shop to get fitted for a brand new pair of running shoes. If you’re like most americans, your foot rolls inwards when you land on it. That has the effect of pulling your knee inward too far, which stresses the tissue within your knee and the muscles & tendons on the outside of your upper leg. It’s a VERY easy problem to correct with the right kind of shoes. But don’t go to Athletes foot or someplace like that. The folks who work in running stores can watch you run and tell you what kind of shoes will fit you best; the folks in most chain stores can only tell you what kinds of Nikes the high schoolers are wearing these days. Keep in mind that running shoes are designed to last 400-600 miles depending on how you use them, and as they wear out they allow your foot to roll more and more. Be diligent about replacing your shoes.
While you’re at the running shop ask them to take a look at your stride and take their advice on any corrections, even if it feels weird at first. You may be landing on your heel, or bouncing too much, or overstriding, or doing any number of other things which will eventually haunt you.
Last thing: stretch. Stretch Stretch Stretch. Almost all runners suffer from muscles that are too tight. You force your muscles to work against each other, which again creates imbalanced stresses on your joints (ankles, knees, hips, even shoulders). Do a light jog to warm up and get the blood flowing, then spend a few minutes limbering up. You’ll feel a lot better during and after the run, even if your son makes fun of you for acting like an old man.
Good luck!
Lee
Welcome to the world of running and a new group of aches and pains that you just don’t experience on the bike. I’m also a fellow knee pain sufferer that acts up whenever running too much. This knee is why my tris are limited to shorter distance events. I’m sure it would blow up with marathon distance training.
What works for me is stretching before and after a run as well as applying an ice pack for ten minutes on the knee when the run is over. I also have custom orthotics which help quite a bit and I don’t wear racing flats as they just seem to make the problem worse.
I’m actually probably a worse case scenario for knee problems with running. My problem is actually what I have always assumed was due to septic arthritis. Back in the mid 80’s there was a bout of tainted tuna on the east coast in which numerous people became quite ill, some even dying. I was one of the victims having ate a tuna salad in a restaurant while on a visit to NYC. The problem with this particular bacteria was that as it died it dumped toxins in the blood stream. First you’d get ill with food poisoning but the worst would follow when the toxins started to attack different parts of the body. In my case my right knee swelled to three times normal with incredible pain. In the hospital hooked up to intravenous anti-biotics followed by three months of knee rehab. The knee has never been the same since. Fortunately I survived and the knee is functional for most everything except running long distances.
Thanks for the input. After you ice do you then apply heat or not. Also do you hit the advil??. I’m not big on pain relievers but…
Just ice. I don’t use advil although my wife occassional does.