For the past six weeks I’ve had left knee pain about 5-10 minutes into a run that causes me to stop running. A few weeks ago I went to the doctor and he told me the problem was my IT band rubbing that was causing the knee pain. I started doing stretching and rolling but so far no better. Yesterday I had my first PT appointment and the therapist had me do a few strength tests. It turns out that my left hip is extremely weak and is likely causing my IT band to pull on my knee. My IT band really isn’t all that tight, so the hip is the culprit here. The therapist gave me a few exercises to strengthen my hip, but I’m wondering if anyone else has had this problem. Particularly how long did it take you to strengthen your hip enough to the point where you could get back to running consistently. Thanks.
This is a great question for a physical therapist, but maybe not so good for an internet forum unless the replies you get are from a certified P.T. Even then, diagnosis over the web is, at the very best, a very inaccurate bet.
Have you looked around for a good sports oriented physical therapist? Do you have a good local sportsmed facility? That is where I might recommend beginning your search for answers.
Most importantly, best of luck with that and a speedy recovery.
Looking for hip improvement? PowerCranks should correct your problem in about 6 weeks, assuming you use them enough. They come with a 3 month money-back guarantee so after you have fixed the problem (or if they don’t fix the problem) you can send them back and it will have cost you only the postage.
The physical therapist told me it could be 3-4 weeks before I start seeing results. But I’m just looking from some real world examples from others who might have dealt with the same problem. I know that one person’s experience won’t mean that I’ll have the same results. I’d just like to hear from others about what their road back was like.
I had the same problem, and went through PT for a couple of months for IT band therapy, and stopped running at their insistence. They said I had weak gluteals. I did all the therapy and exercises. This took a lot of time: 3x/week visits, particular exercises daily. Had to pull out of a marathon I was training for. It did get better and I started running again. However, it recurred several months later. A friend happened to recommend a semi-retired chiropractor/kinesiologist, and I tried him. In one visit, he almost completely rectified my problem. I was, I guess you could say, crooked. My right shoulder and hip were higher than the other side, and my right knee was not tracking directly over my foot. He corrected these things by doing very minor muscle adjustments. I realize it sounds incredible, but if you can find someone who know hows to recognize and correct such imbalances, you will save yourself a lot of down time. It could be a sports physician, a chiropractor, a Rolfer or Hellerworks person, or a physical therapist. I never had to stop training or running with this, and I did that marathon the following year after having dropped out, plus a half-marathon, half ironman, two 74-mile bike rides, several other triathlons, 10K’s, 5K’s, etc., with no problems. You have to get to the root of the problem. A pain in one area is often caused by something else entirely, and on the opposite side of your body.
Frank, if I could afford them I’d love to give them a shot. And I don’t like the idea of buying them and then sending them back three months later, whether they fix the problem or not - which is what I’d have to do.
Interesting. I’ll have to keep this in mind if I have no luck with the strengthening exercises. Thanks for the info.
Frank, if I could afford them I’d love to give them a shot. And I don’t like the idea of buying them and then sending them back three months later, whether they fix the problem or not - which is what I’d have to do.
We market these to physical therapists for just this sort of thing. So, you should tell your therapist he should get a PC bike and you can ride them there and let your insurance company pay for it.
We have actually had a couple of users go back to their insurance company and get them to reimburse them (successfully) after the use solved some chroic issues the insurance company had been paying through the nose for.
My diagnois-by-internet-long-story-short version is this. I had an IT band issue very similar to yours except that manifested itself up on my hip rather than at the knee. From what I understand, the pain can show up in either place with a similar root cause.
After a lot of PT opinions, reading, trial&error on my own, etc, I came to my solution (which is more of a maintenance thing that a ‘solution’). I had the tendency to run a little knock-kneed my whole athletic life. Not so much that I noticed it running or other people commented on it, but I noticed it in still photos of me running a race, etc. I also had a strength evaluation that concluded my gluteus medius was weak. Chicken-and-egg problem, but I don’t really care which came first.
My ‘solution’ has three parts:
First, I slowly adapted to a more proper running form. Middle of knee inline with 2nd toe. This required me to consciously activate my gluteus muscles and externally rotate my legs into alignment, ridding myself of the knock-kneed gait. I slowly adapted to this new running style over a matter of weeks. The body does not like sudden changes to things it’s been doing its whole life.
Second, consistency in strengthening the glute muscles. Side-lying leg lifts at 45-degrees back, clamshell exercises, etc. At least a few times a week.
Third, keeping trigger points (muscle knots, whatever you want to call them) the hell out of my IT band and surrounding area. This requires consistency on the foam roller, self-massage, and however much massage therapy my budget allows.
Your mileage may vary, but this is what works for me. Whatever you do, don’t be half-assed about it. Take the problem seriously and work on a solution. A lot of people have the tendency to say, “I tried the strengthening and it didn’t work.” But then you ask about their consistency and it was pretty much non-existent. Don’t be one of those people…
Glute med weakness is a common cause of ITB pain. The glute med and min function to abduct the hip and internally rotate it. The other muscle that does this is the TFL or tensor fascia lata which also inserts into the ITB. If your hip abductors are weak specifically the glute med and min then the TFL is often over worked and becomes tight. Since it inserts into your ITB you get symptoms of a tight ITB like pain around the outside of the knee or over the greater trocantor
The glute med and min function to abduct the hip and internally rotate it.
Externally rotate it, no?
Nope the tensor fascia lata, glute med and min abduct and internally rotate
The lateral rotators of the hips are your glute max, obturator internus, piriformis, superior inferior gamelli, quadratus femors etc i think there are a couple others too.
there are alot of problems that stem from the hips! ITB problems; knee; even foot problems.
to remedy my ongoing knee problem; i spent about 4 months in PT. this treatment included ART, strengthening hips, quads, etc.
the strength developed quickly, but the more difficult thing to work out was tightness and bound up muscles that (still) pull and cause imobility and imbalance. to remedy this requires alot of stretching–and i have to “do it like a job” otherwise i’m in the same boat again. additionally, i have to continue PT and chiro care on a “tune-up” basis.
as far as timeline, everyone is different. to ensure you get back to consistent running as soon as possible, do the PT like it’s your job. and continue to get “tune-ups” once your able to run consistently (as then you can address the next level of treatment, which might be tightness, etc). FWIW, even though i spent 4 months in PT, i was able to get from 0 up to the half marathon distance during that time. but the treatment was aggressive (ART hurts) and i was disciplines about doing the work to get better.
patience is the hardest thing…but every day you work for it, you’re that much closer.