I have been lurking here for several months. I can’t tell you how much fun I’ve had reading the “denizens of the pool”, “denizens of the run”, and the “deuce in the pool” threads. So anyway, I’ve finally decided that it’s a good time to pose a question.
I’ve been doing tri’s for a year now. I did 4 last season (3 sprints and an olympic, and a weird tri that included running/ biking/ canoeing) and came through the season feeling pretty good about myself. With the exception of some lingering Plantar Faciatis, I was injury free. Anyway, I decided last fall that I was going to challenge myself and try a couple of 70.3’s this season. As of last November I ramped up my training significantly. Recently my right knee has been sore. No shooting pains, just dull pain behind the knee cap and on inside of my knee. I’ve been icing it and taking Aleve. Do I need to worry about this? Thanks.
Sounds like runners knee and/or tendinitis. should you worry about it? sure. are you running in the right shoes? is your bike position good? Im not a doctor though, you might want to talk to one of those, maybe RROOF will chime in.
I agree check to make sure you have the right shoes.
Does it hurt flexing and extending your knee? Does it hurt more when you are weight bearing as opposed to not standing on it? Does it feel irritated on your knee cap, behind it, or on the sides of it? You said it hurts on the side, did you mean the side of your knee or side of your knee cap?
Let me know and I can speculate a bit more. If it has been bothering you for quite some time, I would visit a physical therapist first, because it does not seem like its any structural damage. It may just be a patella tracking issue, in which you can solve with stretching, massage, strengthening. That does require rest though…unfortunatly
Also, simple but seriously, how old are your shoes, after about 300~400 miles they kinda die, causes pain
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Thanks for the input on this. I’ll try and consolidate my answers into one post.
As far as shoes goes, I overpronate. I have been using a couple of motion control shoes. I ran in a Nike Structure Triax for a couple of years, last summer when I went into my local running store to buy another pair of these I was convinced into buying a Asics Gel Evolution 4. I ran most of the late summer and fall in those but felt they were really clunky and heavy. Recently I went back to the Nike Triax. I also bought a pair of Newtons and have been experimenting with fore/ midfoot running technique. Maybe too much variety? None of the shoes were more than 6 months old.
I’m not so sure this related to the patella, I think it may be a muscle/tendon issue. More specifically, the pain seems to be located on the inside of the knee possibly where the quad attaches to the tibia. It hurts when I extend it and doesn’t seem to matter whether I am bearing weight on it or not. This is not something that has been going on more than a couple of weeks.
Your quads attach to the tibia through your patella. They connect to the patella, and your patella attaches to the tibial tuberosity. Personally, I would get it checked out. Being a triathlete/PT student/ someone who has had many injuries, I know what it is like to be sidelined through something annoying like this. Most importantly, you don’t want to keep irritating it if it is something that could be fixed with a little rest. Go to the doctor. He could tell you that you are fine, but if something is going on, get it taken care of before the tri season. This is just IMO
I have had recurring knee problems for years - most commonly diagnosed as “runner’s knee”. I’ve tried seemingly every preventive and remedial solution, including: very slowly adding mileage and intensity, balancing my leg muscle strength, increasing core strength and flexibility, doing more cross-training, testing dozens of light stability shoes, using orthotics, adhering to rest, ice, compression, elevation, anti-inflammatories, improving diet, etc, etc. However, the ONLY action that has ever seemed to “cure” my knee soreness is just to keep running (mostly easy base/aerobic miles, but up to as much as 50 mpw). It sounds totally counterintuitive, but this has BY FAR been the best solution for me. This has worked on both knees at different times for my longest nagging injuries. It also works best for my ego, which doesn’t want me to sit around not running.
Take that with a grain of salt, as it’s only one person’s experience. Most people will advise you to rest the knee totally or drastically cut your mileage - and either of those may in fact be the right thing for your specific situation.
Several structures over the inside (medial) aspect of the knee can give us trouble. Were this pain the result of trauma, a twisting injury for example, you might think about a torn meniscus. You’ve pointed us away from your patella, and if I’ve read this correctly more toward the tibia. The medial hamstrings attach more toward the front of the tibia than one might imagine. Their insertion is associated with a small bursa or potential sac and it’s inflammation is termed Pes Anserine Bursitis.
Why not have somebody in the medical end of things in your area have a look, see if they concur or differ, and give you a recommendation to get you back on the straight and narrow. Good luck.