"Larry Gray" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...
Quoted message said:Hello All,
In my last two races of the season I had severe pain above my knee cap.
Since then, I've developed pain below my knee as well, with stiffness every
morning. My family doctor says it is patella tendonitis, and I need to rest,
no running or biking. She did recommend light strength training.
So here is my question, does anyone have experience with this? My goal
was to start building up my running miles this winter, and do a half
marathon in the spring, in preparation for my duathlon season. How long
should I wait before resuming training? Should I see a specialist?
Rest will probably help, but will not solve the problem. Leg
extension exercises will help (as mentioned by A.J.). Try turning
your toes out slightly as you do them in order to focus the effort on
the vastus medialis. Running often causes the v. medialis to become
weak relative to the v. lateralis, leading to knee pain. I also like
to do the exercise very slowly, particularly working the
eccentric/negative motion.
If your hamstrings are even slightly tight, try to work on stretching
them. Tight hamstrings will affect the rotation of the entire lower
extremity and alter the tracking of the kneecap, or so I've heard.
For instant relief, try running with a cho-pat strap (multiple
versions are available from roadrunner sports and other vendors).
Strap it around the patellar tendon (not too tight) and it pins the
tendon, effectively shortening it and moving its insertion closer to
the kneecap so that the kneecap can't track as far out of line. When
I had pain above my kneecap two years ago, I could tell the difference
the strap made within 60 seconds of putting it on or taking it off. I
haven't tried cycling with it, but it might help there as well. Ice
massage of the knee following workouts will also help relieve
inflammation, etc.
Other considerations are choice of shoes, age of shoes, orthotics,
etc. Overpronation can cause either of these types of knee pain, so
you might want to consult a running specialty store or a PT if you're
not sure about your shoes or your biomechanical tendencies.
If you don't have major biomechanical problems to resolve, patellar
tendinitis is a pretty routine running injury, so you should be able
to work through the problem on your own without seeing a specialist.
If you do need to consult a doctor, I wouldn't rely on a general
practitioner unless the person is also a veteran runner and familiar
with running injuries. The average member of my running club seems to
have more experience with common running injuries than the average GP.
On the other hand, the right specialist or PT can often work wonders.
As far as how long to rest, this is the perfect time of the season for
a break. On the other hand, I often find that not running causes me
to stiffen up so that my symptoms get worse. Some injuries won't heal
without complete rest while others seem to need some exercise to work
their way out. On balance, I would give the strengthening and
stretching exercises a head start for a couple of weeks and then start
with a bit of jogging or relaxed spinning depending on how the knee
feels.
Good luck,
Jason Blank
