theamazingmolio wrote:
> *I'm only 15 so you probably don't even want me viewing
> your thread. but anyway: knees: I get a bit of an ache in
> my right knee when I do my (almost) daily 4mile round trip
> into town on my 20". *
Since you are 15 you might have Osgood-Schlaters disease.
This is an overuse injury that results in
inflamation/irritation of the shin bone just below your
knee. I'd see a doctor.
To explain what might be going on I have to describe how
bones grow. When babies are born their bones are mostly
cartilage. They aren't really bones as we know them because
there is very little calcium in them. The long bones quickly
begin to deposit calcium in the middle and end caps, but the
two regions of cartilage between the middle and the end caps
stay soft. It's these zones that grow as the kid gets older.
In a 10 year old the cartilage zones are just thin plates
that separate the bony shaft from the hard end caps. When
you go through adolescence
cartilage to grow rapidly, but the calcification process
increases even more rapidly. This is the famous "growth
spurt." It's over when the calcification process consumes
the cartilage growth plate and your long bones become one
piece of calcium.
So what is Osgood-Schlater's disease? There is a major
growth plate in your shin bone about an inch below your
knee joint. This is also where the patelar tendon attaches.
The patelar tendon holds your kneecap over your knee when
the quads pull on it. When you bend the knee under load
(pedaling, for instance) the growth plate is under
tremendous stress. With all the growing and calcification
that goes on in adolescence this stress may be too much and
it can start growing funny. You don't want that because
then it might misalign your knee joint for life. Like I
said, I'd see a doctor and get a professional opinion. I
think they need to take an x-ray or something to do a
proper diagnosis. My little brother had this when he was 15
and had to spend 6 months in a cast to let his bones rest.
(I think the Doc just wanted to make sure he didn't cheat
and play soccer again.)
The other possiblity is that you've got the same muscular
imbalance that I had when I was racing. The teardrop muscle
above your knee on the inside front of your thigh isn't as
strong as the muscles on outer front of your thigh so the
patella is pulled to the outside and tracks poorly. This
one is simple to fix if you've got the discipline: sit in a
chair, put a sandbag or other weight on your foot, and
straighten your leg. Hold it out as long as you can, then
let it down. Rest a little bit and repeat 5 times every
morning and evening. Again, don't just take my word for it.
Go see a Doc first. Don't neglect your knees! They're
really useful.
Good luck,
Tim
--
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