So I've been riding the bike for over a year now, about seven months ago I was doing upwards of 300 miles or 20+ hours a week and was having no problems at all with my knees, if I felt a bit of tendonitis comming on I would take 2 days off and that would be the end of it. After about 4 months of training I went back to the UK for a couple of months and wasnt doing much at all training wise.
But recently I bought a new pair of shoes ( Bont Vaypors ), and new shoe plates. Now I've never fit my own shoe plates but I do know how the whole process works and knew what angle I want my feet at. There is also a diagram on the bottom of the Bonts which help, but they dont seem to sit the same when out on the bike for some reason. I was riding them for about two weeks before the tendonitis came on, since then I've had about two and a half weeks off, which does include the odd ride to see if I have shaken it, but it won't go this time. ( Note : These rides have been medium to hard-ish rides ).
Question is, should I take another week or so completely off the bike this time, and should I start to adjust the soul plates? Quite concerned as my brother has big issues with his knees which ended his career.
Just wondering what kind of cleats and pedals you are using and if you have enough "float" to compensate for any physical misalignment of you legs. I still use the old Look Red Arc cleats with 9 degrees of float. I cant use a fixed cleat at all or I develop sore knee ligaments after a couple hundred miles.
Tendons are slow to heal. They have a poor blood supply. It can be hard to take off enough time to let them heal sufficiently - takes discipline to not ride. When you do get back on the bike don't go hard. Control yourself. Can you go back and use the shoes you were wearing when you were doing the 300 mile weeks? Agree w/the other poster re:float.
See your doc. Tendonitis isn't something that can be overlooked, and without proper care, it can lead to things like chronic tendonitis or worse. As mentioned above, tendons are very slow to heal.
Alex, I'm sorry to hear you are dealing with this. I agree with all of the above but also recommend you see a certified fitter or biomechanist. Often times issues like this are due to a combination of alignment and joint articulation. Now it is important to find someone who specializes in biomechanics and not just someone who claims to do fittings at a bike shop. I run our performance lab which is located inside a sports physical therapy group. One of the benefits I've experienced is the ability to have someone knowledgeable in body mechanics and sports rehabilitation double-check my observations during the fitting process.
Outside of just cumulative overuse, it sounds more like the result of a change. I recommend switching back to your old shoes/cleats if you can and trying them for a couple of easy 30-45 minute rides. Also, make sure none of the settings on your bike have moved. Last week my bike felt odd on my way home. I didn't realizes that my seat had loosened and slid back on the rails. If you are still having problems and are interested in diving into this further, let me know. Cheers, Tom.
