brianappleby

so after two days of decently hard riding (for me) my left knee is hurting a bit. It's not very bad, but the back part of it hurts when i'm exerting it, walking upstairs etc.

I know online diagnosis is sketchy at best, but are there any quick fixes? Is this sort of thing common and will just work itself out in time? Suggestions to try out? I took today off, but was planning on going out again tomorrow, weather permitting. It feels much better today than it did yesterday, but still not perfect.

Thanks for any ideas,
B.

H2OChick

Look into a condition called popliteal tendonitis and see if that matches your symptoms. I get it when I ride too much. I have underdeveloped quads (I'm new to cycling) and that can lead to this problem. Still haven't figured out why it's only my left knee... It's an overuse injury and you can't do much about it except ice, take an anti-inflammatory, rest, and of course try some exercises to build the muscles around the knee.

umd

I recommend lowering your saddle a touch. The back of my knees started to hurt a little bit and it went away when I lowered it about 3mm.

DamnRock

yea, pain on the backs of your knees si a symptom of overextending your leg... at least as far as I have haerd.

Rock

H2OChick

Here's one I found helpful, although you'll need somebody to translate!

https://www.physsportsmed.com/issues/2004/0304/muche.htm

csv001

What kind of pedals do you use? Free floating pedals, such as speed plays, have been known to solve knee problems. Someone told me this last year and I didn't really believe it. This year, I was having some problems (ITB and pain in the back of the knee) and I switched to speedplays. Over the next 4 weeks, the pain went away and has never come back. In fact, 3 weeks after, I rode 160 miles in one day with none of the same knee pain (I was sore all over but I didn't have any sharp pains in the knee). I did, however, get cramps in my stabilizer muscles in my quads. These are the muscles that help to keep you knee straight during the pedal stroke. These muscles are underdeveloped if you have a spring loaded float. I don't know, but maybe the increase in strength of these muscles also contributed to my healing.

I have no science to back this up, it is just personal experience.

brianappleby

thanks.... the current pedals have a bit of float.

I am new and my seat had previously been too high.... i'll slow down on the workout and try lowering the seat a bit.

DannoXYZ 

Yeah, back of the knee is usually too far and/or too far forward...

Az B

Not to hijack the thread, but what about the side of the knee? On the inside side.

Az

zooropa530

Sounds like a foot alignment issue - check your cleats. Better yet, take'em to an LBS and have them use a RAD kit on your bike.