Originally Posted by
79pmooney
Go to a good orthopedic specializing in sports medicine. I started having real knee pan after my first long ride o the season. First race 3 days later. Had to drop out because of my knees. Race promoter knew I wasn't a quitter and asked why. Told me there was an orthopedic surgeon riding the race and he would introduce me after he finished.
Doc first watched me on the bike, then took me into a van (it was a cold NH March morning). Didn't have me undress, saying it was too cold, but started poking around my knees, obviously knowing what he was looking for. Diagnosed me on the spot with Chrondomalicia Patellae, gave me exercises and told me to call him. Life changing.
Ben
Yes. I think the lesson here is that this is very difficult to resolve by yourself. It's important to have someone observe and it's important to have someone who understands the biomechanics. It's even better if they are the same person.
I have knee issues - on one side I'm without an ACL. On the other side, I've had some meniscus issues after a small tear. If my seat height is off by less than 1/4", I have irritation that starts up and I have to adjust. I had to fool around with pedals and a pedal fit by an expert with feet problems. 4mm solved that one. Small difference matter.
In the ski boot world, just a single millimeter can make a difference. I don't think cycling is a lot different especially since there is a high degree of repetition and we are pretty much locked into a given position on the bike. So something that is off by a little bit gets aggravated quickly after a thousand repetition. Pretty easy to do if you're pedaling at 80rpm - all you have to do is ride for two hours and you've hit a thousand repetitions.
I suppose you can solve it by yourself, but it's going to go a lot faster if you get pro help (doctor, pt, etc...). The faster you get it solved, the better chance you have from creating a long term problem.
J.