Think I may have to give up commuting.
 

As much as I enjoy it I don't think my knees can take it.

A couple weeks ago they started hurting a little. Mainly in the evening and waking up in the morning. The best way I can describe it is a raw feeling. Then the pain started while pedaling. Especially my right knee.

I decided to take last week off and double down on stretches. Finally had two days without knee pain and decided to try again this morning. After about two miles my right knee started telling me on every down stroke that it wasn't happy. It got to the point that I couldn't put any pressure whatsoever on it and I essentially did the last mile or so one legged. I hobbled around until about 2 O'Clock until the pain eased off. I took it very easy in the way home and did okay until I got home and off the bike. They were on fire. I've been melting ice packs on them for awhile now. Man are they hurting though.

My knees are what made me get off the bike seven or eight years ago. After years of abuse doing concrete work and working in crawl spaces under houses I had partially torn meniscus in both knees that I never had addressed. I've since been told by an orthopedic Dr that I have patellofemoral syndrome. I've had two Cortisone shots in my right knee and had enough relief that I could ride around the neighborhood with my wife and son. After that I thought I could handle the commute, especially after the first couple weeks were pain free. But now it's pretty clear that I'm not going to be able to do it with any regularity. Which is a major bummer because I thoroughly enjoy it. I'm not doing heavy construction work anymore but I still have a very physical job and can't take the chance of really damaging my knees.

I'll talk to my doctor again when I go for my annual check-up. Mainly just venting because I've really grown to enjoy getting around by bicycle.
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That sucks!! I have bad knees. What works best for me is two days off after every ride. Doesn't seem to mater a lot how far I go so when I ride, I do long rides. If I start sprinting up too many hills, I need to slow down. Maybe take another day off.
Hopefully you can find what works for you. You might have to do lots of experimenting.

You list your bikes as "a couple junkers." Not sure what that means (cruiser? box-store mountain bike?) but a lighter bike and/or a lower gear (spin, don't mash) might do wonders. Might also reexamine your bike's fit. My point is if you really do enjoy it there are other possibilities to explore before throwing in the towel.

I seem to be just the opposite. The knees start aching if I'm off the bike for 3+ days in a row.

But, a few rest days help too, especially after a hard effort.

If you have been off the bike for a while, ease back into it, rather than going all-in, and take some time off. I.E. start with riding only a couple of days a week, and for short rides.

You might post a note under either: https://www.bikeforums.net/fitting-your-bike/ or perhaps https://www.bikeforums.net/pills-ills/

(or click on the red circle and ask for this to be moved). There are some theories that things like seat position can affect different aspects of the knees. At least getting the bike setup properly can help.

This is the recycled German city bike right?

When the going gets tough, the tough get going. That old cliche has been my life-long belief, but when I injured my back I lost a lot of mobility on my right side and forgot about it. My arm and shoulder ultimately atrophied and I fell into a deep depression.

Because of it, I gave up training and working out completely for over 8 years. After growing a belly and hating what I had turned in to, I remember that old saying and the promise I had made as a teenager (to never get the beer belly my dad had) and went back to a healthy diet and working out again.

It was a grueling ordeal at first, and excruciatingly painful, but after a while I started to slowly get better. That was 4 years ago, and the improvements continue to this day.

There's no avoiding aging, but the body will always need exercise. Even in our eighties weight training has been proven to have a positive effect. My back may never be cured completely, but I forget I ever had knee problems. That's what leg training (what my doctor said not to do) did for me. Now, more than ever I realize the importance of regular exercise. When you stop, things just get worse all that much sooner.

BTW, I'm not telling you to ignore your doctor's advice, just giving you my perspective and what worked for me. Of course you should do what you think is best for you. Good luck.

Well my friend step right we have an e bike for you!!!!!

I agree. Much better for the environment as well.

+1!

I'm not big on E-Bikes, although there are "pedal assist" bikes, or modes for the bikes which require you to actually at least move the legs.

However, if you do go that route, I'd encourage you to keep your pedal bike for riding with the family and trips around the neighborhood.

It happened to me also, early on, and it was a bear to get over. I'd already gone full on car-free so I had to stick with it, but I was pedaling one-legged for a while, with my right leg just going through the motions. It took weeks until I could do it more normally without pain. I don't know about "torn meniscus" but when I finally healed up I was able to gradually strengthen both knees and continue - this was about 10 years ago.

I also recommend looking into an electric assist bike. They have become hugely popular in Europe but they are still kind of a novelty here. I also occasionally have knee issues and I noticed that these kind of bikes can be a big relief when I rode my late dad's ebike in Germany this summer.

Not to belabor what is probably already obvious, but is your bike fit correct?

Many people get knee pain (in front, and internal) when pedaling with too low a seat, or at too low cadence. Many people get pain in the rear of their knee, and possibly in their lower backs when the seat is too high.

Too-low cadence and too-low seat height are really common maladies among commuters I see out there in the wild. You may not be one of those who has those problems but those who do have them are not doing their knees any favors.

If I was in the ebike market ... I'd look for something like this ...

https://www.lidl.de/de/telefunken-ko...0-zoll/p249484

:D

but, I'm not and ride the FGSS until it snaps in half.

or something like this. should be under 600 USD shipped to your door.

Not sure what you're using now. My foot and knee pain went away when I stopped using clipless and started using flats (FiveTen Freerider shoes, Dmr Vault pedals).
https://www.adidasoutdoor.com/five-t...shoe/FT07.html
https://www.dmrbikes.com/Catalogue/P...lt-2/Vault-NEW

Things that caused me issues:
- Clipless pedals (yeah not a problem for everyone but they were for me)
- Cheap plastic square flat pedals - slick surface let my foot slip around and my leg would try to stop it from slipping and it would cause issues
- Smaller pedals - I have big feet and if the pedal platform wasn't big enough my feet would hurt
- Pedals with no concave - no huge issues just not as comfortable, my feet like the pedals with a concave shape better

Five Ten shoes use a special sticky rubber that grabs to metal pins like they're clipless (except you can lift your foot off the pedal easily). Dmr Vaults have the pins, are big enough for my feet, slight concave shape is very comfortable.

Obviously a certain level of medical problems will mean one cannot bike period at some point so I don't know if this would help. But this is the most comfortable I've found for my knees and legs.

Thanks for the encouragement. Some good thoughts here that I will take into consideration. I'm not completely giving up yet. Just discouraged as I had thought the knee issues were behind me.

Just to touch in some points quickly.

I'm not opposed to electric, if all else fails then I will certainly be looking that direction.

I'm pretty confident my bike fit is not too far off.

I've paid attention to my cadence and try to keep from grinding too much.

I'm using flat pedals.

The bike is heavy probably closer to 50# than 40# when commuting. But even my lighter bike caused the same issues which is what led to getting the Cortisone shots.

Bikes are not going away. Just the idea of being able to commute daily at the moment.

drats, good luck

Pedals or float? There's all types of adjustments that can be made.Have you tried mountain bike platforms? I wear size 48.For every problem there is a solution. I also use good insoles for extra support, stability, and cushioning.

Been thinking more about the electric route. It may be a way to get some strength back in my knees without hammering them too much which is happening now. If my commute was half the distance I don't think I'd have any issues. It is what it is though, maybe electric would allow me to do the distance with much less strain and be able to build strength over time.

If I did go that route I'm leaning strongly towards converting the commute bike. I think I'd lean towards pedal assist only with no throttle and a small motor. Maybe 250W would be enough to take the edge off.

Need to do some more research. There is an ebike dealer in the next town over. I may stop in there to see what they have.

It's the way forward and they're used a huge amount in Germany.

A friend who once once a casual commuter invested in an e-bike. Now he sends me daily updates about his ride and has withdrawal symptoms if something prevents him from riding,

Sometimes I wonder if knee pain is due to athritis or bad eating habits. I remember having knee pain on my left knee sometimes when I bike. Sometimes, there's no warning at all. There would just be a really sharp pain out of nowhere. But it has been four yers since then and my knee has gotten much better. Never went to the doctor or anything. Just waited it out.

I've had some mysterious knee pain over the years that seem to have gone now.

Once I was playing golf with my son and his friend when they were still in high school. We didn't rent a cart. Sometime past the nineth hole I had really bad knee pain and let others play through.

This past September I woke up Saturday morning with a knee pain. I couldn't walk without a limp. By Monday it was all good.

It would be a real shame if somebody had to give up cycling because of a developed physical limitatons. For every person who has to give up cycling, we hope one or more physically able person who needs only to travel 10 km or less can get out of his car and cycle comute too.