Developing Knee Pain, Any Ideas?
 

So over the past 2 months or so I've been getting a pain in my right knee when I ride. It seems like every time I ride now it hurts a little worse. It starts about an hour into my ride then slowly gets worse. It will hurt for about 3 or 4 days after the day I ride.

The pain is located in the on the top right side of my right knee cap if you were looking at it. It almost feels like I banged it hard and it is bruised. It's really weird. The pain occurs when I bend my knee.

I haven't changed anything with my shoes or pedals since I got them 3 years ago.

I have an appointment with an orthopedic later this week, but it in the meantime it's really freaking me out. Figured I would ask hear in case anyone has had or heard of something like this.

The mechanics of the knee are staggering. One symptom can have several potential causes. It truly takes a lifetime of studying to accurately diagnose the nuances of the pain. That being said, I was once guided toward surgery (by a surgeon, of course) when what I actually had was a very bad case of tendinitis. I had never had it before, so I didn't know what it felt like. Ice and rest finally put my mind at ease.

You might just have tendinitis. It hurts like a ***** when it gets really flared up. But you have to understand that nobody is going to know except the orthopedist. Good luck!

Could be fit, but I wouldn't gamble with the long-term health of your knee. See here: http://www.cptips.com/knee.htm

You're wise to see the doc, I'd also ease up on the riding until then, just in case.

Good luck!

Get a professioanl bike fitting from someone very experienced. While you haven't changed anything, your body has from riding and strengthening. Riding uses primarily quads and hip flexors. Those muscles get progressively stronger in proportion to others that aren't used as much. So a fitting is in order. Also try weights and other exercises to keep you in balance.

I rode all last summer with no issues, my first year on the road. Then, after I stopped for the winter, my left knee got puffy. I ignored it for a while, but it started to hurt more and more. So, a few weeks ago I went in and got it drained. They took xrays, did an mri, and did blood work. Nothing. So, they went in with a scope and instantly found cracked cartilage. Cleaned it up and a week later, back on the bike.

So, first thing to know is that all the tests they can run might not show anything. Second, if they go in and scope it, it's not a big deal at all. If they don't do anything when they are in there, there is no real down time. Even if they do work while in there, the down time might be minimal. I still have to be aware of my knee while it gets better, but I can ride all I want.

On a side note, I talked to my doctor ahead of time, and he told me I could watch if I wanted. When the anesthesiologist came in, he said he was going to use general on me. I said no way, I was told I could have a spinal. He didn't like that, as he didn't get to do the spinal, they called in a different guy. But, I got to watch, and it was very cool to see inside my knee. He talked to me as he worked, explained what I was seeing and what he was doing. So, it's worth asking about if you end up being scoped and want to watch.

Could your cleat have twisted on the shoe?
How about your saddle height? Any changes over time?

I had bad knee pain a few years ago. Convinced myself I'd messed it up while backpacking. It got worse and worse. I was hobbling about. Went to the doctor, got the MRI.

Doctor said, no cartilage problems, but try some stretches. Like these:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ur0Y...eature=related

Told me to do some spinning on the road bike. I got some better float pedals, and stretched a bit, spun a bit, and quickly got better.

Tried mountain biking again. An epic ride had triggered the seemingly degenerative condition months earlier. Guess what? I could no longer tolerate the position my cleats had been in for several years. Played with the angle, and bingo.

I don't know if what you're experiencing is anything like what I described, but nobody will argue against playing around with your cleats if you've got pain.

IT band?

I had the same problem and the only answer is to liberate the tension in the area with massages and streching. Maybe your knee is bending too much on the inside when you pedal and it causes extra stress on your IT band too. Talk to your physiotherapist about this, I'm sure he will be able to show you good exercices to help you.

Also get a roller

http://www.kaboodle.com/reviews/high...ty-foam-roller

http://www.kaboodle.com/reviews/high...ty-foam-roller

moving my cleats rearward on the shoe help my knee 100%

Last summer I didn't realize that my seat post clamp had allowed my saddle to drop. I was on a long tour(cross country) and thought I might have to throw in the towel...... My left knee was hurting like heck right on the knee cap. After days and days of this I figured out what had happened. Pain went away pretty soon after I got everything back to normal.

Not saying that is what happened..... but look over all your settings very close. I was amazed how much pain I got from a saddle being to low.

Thanks for all the ideas. It's not bike specific, the pains occurs on all 3 of my bikes. I'll wait and see what the doc says, then maybe mess with my cleat position.

Although, after reading about Tendinitis on the web, the symptoms sound a bit like what I've got going on. I hope it's not that. I have it in my left elbow and it never goes away. I pretty much have had to stop rock climbing. It would really suck if I couldn't ride as much from this.

Snapped my ACL skiing 2 years ago. After surgery I rode my trainer as part of rehab. When I really pushed it I would get the same feeling - it was patella tendonitis. 2 things helped; rest/ice and ibuprofen. Not being the type to rest for very long, I would opt for "Vitamin I" - 600 mgs 3-4 times per day. After a couple days it was gone. That being said, I would see a knee doc before I did more damage. Sure, a bike fitting and a few adjustments might do the trick, but what if it's something physical? A fitting or adjustment isn't going to do you any good and it may do more damage. Here is a great knee web sight with a lot of information, the forums are a great place to ask questions - Good Luck! - Craig

http://www.kneeguru.co.uk/

i used to get knee pain, then i got my cleats adjusted, no more

Stretch the quads and hip flexors, as well as the psoas. Strengthen your hammies and glutes (deadlift once a week, it's good for the soul), and hit the foam foller/tennis ball/lacrosse ball as hard as you can, as often as you can.

Roll the IT band, adductors, quads, hip flexors, every angle on every muscle of your calves, then break out the tennis ball and roll your feet (yes, tight muscles in the feet can mean pain the knee or hip).

Stretch often, and roll often, and see what happens. Also, don't do things that cause further pain, as one week off the bike is annoying, being sidelined for months is far worse.