Newbie having knee pain
 

Hi all:

Just started riding regularly a couple weeks ago, after years of running. I'm riding about 80-100 miles per week right now, and have been having some pain in my right knee, just outside the kneecap (IT Band? I think), and just above it as well. At first, I thought it was my form or lack thereof, then maybe my setup on the bike. (I bought the bike 3 weeks ago, and am still working with the LBS to tweak the fit.)

Yesterday, I realized that it is much easier to release my left shoe from the pedals than the right one. Could this be the cause of the pain? I'm riding Look pedals (don't know the model, but they are blue and do not have the 'dial adjustment' on them). I'm using Sidi Genius shoes and the red cleats. Is there a way I can make an adjustment to the right one? If so, do I adjust something on the pedal or move the cleat? Could this help?

Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated! I really like my new sport (I'm originally a marathon runner), but struggling a little with all this new stuff!

Thanks!

mbologna
Houston, TX

what LBS, i'm in houston too, just wondering, sorry i dunno about the knee thing... seems to be alot of folks in here from houston though.

Bike Barn. I've been to the one in West University, and the one in Clear Lake. Both are very good. There are regular rides at the Clear Lake location every Saturday and Sunday. Really good way to meet people, and learn about the bike, how to ride in a paceline, etc. Plus, you can end the ride, alk in and get help on adjustments.

Hi mbologna, welcome to our great sport!:D

Knee pain can be caused by a number of things, including seat height, fore and aft adjustment, and pedals.

The book "Bicycling Medicine", by Arnie Baker has a good section on this and may help you.

The red cleats should be OK, as they have some float that allows you to position your feet on the pedal, but your LBS should be able to help with adjusting the tension, and also advice on seat positioning.

What gearing are you using to start off with. If it is too big a gear, forcing you to put a lot of pressure on the pedals to accelerate, that can be hard on the knees. You might have to use a lower gear ratio to spin faster. Also warming up for a few minutes in the lower gear at the start of your ride can help.

Hope some of this helps.

I actually do this, and it does help in general with a warmup. as for knee pain I'd say maybe your seat post is too high? I'd try to fit the bike a different way to see if it resolves your problem. as for the look pedals, I have the wellgo (exactly the same as the look style) clipless and have not had any pain, so I don't think it would be those.

Sheldon Brown
I think he has a few articles on knee pain... hope this helps :)

sounds like your cleats are not adjusted properly.

first, sit on a table/chair with your legs dangling. Where do your feet point naturally? Out? Middle? In?

If they point out, adjust your cleat accordingly so that they sit at the same position when you are pedalling (leave enough float for your feet to swivel on the pedal as you spin).

The reason your knees hurt could be because your cleats are not adjusted properly. While pedalling, your feet could want to swivel in but is being restrained because most of the float is for swivelling out.

cleat fit is like saddle fit. adjust in small increments - try unscrewing the cleat a bit and move it toward the middle of the cleat - not just laterally.
my legs are two differing lengths, and the 'reach' of the leg can be changed with this adjustment.

I know this won't help much because you probably don't want to replace the pedals because they are new, but I"m getting to the point where I"m about to give up on cleat adjustment and just go to speeplay (something like 32 degrees of float, and no cleat adjustment). If you can work a deal with your LBS and you like them, this is a good option if the cleat adjustment is your problem.