Terror_in_pink

i have recently lowered my gearing and i haven't been riding my usual 8-12 miles a day since school let out but i have a pain in my left knee. It feels like it wants to explode when i bend it while squatting. Anyone experience pain from a lack of biking?

I just realized it could be because i'm brakeless now and i back pedal more than normal. I don't really use my left knee when i skid because I skid with right foot in back....

Judah

If you're talking about that sharp stabbing pain that is almost instantaneous when you get it past a certain angle, I get that if I sit cross-legged too much, or if I run for a week straight. I usually ice and ibuprofen and that takes care of it.

jrowe

I've had knee pain from pushing (and skidding with) too large a gear. At the time I was splitting my time between 46x16 and 49x16. Those bikes are now 46x17 and 47x18 and my knees are happy, even after 20 miles of climbing in the Shenandoahs on sunday.

Of course this doesn't answer your question. There are probably better places than a bike forum to ask about knee pain due to not riding a bike.

Ken Cox

Usually I take advantage of knee pain questions to talk about body mechanics.
However, what Terror_in_pink describes sounds like a meniscus injury or a general degeneration of the meniscus.

Try this site:

https://www.orthoassociates.com/meniscus.htm

These things respond well to surgery, but it costs money.
Sometimes these symptoms don't involve a meniscal tear, and a good Physical Therapist can find ways of minimizing the pain or working around it.
I'd ask friends to recommend an orthopedic surgeon who doesn't treat every ache and pain with surgery, in the hope that if a non-surgical remedy exists he'd pursue it.

absntr

TIP - this sounds more like a result of the brakeless change rather than the smaller gearing and the lack of riding.

Keen pain is one of those things I'm terrified by. Having skated off and on for the last 17 years (6 years were daily) I've been very careful with my knees.

When I first went to 48x16, I noticed it on the first day. Ice, ibuprofen even though it wasn't a lingering pain but I wanted to be sure. Eventually I got used to it and rode it all throughout winter but I could never get the spin and skid technique like I really wanted to. See the "48x18" thread for info on that.

Since I've switched to 48x18, I've been quite happy and more importantly my knees more so. I did have some initial ache when I started to skid a heck of a lot more but I've been trying to moderate things better and use the front brake on those days I really don't want to fight myself or what my knees are telling me.

Plow Boy

Related question for Terror: Did you change your saddle height? If you dropped/raised it that might be the culprit. The gear change seems to be the main focus but other minor things also could influence.

Plow Boy

Cynikal 

Just found this for you https://www.63xc.com/joshc/kneepain.htm

Looks like 63xc just updated thier site.

Hope this helps

fight or flight

So you're right leg is dominant, makes sense.. you're left leg won't be as developed. Could be the gearing, maybe not though.. How's your saddle height? Is the pain in the front or back of your knee?

queerpunk

sheldon b also has a whole lot of information on body pain.

i'm also partial to Trauma Balm, a mix of infused oils of arnica, st johns wort, and calendula. arnica alone (and in conjunction with the others) is an excellant anti-inflamatory. never use it internally except homeopathically, can be bought at health stores and shizzle, send me a personal message for more info on the matter.

(i like herbal medicine).

Cynikal 

Arnica rocks! My massage therapist hooked me up with some a couple of years ago. Now I'm never without a tube.

tylersage

i have the same pain, i ush a big chain ring, 53/16, i think a combination of that and skidding is what made it hurt, i talked ot the traner at my school and he said it was tendenidus. there is a little band u can buy that goues around the lower part of your knee and it keeps the tendons form swelling and that has helped, alhtough my knees dont really hurt anymore, if they do, that band works

techone

Anytime I change my gearing more than 2 or so inches I get a pain in my knee(s) for a few days, then it goes away.

Terror_in_pink

no change in saddle height, although my stem is a little higher than usual.

jrowe

Put the brake back on and see if the pain subsides.

Terror_in_pink

I laid off it yesterday and it feels better today although i can tell if i push it the pain might come back.

jrowe

Is it right below your kneecap, in the center?

46x17

Riding fixed and especially hand-brakeless can teach you a bunch about your riding style and equipment. It forces you to use muscels that have not been previously "needed" as much because you had a hand-brake. I am almost sure that everyone that gor rid of the handbrake first felt some discomfort in the knees or hips or ankles. Saddle position (height and fore aft) becomes more crucial. But also using your butt muscles and the ones on the sides of your thighs will help to put minimal stress on your knees. Ken Cox's posts are great for the specifics. For the first month of hand-brakeless riding I had slightly sore knees but obsessivly working on my pedalling tecnique, getting a zero setback seatpost (ignoring that silly KOPS dictum), keeping up with stretching and running a 48x18 gear ratio has allowed me to ride hand-brakeless without discomfort for some months now. Ride and try to feel were discomfort comes from. Make slight changes to your pedalling motion and see if it helps. Change seat angle, height, fore aft and see if it helps. Try to spin more. If something helps to feels better keep going that way until if feels to much (e.g. keep raising the seat until it feels too high). Don't try to do everything at once, but keep at it until riding feels good again. Try thinking or feeling "fluid" and "smooth". Smile while riding. Of course I am not saying that this will work for everyone, and if there is some serious injury it should be healed before riding again (if in doubt see at least 2 doctors) . But, I think most of the pain related to riding fixed can be eliminated by improving on pedalling skills and bike setup.

chimblysweep

I also have to say, I've tried to switch from relying on skids to some planning ahead and muscling my cranks to a stop, and it's made my knees much happier. I mean, there's no reason to hammer to a stoplight and then skid when you can slow yourself down and better distribute the pressure.

r0cket-

Don't resist or skid, skip.

YellowFixedGear

I also have the same pains. I ride a 48x16 and am thinking about going to a 48x18 setup.

46x17

If you don't resist at all you might as well ride single speed, because it makes your fixedness obsolete.

46x17

Skidding and skipping will not put excess strain on your knees if done right. If you skid lean all the way forward - that way locking up will not require a lot of force (if it does you are doing something wrong). When you skip unweight rear wheel and lock up, hold locked position very briefly (to create mini skid = skip), release lock as soon as strain builds up, repeat. Don't try to hold it long (that will ruin you knees) but do quick repetitions every half turn of your cranks until desired speed is acquired.

queerpunk

i disagree (though not with the intention of starting a big old thing about what different people prefer). fixies keep yr legs going, even if you're just spinning down a hill, not pushing or resisting--that really works the muscles. i'v been riding rixed for like three months and i can't describe how much a stronger biker i am.

LyE

"The knee is a poorly designed joint" - Dr. V.P., Sports Medicine Orthopedic Surgeon

Basically, knee pain can be the result of a couple of things (assuming you ride a fixed gear bike without brakes and are using toe clips & straps...)

1) Bad cleat placement on the pedal. The ball of your foot should form a parallel line over the pedal spindle. Lots of people just slap their cleats on their shoes and go. You should have a friend do it with you while you're on rollers or on a wind trainer.

2) Too much skidding. Especially if you're prone to leading with one leg. Try to use both. Most of us have a dominant leg (I'm right handed and left legged...) meaning if you're standing still and someone suddenly pushes you forward, which leg pops out? You may want to put a brake on that bad boy fixie until your knee heals up because damage can accumulate in your knees. I'm pushing 30 and have been riding fixies on tracks as a racer and as a bike messenger and have no knee problems (knocks on wood).

That being said, I have loads of ankle issues on both sides so perhaps my ankles fell apart before my knees did.

peripatetic

slightly OT question:

Anyone out there know any way of helping improve one's ambidexterity? I've been trying to do lots of this stuff since I took up biking again, both with feet and hands, but mainly with hands: brushing my teeth LHed, shampooing my head, turning doorknobs, etc. Also thought about wearing an eyepatch over my right eye for extended periods. But I'm also R-footed, my L foot is very weak, and just kind of useless without the R. I now try and go up and down stairs L-foot first, but I can't figure much else out. Wonder if anyone knows any neat mental exercises or small physical exercises that could help. I know that this belongs on another thread, but since I'm here, thought I'd ask...

BTW, as far as knee pain goes, I'd also highly recommend some good, hard yoga sessions. I also noticed after Ken posted something a while ago that my major knee issues are indeed coming from straightening my L leg too much, maybe even hyper-extending it. I've been trying to avoid that, and keeping my leg slightly bent during any heavy-stress movements. Think it's working. And that might be why it's coming from skidding a lot--repeated strain on the knee from straightening the leg too much. Try skidding without straightening the legs all the way.