Runner's Forum: An aching knee...already???

Sexton1022:

I'm a begginer too (only been at this for 3 months), but I've been through what you're going through and made it out the other side without the knee pain.  Maybe I can share some of what helped me.

I do hope, however, that you'll get advice from more experienced/qualified runners too.  I'd hate to have you take my advice and have it be wrong.  If you don't get more replies form experienced runners, you may want to try the beginner's forum at runnersworld.com ( http://forums.runnersworld.com/eve/forums/a/frm/f/608106477 ) Questions form beginners on that forum get a lot of good quick responses.

 I'm 47 years old rather than 27 like you, so some of what I say may be unique to being "older".

I stretch before I run.  In fact, I *MUST* stretch before I run.  If I don't, I'll have knee pain, calf pain, shin pain, hip pain!  I don't push my stretching to the point that I hurt myself, but I have felt soooo much better during/after runs now that I spend at least 5 minutes stretching before I run.  The most critical stretches for me are calf stretches (both straight legged and bent legged).  Tight calves can lead to all other kinds of things, including a sore knee.  The other that helps my knee, I'd say, is hamstring stretches.

 I did invest in new shoes after I started to run more than a couple of miles at at time.  I didn't want to invest until I was sure I could be a runner, but I finally decided better safe than sorry.  I went to a store that would analyze my gait and recommend a type of shoe ("motion control" in my case).  $90 was a lot to spend, but I'm glad I did.

An experienced runner told me two things that helped with reducing knee pain.  One was to make sure my thighs were strong enough to allow them to take up the shock of my stride.  Sometimes when I'm running, I'll consider if I'm taking all the shock with my knee (locked knee) or if I'm taking some of it with my thigh (not locked knee).

The other thing he told me was to make sure my stride wasn't too long.  He told me to glance down with my eyes while running (while KEEPING MY HEAD in it's normal forward looking position) and see if I could see my shoelaces when my foot came forward.  If I could, my stride was too long.

The final thing I did, which may not apply to you since you still have young joints, is I started taking a joint supplement.  It's a MSM/Chondroitin/Glucosamine combo.  I probably haven't been taking it long enough for it to actually have an effect, but my knee pain did go away after I started using it, so I'm afraid to stop!

Oh, lastly, I did benefit from backing off for a few days.  I'm not sure how slow and gradual the couch to 5K program is, but you may want to see what happens if you stay at a distance where you don't have knee pain for a while longer before you move up to the next distance.

Good luck and have fun!

Mike

You're doing the right thing by getting a walk in before you stretch, those mucles need to warm up. Also stretching right after your run can be even more beneficial than stretching before. Overstretching an injury can actually make it worse so dont stretch so far it hurts or for to long.

Running on soft surfaces like grass or dirt will help a lot.

Many roads have enough of a slant to them that you will be putting more stress on one of your legs than the other and can cause some problems. So switching sides from time to time can help even things out.

Some more specific problems, IT band for example, can be cause by muscle imbalances so you can look up some exercises to help with that.

Thats all I can think right now that hasnt been said, I'm sure someone else can come up with some more good advice. If you just keep taking care of it (icing after your run, stretching, ect.) those tendons in your knee will get stronger and you will have fewer problems so stick with it.

Sexton1022:

I should have been clear that (as chiggy points out) stretching AFTER you run is of course very, very important.  I was just pointing out that I must stretch before I run too.  Both are impotant to me.  The stretch before keeps my calves from getting tight during the run (which leads to a weird stride and other pains) and the stretching after the run keeps my legs feeling good for the next day rather than being all tight and aching.  I probably don't do enough warm up before I stretch.  So if you do your warm up then stretch then run then stretch again, I bet it'll work out great for you.

As far as shoes go, getting the right "type" (with various levels of motion control) may be important, but I'm not sure how important since I'm so new at this and I've only had one pair of real running shoes so far.  I think that the really important part, however, is making sure you're not running on a  pair of shoes that has no shock absorbing ability left.  If the shoes you are running on right now aren't taking enough of the force for you, I think you'll definitely be at bigger risk for knee pain.  I had an experienced runner tell me today about how he got new shoes this week (not that his old ones even looked worn out) and he immediately noticed the improvement in how his legs felt after a run.

 Good luck and have fun!

Mike