Weak knees - literally

As my already seemingly advanced years stack up, I find my knees are
getting weaker - literally.
I find i am not able to run, even a normal jog puts stress on them.
I also have the honour of having flat feet, which did not give me
problems as a kid, but am feeling the affects via wear on my knees.
This is one reason why I ride my bicycle so much, in comparison to
walking.
Apart from seeing a doctor, would anyone out there have any pearls of
wisdom to share?

marc_9 wrote:

As my already seemingly advanced years stack up, I find my knees are
getting weaker - literally.
I find i am not able to run, even a normal jog puts stress on them.
I also have the honour of having flat feet, which did not give me
problems as a kid, but am feeling the affects via wear on my knees.
This is one reason why I ride my bicycle so much, in comparison to
walking.
Apart from seeing a doctor, would anyone out there have any pearls of
wisdom to share?

Do you have flat feet or weak arches? i.e., are they flat all the time
or only when you stand on them.

Is the knee pain due to weakness in the muscles around the knee, muscle
imbalance etc., or due to the jarring motion of running? If it's
jarring, then it's a technique thing, easy to fix - try shortening your
stride, check your shoes are adequately cushioned, and make sure your
feet don't land too far in front (in which case they push you backwards,
why would you want that?). If it's a foot problem, which tends to spread
to knee/hip/back problems, then getting the right pair of shoes or
orthotics can be great.

If you find you cycle more comfortably with your cleats angled such that
your toes turn in, it may be that you overpronate - most of the
overpronating triathletes I know that don't get orthotics for their
cycle shoes have their toes turned in a bit to compensate.

Then again it could be something like low joint fluid or cartilage
damage, in which case you can take some glucosamine sulfate but mostly
rest is best.

Don't waste time seeing a GP because they usually can't help. Most of
them just don't understand sports injuries. Given your flat feet I'd
recommend seeing a podiatrist first, see a good sports podiatrist. They
know lots about legs and feet, and they should also know drills for
improving technique. Alternatively see a good physio or a good doc
specialising in sports medicine.

Don't ask a shoe shop for advice, even shops with podiatrists in store.
(A podiatrist won't give you a prescription for free.)

T

Tamyka Bell Wrote:
Don't waste time seeing a GP because they usually can't help. Most o
them just don't understand sports injuries.
Hey! I resent that - even though it might just be true...:

--
Johnny O-R

Johnny O-R wrote:

Tamyka Bell Wrote:
Don't waste time seeing a GP because they usually can't help. Most of
them just don't understand sports injuries.
Hey! I resent that - even though it might just be true...

--
Johnny O-R

Disclaimer: the person responsible for the initial post makes no claim
to an unbiased opinion about the ability of any said general
practitioner of medicine to make an accurate diagnosis of
beforementioned suspected sporting injury.

Tee hee. (too much tv) I really meant no offence. But...

Ummm... unfortunately, unless it's a broken bone or a dislocated
shoulder, you'd be hard pressed to find a GP who has the latest info.
Some doctors don't even recognise ITB friction syndrome, etc., even
though a huge percentage of the population participates in sports that
make them liable to exactly that injury. That being said, if you're
misdiagnosed, it's unlikely you'll die. Unlike that time I had
meningitis...

In addition, there is pressure for GPs to instantly cure problems with a
wonder drug. Unfortunately the many overuse injuries in sport don't
respond to that but rather to a bit of rest, and then retraining to
prevent the cause rather than just treat the symptom. So last time my
ITB friction suddenly went from mild to
oh-dear-i-have-to-catch-a-bus-home, I skipped the GP altogether and went
straight to my physio emergency room (which means I walked in and said
"I need to see Shane, my ITB has just stuffed up in a real hurry and I
don't know whether I should ice it or just start bashing the crap out of
it, and then he bashed it for me while other clients waited, yeah, it's
fun being a star).

Just my $0.02

T

In article ,
Tamyka Bell wrote:

I need to see Shane

Just make an appointment.

;-)

--
Shane Stanley

Shane Stanley wrote:

In article ,
Tamyka Bell wrote:

I need to see Shane

Just make an appointment.

;-)

--
Shane Stanley

:-P

T

Tamyka Bell Wrote:
Shane Stanley wrote

In article
Tamyka Bell wrote

I need to see Shan

Just make an appointment

;-

-
Shane Stanle

:-

T
How'd you guess my middle name

I'll try not to stuff up -too- much..

Johnny 'Ferrari' O-

--
Johnny O-R

marc_9 wrote:

Apart from seeing a doctor, would anyone out there have any pearls of
wisdom to share?

Work on keeping your cadence high.
Low cadence will make your knees worse.

Terry Collins wrote:

marc_9 wrote:

Apart from seeing a doctor, would anyone out there have any pearls of
wisdom to share?

Work on keeping your cadence high.
Low cadence will make your knees worse.

Oh that's a good one. It's more practical than my preferred methods of
knee protection, such as not cycling up hills and demanding leg massages
from close friends and loved ones.

T

PS hippy - do knee warmers help?

Tamyka Bell Wrote:
Terry Collins wrote

marc_9 wrote

Apart from seeing a doctor, would anyone out there have any pearl
o
wisdom to share

Work on keeping your cadence high
Low cadence will make your knees worse

Oh that's a good one. It's more practical than my preferred methods o
knee protection, such as not cycling up hills and demanding le
massage
from close friends and loved ones



PS hippy - do knee warmers help?
my knees were shot at the age of 20 from playing football and
started riding because i couldnt run more than a couple of hundre
metres and i swear by yoga, stretching. Massage is good to, but nothin
beats doing a bit of yoga.

also, when you ride do you use your glutes more or your knees t
"push"
bit hard to quantify, i know, but i try to drive my power out of m
glutes and it saves a bit of stress on the old knees

--
byron2

6'5", curly hair, bit like krusty the clown i spose