Knee / IT band pain -- does it get better ? (Read 3005 times)

Thanks for all the suggestions and feedback, everyone -- it is appreciated. "for me resting it did absolutely nothing -- ITBS sidelined me for months" This is what I fear is happening to me, I'm now into my 5th month of working on this with a stretching program and foam roller. I am more flexible for certain, and those knots of pain that I used find with the roller don't seem to be there any more. I'm going to try a shoe change next. I also will try the advice to stop running as soon as the pain starts and keep below the threshold of distance when the pain starts -- I've been using the pain setting in as a sign to cut back to distance, but have pushed through to finish the run.

I've been using the pain setting in as a sign to cut back to distance, but have pushed through to finish the run.

I'm not a doctor (well, not a real doctor) but I'd say that's your problem right there. My guess is that you could fix this in a couple of weeks if you get strict but you need to do four things. 1. Immediately reduce the inflammation and then 2. Keep from irritating it again whilst you: 3. Build up strength/flexibility to prevent recurrence and 4. Eliminate any possible causative factors 1. Reduce immediate inflammation with ice/Ibuprofen and maybe rest for a day if it is bad. 2. Keep from irritating it for at least a week or so by: Keeping your runs short. After a day or two you can try doing a couple of runs with some rest, ice and stretch between. Avoid any speedwork. Avoid any downhills. Avoid corners - seriously, be VERY careful going around corners, slow to a practical stop if you have to make a right angle turn. Avoid roads with steep cambers. Avoid running tracks. You get the picture.... Also, make your short runs in the form of a circle around your house. That way if you feel the SLIGHTEST pain you can stop and slowly walk home. Never run on it when it is painful. If you stop the instant you feel irritation you can be back out tomorrow, possibly even later the same day. If you inflame it you'll be sidelined for another day Use ice and Ibuprofen after your run to reduce swelling even if you didn't get any pain. Don't use Ibuprofen before the run since it may mask the pain and lead to injury. 3. Build strength/flexibility with the various recommended stretches and exercises. Find ones that seem to work for you and do them ALL THE TIME. I like the stretch I mentioned earlier because you can do it anywhere without looking too daft. All you need is a chair, table, car, fence post, shelf, large dog or anything to steady yourself against. Every time you have a spare 30 seconds you should so this stretch. You can do it whilst you read at a table if you want. If you work at a desk, even if only part of the day, then do it whenever you get up to, or return to your desk. It will not hurt to look into combining the stretching with some strengthening exercises too. 4. If there is any suspicion that your shoes may be to blame then switch back to an old pair. Otherwise try to think what might be leading to the irritation. For me I suspect that too much downhill running is often the trigger. Even after you get your mileage back you may want to avoid possible triggers for a while - or at least approach them with extreme caution. If you are strict with yourself and don't try to do too much too soon you can get your mileage back up pretty quickly. Say that you can't get beyond 3 miles without pain kicking in then try something like: 0, 2, 3, 2+2, 3, 4, 3+3 which would give you practically a week of stretching before you tried exceeding 3. Then in one more week you could build up to 7 or 8 miles. Good luck. John

I run with this IT Band strap ... http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000OQLUZ4 and it works great! Also, get yourself a foam roller. They work, too!

This, plus foam roller. Oh yeah, and I couldn't run for 8 weeks (I couldn't even walk), not until I got new shoes that is (not just new, different). Once I switched to a neutral shoe I never had a problem again.

Patt strapp, new shoes, foam roller, and stretches. Also, cut down on the miles. It's been 3 years, and I'm just now trying to increase speed and distance. I've been so worried , I was just happy to do 20 a week, with 5 being my long run. Good luck Oh, MTA my shoe problem was the same.. I needed a neutral. It really really made a difference.

I over trained last Nov and developed an IT band problem on the right side. Its slowly gone away by my doing IT band stretches, rubbing the knee, Sun Salutations to stretch everything, and switching to a Jeff Galloway run-walk-run approach. Now I am not a speedster by any means, but I ran my first 10k a little over a week ago at a pace that was a minute faster than my 5k pb - w/o pain, by using the run-walk method. You might give it a try at least until the pain eases off.

I've been dealing with ITBS for about 2 months now. I was doing better for a while (getting up to 4.5 miles) until last week when I re-inflamed it. I think it was because I went home for spring break and the terrain around my house is hillier than what I was used to. Right now, I'm doing stretches + foam roller, but I will definitely give the NSAID + frozen peas a shot, too.

Massage and a new pair of shoes worked for me. Good luck, dude.

Drew: What shoe were you wearing when you had the issue? And what shoe did you swtich to when the problem eased?

MilkTruck: What shoe do you wear when you run? And what shoe do you wear other time during the day?

Sorry for the delay in responding... For running I mix various models of Asics neutral cushioning models -- I usually have 4 pair in rotation at various lifecycle stages from new to beat. My primary model for the last 18 months or so has been the Asics Nimbus. For daily wear, I usually wear typical 'loafers' or other leather "dress" shoes.