Runner's knee issue

I have been doing exclusively the program for 40 weeks now. In the last few weeks I decided to go for a run on two occasions and in both occasions, I had to stop after 5km because I had intense pain at my knee. This is something that I had never felt before and I was an ok runner before focusing exclusively on GB. I could do 5-10k on the road with no leg issues/pains.

A little bit about me. I am about 37 years old and I have been active my whole life. In the last 4 years I had focus a lot on heavy gym lifting and combined it with some outdoor runs here and there. Then I stopped all that because I was losing my flexibility and I focused exclusively on GB.

I had a look online and they say that the causes of the runner's knee might be shoes, lack of stretching or lack of leg strength. I do not think that it is my shoes, because they are almost new and in the past I had run with a similar pair and I had no issues. I do not think that it is lack of stretching, because in the last 40 weeks I am at the most flexible I have ever been. I am worried that it might be lack of lower body strength. At the moment I am at SLS/PE5 and I do not feel my lower body been challenged at all (apart from the calves that get killed at the Front Splits series). My upper body gets hammered with the Upper Body workouts, the Handstand series and Thoracic Bridge series.

I would like to hear your thoughts on that? Is the lower body strength a potential problem for me that I should supplement with other exercises on top of SLS? Of course, I am not asking for a medical opinion on the internet, but I want to hear of your experience working with other runners or other people who might have similar issues.

Thanks,

George

Knees are "just" a hinge joint, but there is a lot that happens around the joint.

Where exactly is the pain? Above or below, on the front? Under the kneecap? On the inside or outside? Behind (in the crease)? Do any of the SLS PEs aggrevate it? Does it happen only during running?

I'm not going to diagnose you, but there are some simple cues that might help.

If you see a physio about it, see someone who runs!

Nicholas, these are good questions. The pain is at the side of the knee cap and it it a bone pain, not a muscle one. It is the first time I have felt it ever. None of the SLS exercises cause me any pain. The pain has only happened twice when I was running.

George

Do deep squats, lateral (deep) squats or 1 legged twisting motions hurt it?

I also experience pain on the side of my left knee when I run any distance over a mile or 2.  I am by no means a physio, nor am I well versed in anatomy, but I have dealt with this since 2012, when I developed some imbalances in my hips.

What I have found in my reading is that the majority of the time this pain is caused by weak stabilizer muscles that then influence the hip angle causing stress on the IT band that presents as pain in the knee when running.  I've had great success and pain reduction by focusing on strengthening the medial glutes and other hip stabilizers via exercises such as clamshells, side steps with a resistance band, hip hikes (these exercises are demonstrated well on youtube), and the iM's from sPL PE2, 3 and 4 (really focus on getting the straddle out wide).  As long as I've been consistent with this and the stretch series for front and middle split, I can run all day with no issues.  The key, as in pretty much everything else here, is consistency.

Good luck.

Hi George,

Sorry to hear about your knee. My suggestion is to visit with a sports physio or other medical professional to see if they can help you discover the root of the issue. When it comes to joint pain, a doctor is the best way to stay safe. 

I cringed when I read this. This type of knee pain sounds so familiar and led me down a path I don't wish upon others. I still haven't recovered, but GB has been a major help in doing so. Is it the inside or the outside of the kneecap? How tight are your quadriceps (especially the outter quads) and your TFL? How tight are your calves? Do you notice any weakness in your hamstrings/glutes/adductors? Do you sit a lot for work? I can't diagnose your problem as others have said, but can tell you I suffered from patella mistracking which is really complex as it can be caused by a host of issues above and below the knee joint. For me it was major muscle imbalances from the outside/inside of my quads, anterior pelvic tilt (along with weak hamstrings and glutes), tight quads,TFL, and calves. I went to many doctors and PTs to try to fix it, but they just give you generic exercises, or do generic surgeries (I had a lateral release and arthroscopic) that can even make things worse if they don't address the root causes. While my trainer does not implement STRICT GB training the concepts largely apply in that I had to address a lot of mobility issues.   

After 40 weeks off, I doubt I could complete 5k let alone push past it. If you've been on GB exclusively, that means no high impact exercise on those joints.

Since the pain doesn't occur in those first couple of miles, and if your physio doesn't suspect anything that running less could make worse, I'd try easing back into your old mileage. Run a little short of when it would start for a week or two, then ease the totals up and see how it feels.

Good luck with it from a fellow runner.

George, glute stability is something that a physio might look at, as others have mentioned above. There may also be some running technique improvements to make, best to consult a coach for a few sessions.

There is a running coach in in Melbourne, Paul Mackinnon, recommended to me by a coach here (in Canberra, where I am). 

You can contact him via Facebook page 'The Balanced Runner - Paul Mackinnon or by email - thebalancedrunner@gmail.com.

All, thank you for all the feedback. I have booked to see a physio that specialised in running and lower limb issues. I will try to ease back to my running slowly and hope that this works. Thanks again.