Improve your Triathlon Performance with Triathlon Hacks

Quicker.Faster.Easier!

  • Home
  • About The Team
  • Fun Stuff
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Swim
  • Bike
  • Run
  • Mental Edge
  • Strength Training
  • Triathlon Training
  • Women in Tri

ITB Syndrome: How to Make Your Physical Therapist Miserable by Fixing Your Own Knee Pain

By Charlotte Campbell Leave a Comment

ITB syndrome really sucks!

And yes- I have probably sent my physical therapist’s kids through college with the amount of sessions I have had over the years to loosen up my tight leg muscles to ease off my dreaded ITB syndrome.

Not to mention a few doctor’s appointments and scans to check there was nothing actually “wrong” with my knee.

Why could someone not just “fix my ITB syndrome”?

Those who have had runner’s knee will be nodding in sympathy.

For those who have not had the pleasure- it is called iliotibial band(ITB) syndrome. It is an insidious knee pain, usually felt on the outside of your knee when you run that starts as a niggle then gets worse and worse and worse until you are really limping and cannot run.

If you really aggravate it by trying to deny it and “run through the pain” it may last a few days.

If you try to “rest” it, the knee pain eases temporarily but the problem does not go away. As soon as you go back to running- it is still there.

You have not had an injury, you have not had any trauma but this knee pain has come out of nowhere!

And is not going away!

Is There A Cure For ITB Syndrome?

The short answer is YES- there IS a cure!
I suffered on and off with this for about 3 years which really interrupted my running progress. I had to stay running very short distances only as whenever I tried to increase my mileage, my knee pain would flare up again.

ITB syndrome Knee pain

I tried all sorts of treatments:

  • Heat rubs did nothing
  • Wishful thinking did nothing
  • Rest did nothing
  • Stretching did nothing
  • Sports massage helped temporarily
  • Acupuncture did nothing
  • Medication only temporarily blocked the pain but did not solve the problem

At times, over the 3 years, I gave up running completely in frustration.

But it just did not make sense! I could cycle hard for 100 miles with no twinge or pain in my knee.

So surely there was nothing wrong with my knee?

Also there was no damage at all on MRI scans or X-Rays so WHY did I have knee pain?

ITB Syndrome Cure: Identify The Problem

Eventually, I worked with a physical therapist who actually understood the problem, and had a cure. She wanted to actually help me fix the problem, not just ease it off for a week or two.

Note the key phrase- “help me fix the problem”.

She could not do it for me.

She could not “click something back into place”.

She could not give me a magic pill.

I had to do some work to re-correct the way I ran and strengthen certain muscles that were not in balance or not active enough.

Of course I was more than happy to do this. I had been searching for 3 years for an answer. I just needed to know what to do!

But…once I did this, I was free! And it only took around 8 weeks- I could not believe it and was a little miffed that it took so long to get to the right answer.

I could build up my running gradually and have since run marathons, triathlons and ultras.

No tweaks, no twinges, no more knee pain, no holding back the pace or distance  and no more physical therapy appointments.

The problem is caused by the way you run

Once I understood this it all made so much sense.

If you do not address your gait, your alignment and the way you run, you will always have knee pain and ITB syndrome.

If you watch the video closely, you will see the pelvis drop on one side as the runner lands. This indicates weakness in the gluteal muscles. When we run the pelvis should stay level. When the gluteal (butt) muscles are slightly inactive, it causes more reliance on the ITB. (This is a tissue that runs from the hip to the outside of the knee. It is a support structure to the leg).

The ITB then has to overwork and the knee tends to roll in a bit.

Sometimes this is exacerbated if your foot over-pronates and your arch collapses.

Sometimes it is exacerbated if your inner quadriceps are weaker than your outer quadriceps.

There are lots of nuances that may occur to exacerbate the problem but in 99% of cases the gluteal muscles are weak and not doing their job of strong hip extension and controlling pelvic stability.

Gluteal weakness is commonly seen in runners with ITB syndrome. In my clinical experience, once you develop strong gluteals and optimise your running gait, you will never have this knee pain again.

Why did no one tell me this before?

I know it is so frustrating.

Sadly not every doctor, not every physical therapist knows enough about it.

Unless you see this problem a lot, you will not know how to fix it successfully.

Unless you understand how to gradually re-train the way you run, you will not treat it successfully.

As most of you know who work with me, once I was shown how to activate the right muscles and improve the way I run, I was so impressed, I actually studied and became a sports physical therapist.

I work with a lot of runners and triathletes on this very problem.

I am shocked at the number of young, healthy, fit people who come to me saying things like:

“xyz therapist told me I need to drink more milk to fix my knee pain”

or

“the doctor said no one over the age of 30yrs should run”

or

“running is bad for your knees”

 

And many more destructive urban myths that simply are not true.

It is important that you, as the runner take control of this problem. You must understand how to strengthen the right muscles and gradually how to change the way you run. It is only subtle.

Think of it more as “optimising” rather than changing. Tweaking rather than starting from scratch.

Gluteal muscle strengthening and a few small changes in the way you run will fix this condition once and for all.

Conversely all the other treatments- like foam rolling, massage, ultrasounds, ice and taping may help temporarily but will not permanently solve the problem.

Summary

Know that this issue is curable. Do not let it stop you running.

My physical therapist does not see me anymore!

I am thrilled, she is not :)

Happy Running

If you have any specific questions, I am happy to help you

Feel free to email me

Charlotte

Read These Related Posts

Best Hip And Glute Strength Exercises For Faster Running

Best Hip And Glute Strength Exercises For Faster Running

Glute strength exercises are essential for all fast runners -without exception. Strong hips and butt muscles ...read more

Best Minimalist Running Shoes For Triathletes

Best Minimalist Running Shoes For Triathletes

The best minimalist running shoes for training aren't necessarily the same shoes that are suitable ...read more

Ketogenic Diet for Women, Nutrition, Intolerances and Hormones

Ketogenic Diet for Women, Nutrition, Intolerances and Hormones

Is the Ketogenic diet for women the same as the recommended diet for men? I have ...read more

Ironman Marathon: Top 10 Mistakes Most Triathletes Make And How To Avoid Them

Ironman Marathon: Top 10 Mistakes Most Triathletes Make And How To Avoid Them

The Ironman marathon for most athletes involves a few hours of pure hell of just ...read more

Best Half Marathon Training Plan To Go From 10km to Half Marathon FAST

Best Half Marathon Training Plan To Go From 10km to Half Marathon FAST

There are plenty of claims of "best half marathon training plan" out there to tell ...read more

The Female Athlete Triad in Triathlon

The Female Athlete Triad in Triathlon

The Female Athlete Triad occurs in triathlon as well as other endurance sports. No- the ...read more

Filed Under: Run, Women in Tri Tagged With: fix my knee pain, ITB syndrome, ITBS, knee pain, runner's knee, runner's knee pain

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

banner2_final

 

Recent Posts

  • Best Hip And Glute Strength Exercises For Faster Running
  • How To Get Your Winter Base Training Right
  • How A Keto Diet Can Help Endurance Athletes
  • Best Minimalist Running Shoes For Triathletes
  • Mental Strength In Sport: Are You Making Progress Or Just [email protected]£$ing Around?
  • Exogenous Ketones: Are They A Short Cut For Triathletes?
  • Swimmers Shoulder: How To Prevent and Treat Shoulder Pain
  • Best Cycling Workouts: How To Be A Ninja On The Bike In Just 4 Weeks!
  • Fast Freestyle Swimming For Triathlon With Limited Training
  • Ketogenic Diet for Women, Nutrition, Intolerances and Hormones

Join the chat!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Email Us

We always look forward to hearing from you. If you want any more information on a topic or you want to learn more about something, send us an email and let us know. [email protected]

NOTICE:

If you purchase anything through a link on this website, you should assume that we have an affiliate relationship with the company and that we may be paid in some way. We only work with companies we believe in.

Recent Posts

  • Best Hip And Glute Strength Exercises For Faster Running
  • How To Get Your Winter Base Training Right
  • How A Keto Diet Can Help Endurance Athletes
  • Best Minimalist Running Shoes For Triathletes
  • Mental Strength In Sport: Are You Making Progress Or Just [email protected]£$ing Around?

Copyright © 2019 Triathlon-hacks.com · About · Privacy Policy · Terms Of Service

Copyright © 2019 · Genesis Sample Theme On Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in