IT Band Syndrome Causing Knee Pain

IT bands syndrome, now that I have it, I have learned that it is very common amoung athletes. And when it gets bad, it does cause knee pain. The great news is it is fixable!

I have been going to Endurance Rehab in Scottsdale, Nate the director has been "scraping" my IT bands for the last three weeks. The bruising is bad, and I mean really bad. He uses a plexiglass tool and digs on the side of the thighs and the knees. Incredibly painful but incredibly effective.

Runners get this most commonly, but many cyclists do too. I have learned a lot of core exercises with the rubber bands and gym ball to strengthen my hamstrings, quads, gluts and abs. And it is definitely helping. I could not even ride ten minutes three weeks ago, now I rode an hour the day before last. And of course, my foam roller/quadballer after I exercise, followed by stretching and icing.

So, from now on, a two day a week routine of core exercises. I am getting my bike fit checked by him on Friday, and I think I will be good to go. This has been darn expensive, since insurance companies copays have gone way up.

Lisa

Expensive, yes, but well worth it. My way of thinking is that you can't cycle/run/swim with an injury so the alternatve to therapy is to just quit being active, become a couch potato and spend your money on doctor visits and medication for diabetes, high blood pressure, and depression instead. Not an alternative for me.

Hang in there. It's painful and expensive but it does work. DH suffered with this during his marathon training. Thought he was done running permanently with a bad knee but a good therapist got him going again doing the same thing you describe.

This technique is called A Stim, similar to the Graston technique but goes deeper. He also uses his elbow to get in deep.

Yes, definitely worth it, and I am taking in as much info as I can. They have pictures of all the exercises I have been doing. I put a book together of three different sets of exercises, seven in each, to rotate every six weeks. I'll do them twice a week and should be good to go.

Lisa

Does this type of therapy work on trigger points on the ITB area? It sounds like its pretty intense, never heard of it before. I had the ultrasound therapy and exercies/stretches for my issues with the ITB a couple years ago. PT are great folks, and I'm always amazed at the things they can do to help

I have a tight IT band and try to lie on a firm foam roller and roll it all the way my hip to my knee - it hurts a lot but really helps.

With IT band issues, you have to use a foam roller every time after you exercise. The reason I bruised so badly after A stim was because the adhesions were so bad. Foam rolling, using the TP quadballer, is essential. And building a good foundation of strong gluts, quads and hamstrings. I'm doing my band and gym ball exercises only twice a week for thirty minutes. You don't have to go crazy, just be consistent.

Lisa :)

Getting those trigger points out hurts like heck... which is more motivation to AVOID them in the future. Strengthen your hip stabilizers, make sure your shoes and your bike fit properly, work on your form.

ITBS isn't common among "athletes," it's common among casual athletes who work only in the sagittal plane - runners and cyclists. Our chosen sports don't give any attention to the muscles that work in the other two planes, so we have to strengthen them purposely.

Oakleaf,

What is the sagittal plane? And what are the other two planes? (If it is explainable without too much complicated stuff!)

I'm interested in this thread as my knees have been increasingly sore lately - in fact it's been coming on since I started cycling as my main exercise last year. Particularly my left knee :confused:

I have played around with my saddle height, hoping it might help, but hasn't made much difference. How could I tell if it was ITB problems causing the knee pain? Do you get pain elsewhere?

http://playthink.wordpress.com/2010/...-human-motion/

You don't need to over-think it.

Whether or not you're currently having IT band issues, poor balance, are prone to falls, have sprained a knee in the past, etc., etc., the only thing you need to know is that anyone who lets their stabilizer muscles atrophy is going to pay for it sooner or later, one way or the other.

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showt...=stabilization


ETA: As far as knee pain on the bike, it could be a whole lot of things - seat height and IT band issues being a couple of the major ones. Cleat alignment is way up in the list of likely causes, too - have you checked that?

Oakleaf,

Thanks for your very insightful information. My seat height was too high, I just had my bike fitted today.

But, I do have many weak areas that I am working hard to strengthen. I am back on the bike, did 22 miles last night, but got the bite in the knee feeling, but no pain. Still some ways to go.

My IT band issues were caused by my triple crank. The crank's Q factor was too wide for me. I finally switched to a compact and have had no further problems.

[QUOTE=Librarygirl;509909]Oakleaf,

What is the sagittal plane? And what are the other two planes? (If it is explainable without too much complicated stuff!)

sagital plane- if you are standing beside a wall with your right shoulder touching, the wall equals you sagital plane. If I cut your arm off at the shoulder joint from front to back- I have cut itoff in a sagital plane.

If I cut you apart into front and back by going through both ears, I have cut you in the transverse plane which is parallel the wall in front of you if you stand in the middle of the room.

If I cut you apart at the waist with a cut that is parallel to the ceiling or the floor I have cut you in the medial or median plane.

I think? And I am sorry that I sound like Hannible Lecter., I had it explained to me by my father when I was a child as he cut up a a beef carcass for our winter meat many years ago.

marni

I'm currently using acupuncture to treat my IT band pain. Very successful so far!

Just an update. I have been doing my stabilizing exercises over two months, and rolling on my quadballer every day. But as Oakleaf mentined, bike fit. Moving my recumbent seat closer to the pedals made a huge difference. Also putting the seat up at a higher angle has helped. And its amazing, not major adjustments, tweeking that has helped.

Gals, the rolling is not fun, it is painful. But if you are consistent and do it every day on your foam roller or quadballer, it helps tremendously.

Hope this helps!

Have you tried the Grid foam roller by TPtherapy? I have it and use it but not as much as I should. I saw a clip from the TDF Radio Shack team and they apparently use it for the riders on the team. The grid is about $39 from their website. It is about the best foam roller that I've used.