Kneesy does it

[andygates]

I spent the morning being bent and prodded by a sports physio. The answer: A combination of powerful driver muscles, feeble stabiliser muscles and poor flexibility is what done it. The iliotibial band pulled my patella just a sniff out of line, which irritated (but wasn't noticed) and that led to swelling which moved through the 'ole and put pressure on the tibial nerve - hence the sudden shooting pain, even though the joint had full range of movement. I would have gotten away with it if I hadn't done something as long as the Druid.

How tight was my ITB? So tight that when he said "I can do some acupuncture to ease the immediate pain" (and to my eternal shame I thought "Whee! I'm Mike Dixon!") one of the needles bent. Yes, I am made of leather.

Good news: nothing is structurally wrong with my knee!

Bad news: all my bad habits - not stretching, not working stabilisers, dire posture, generally blagging it - are responsible. My 'catwalk' foot placement is one of those big red "medial glutes! medial glutes!" indicators, for example.

Best news: I can continue weights around bodyweight stuff, which is what I was doing anyway. Walk until that is pain-free then jog and cycle a little, letting pain be the guide when to stop. Return to the sea pool. If I keep up the remedial exercises, I should expect to be mostly good in 4-6 weeks, and these exercises should form part of my regular carcass-maintenance routine. I must now be diligent and patient. Heh.

Comments

[ladyjulian.livejournal.com]

Good news.

I must sort out my knee. Last time I saw a sports physio she said much the same to me, followed by stretching my IT band until I swear I came out an inch taller.

Cycling is apparently one of the things which can irritate feeble IT bands, because the IT band only gets used when your leg is fully extended, which it rarely is on a bike. So you end up with mahoosive powerful quads and a little stringy IT band, so you use the quads more, so your IT band gets stringier, and eventually your poor little Cheestring of an IT band can't compete and stops pulling your patella over where it should be, and you get searing agony of doomy knees. (I think that's what she said anyway).

[andygates.livejournal.com]

He suckered me into compliance by pointing out that if I could get full extension, it would give me scads moar power in running (and less so in riding).

Mahoosive quads good. They just need mahoosive everything else to balance it off. Work in progress, since I'm still allowed to do the heavy leg stuff :)

Gah! I'm slouched with tucked hips and folded knees! No!

It's time to Bring In The Ball.

[teahisme.livejournal.com]

Good news indeed. Although IT band has me thinking something techy and not medy. I will once again recommend yoga for core muscles and flexibility. Supporting your own body weight = good. Stretching = equal good. Positive mental outlook = good. It is made of win.

T

[andygates.livejournal.com]

That's "bodyweight on the bar" :) Which is okay, I wasn't planning on revisiting my 400lb deadlift this winter.

Yoga's full of teen gurls. Makes me feel like a perv...

[teahisme.livejournal.com]

I"m 34, 200lbs and hardly teeny in either meaning of the word. Suck it up for your health! Lurv yoga <3

[ravenbait.livejournal.com]

No it's not!

They just look like teens because yoga makes you all yoofull and stuff, innit.

Good new on the knee. I need to get me to a sports physio who isn't afraid to beat me up a bit.

[andygates.livejournal.com]

You mean if I go, I'll look all young and buff like the brats, er, stars of Twilight? That's almost worth enduring Plank humiliation, that is.

I had to explain to the nice man who Mike Dixon was...

[arabis.livejournal.com]

Full of teen girls? You going to a trendy yoga class at a gym? Certainly not like that at any of the places I've been.

[andygates.livejournal.com]

Uni.