IT Band Syndrome?
 

Anyone have issues with this? Started to have pain in my left knee while running and a friend of mine who is a physical therapyst said it sounds like that's what I have. Only kicks in when I do long runs...like over 5 miles. And of course my knee kills the next day...can't even run more than a few minute on the treadmill. I stretch all the time and try not to run as far anymore but was wondering if it ever goes away or anything else I can do to help it get better.

Thanks!

Ann,

Does this happen on the street as well or only treadmill? I ask this b/c for me a treadmil is much harder on my body than the street.

No it's on the street. I am ok on the treadmill usually but I can't run on the treadmill for more than 30 mins b/c that's my limit on any machine at one time. I get bored! When I looked it up online, the things they said aggrevate it more are running at a slower pace for a longer distance and running up and down on inclines. And of course the way I run is all up and down hills. So I am sure that's not helping any. But if you are running on the treadmill up and down hills all the time, I would imagine that could affect it too. Hope your knee isn't bugging you like mine is. It sucks!

Great job on your progress btw. It been hard for me to bust the 140's I am in b/c every now and again these bad eating days are catching up to me. But I am sticking with it and at least I have toned up a lot more in my legs even if the scale hasn't moved as much as I'd like it to. Awesome work!

thanks. That's a pic from a few months ago, I need to get back to the lower BF% that i was at then. I'm working on it, it's a process. I haven't done any walking or running lately, my cardio is now jumping rope, stairs and HIIT on a recumbent bike.

I've been having a little nagging with my left knee when doing squats, but nothing to worry about.

I don't know anything about IT Band Syndrome, so I'm not much help on this one. :(

I tell people all the time not to worry about the scale, but I'm guilty of it too. You'll bust past 140 before you know it.

I've been dealing with IT band syndrome too. It took me a long time to figure out what it was. I had been running for a while (maybe a year) and suddenly starting feeling sharp pains in my leg. It never occurred during or right after a run though so I couldn't figure out what the pain was from. It's a sharp pain that I can't exactly pinpoint but it's in the upper back part of my thigh area. It hurt most when sitting in certain chairs too long and especially when getting out of a car. The pain would be so bad I couldn't move and had to wait a few seconds for the pain to pass.

I finally went to the doctor and was told it was my IT Band. The doctor gave me stretches to do which helped with the pain at that moment but never kept the sharp pains from coming back. I ended up taking a break from running for a few months and stopped feeling the pain. I eventually missed running and went back VERY slowly, increasing mileage by only a quarter or half mile a week. The pain came back right away. I started using a foam roller after every run and didn't notice a difference right away but after about a week or two the pain came much less often. I think the foam roller is great.

I know with the IT band pain is much more common in the knee. A friend of mine got a band that wraps right above the knee when you run and she says its helped a lot. I'm sure you can find them at running or sports stores. You tube also has videos with stretches and exercises to help. Good luck!

Hi Ann,

I had trouble with my IT band about a year ago. I talked to a physical therapist and strength coach buddy of mine and he recommended a few exercises to help with that: Bodyweight lunges, wall squats (bodyweight squats done facing a wall - forces you to keep your back straight and your knees behind your toes, otherwise your forehead smacks the wall on the way down) and VERY light leg extensions helped me clear up the issue. I did them for about 3 sets of 10, 3 days a week until the pain went away.