Shin Splints? Runners Knee? No Jumpers Knee
First I want to express my sorrow for the 32823 Americans who are included in the 154,350 worldwide count of those who have died so far, due to the COVID 19 Pandemic. These are staggering numbers. We don’t even know their faces. I extend my deepest sympathy to everyone who has lost family and friends.
This has been a very tough year for me personally so far. In the beginning of the year I dealt with something that I can’t get into here or really talk about, but it was extremely hard and I was dealing with panic attacks and other stress symptoms. It’s blissfully resolved now.
Then COVID 19 came and everything is different.
You who follow my page and who know me, know that one way I deal with stress is by running. Well this time I overdid it. I ran too fast and too much and I developed a pain below my right knee. In the beginning I just felt it a little when I started running and then it stopped once I was warmed up. But then it started feeling stiff and sore when I bent my knee or walked up or down stairs.
I spoke to two trainers about it and they both said that I have weak glutes. One of them could see that not only do I have weak glutes but the right one isn’t “firing.” It’s not active at all and my neurological system basically bypasses my right glute which means that my right lower leg takes the brunt of the impact. I need to retrain my glutes by squeezing my butt when I walk. It sounds silly, but by doing that I will retrain my brain and nervous system to do what it’s supposed to do.
That part is right, but my own diagnosis of the pain was not.
I googled strengthening exercises and stretching for shin splints but it didn’t help at all. More googling. Thought that maybe it was Runners’ Knee, did some stretching, and it did help but it wasn’t really addressing the issue.
I did some more googling. And I finally learned that what I have is Jumper's Knee, or Patellar Tendonitis. An overuse injury that causes inflammation in the tendon that connects your kneecap to your shin bone.
My poor tendons and muscles around my knee have been on high alert from my weak glutes for quite a while. Finally, my tendon signaled that my lower legs can’t deal with all my running by itself.
Now when I figured out what it was, I went to Jack Rabbit and talked to one of the runners that work there. He asked if I foam roll and stretch. When I told him no, he explained that I’ve spent too much time running but not enough time on recovery. And that my hamstrings and quads are so tight that they’re pulling on my kneecaps. I bought a handheld foam roller on his recommendation. Boy was he right, after foam rolling and massaging for a little while one of the small bones to the right below my kneecap, started to move like a worm under my skin…yup really. That bone of mine was tense muscle! :o Rock hard like a bone.
At first I had a few spots on the patella itself that were too sore to massage, more on that below.
I googled again. And this is what I learned.
Don’t run. Sit with your leg straight instead of bent. Ice it several times a day. Strengthen your glutes and your quads. Weak quads, weak glutes, and weak hamstrings forces your lower legs to take all the impact. Stretch, tight hamstrings and tight quads pull on your knees.
After stretching and icing several times a day, those spots on the patella began to feel less sore and I carefully began to massage them. I put a show on and sat on the bed with my knee straight and gently massaged the thicker tendons and muscles until they felt soft and felt movable again. Then I began to very carefully massage the bumps on the patella itself. Slowly and very gently, and for a long time-at least ten fifteen minutes- it began to loosen.
Now I don't need to ice anymore, but massage every night when i watch TV.
This does work. I finally feel like I’m getting better. I’m actually ok even though I’m not running now. I miss it like crazy, but the silver lining during this horrible time is that my husband and I went to stay in New Jersey with family. It’s great to bike here and biking is something my leg tolerates. I’m hoping it will keep me fit so I can keep up with my running buddies when things go back to normal and I go back to the city.
Please stay safe. Hug your loved ones if you live together and stay distant in loving solidarity with everyone else.
