Finished week 3. Struggling with knee - Couch to 5K

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Finished week 3. Struggling with knee

paulb67 profile image
paulb67Graduate
19 Replies

I've just got back from W3R3 . Really been struggling with my left knee the past 2 runs. I had a serious motorcycle accident when i was 17 and had 5 operations and half of my thigh muscle removed. As a result my leg is approx 1/2" shorter. I'm wondering if i should try an insert in my left shoe only. The pain is just under my knee cap and hurts a lot when i start to run but gets easier during the running phase but back again during the walk. I'm hoping it's mainly due to the fact i've done little exercise in the past few years. Mainly hurt when i planted my foot down so subconsciously was running on tip toe on the left side. Must have looked hilarious . Glad i was out at 5 a.m. and not 5 p.m.!

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paulb67 profile image
paulb67
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19 Replies
mfamilias profile image
mfamiliasGraduate

Uh-oh. Why don't you get it checked out and ask for advice from a specialist? Whatever you do, don't ignore it. My knees hurt in the first few weeks, and they haven't been through the sort of trauma yours went through (incidentally, it sounds like a terrible experience. The effect it must have had on your family... oof).

paulb67 profile image
paulb67Graduate in reply to mfamilias

I'm working at a GP's house this week. I'll ask her advice. It wasn't a great experience i have to say but my family will probably say i've put them through worse since :) .

mfamilias profile image
mfamiliasGraduate in reply to paulb67

Boys, honestly, we should bubblewrap you guys :) I have so many x-rays of my son Bigfoot that we could probably make an entire X-ray skeleton to put on the wall :D

paulb67 profile image
paulb67Graduate in reply to mfamilias

To be fair Ali fell off her horse as often as i fell off my bike. Boys toys are in general more dangerous than girls ones tho :)

aliboo70 profile image
aliboo70 in reply to paulb67

I reckon you fell off more than me! :x and with much worse injuries, ! Definitely remember those bolts through your leg! Yuk! And all the trouble you had afterwards. ...... :x

Did you have same problem when you ran previously all those years ago? Definitely need to get some advice, like you say,ask at work today to start with..... well done on finishing week 3 anyway 😊

mfamilias profile image
mfamiliasGraduate in reply to aliboo70

LOL. You two are a right pair - you both chose big toys you could fall off. BUBBLEWRAP is obviously the way to go.

aliboo70 profile image
aliboo70 in reply to mfamilias

I broke my arm 2nd go on my new pony, my dad told me to get back on as thats what you're supposed to do when you fall off, next day up hospital for fractured wrist!

didn't put Paul off motorbikes though! sometimes he used to pick me up from my woolworths sat job so i could ride pillion and pretend to be cool😊 never was though and never will be! And i was a bad passenger always leaning the wrong way! :x

mfamilias profile image
mfamiliasGraduate in reply to aliboo70

Motorbikes scare the hell out of me. The only ones my boys were allowed were made by Matchbox. I have a mutual understanding with horses, too - we hate each other. I don't need to ride a horse to get hurt - I even got bitten by a miniature circus poney.

paulb67 profile image
paulb67Graduate in reply to aliboo70

leaning the wrong way and making funny squeaking noises if i remember rightly Ali haha

paulb67 profile image
paulb67Graduate in reply to paulb67

I'm thinking of getting a new bike when i get back from Libya Ali. You can come out for a ride, or maybe i'll get a sidecar for you and George :) . We could take a trip down to France :)

aliboo70 profile image
aliboo70 in reply to paulb67

Hhm not sure about that!😂

paulb67 profile image
paulb67Graduate in reply to aliboo70

No i didnt have this problem last time Ali. Thats why im hoping it's just a bit of old age and a bit of wear and tear. If you look my my strava you can see my pace was a lot slower today.

aliboo70 profile image
aliboo70 in reply to paulb67

Ok i will have a look😊

Tomas profile image
TomasGraduate

Love the family bickering ;-)

I agree. See a professional. 1/2" is quite a lot. My guess is you need custom insoles, but see a doctor and/or a podiatrist before you cause yourself a serious injury.

paulb67 profile image
paulb67Graduate

Spoke to the GP where im working and she said much the same thing and rest it for week or at least until it stops hurting or i may do more damage. If i don't run for a week i'll have to redo week 3 before i attempt week 4 i think. So putting me back 2 weeks. Worryingly she said if i need to see the NHS podiatrist i may wait up to 2 months for the appointment! Going to go into our local running shop and see what insoles they have there. Maybe just go out for walks next week and see how it is.

poppypug profile image
poppypugGraduate

Aw Paul, I'm sorry to hear about your knee . What a pain !

Yes , very wise to rest it if it's hurting . Won't do any harm having a week off or so , although I do understand how frustrating it is when you just want to get out there and carry on .

Good luck and hope you get sorted soon xxx

paulb67 profile image
paulb67Graduate in reply to poppypug

Thanks Poppy, yes it's going to be very frustratiing. Hopefully not too long before im back out there!

GoogleMe profile image
GoogleMeGraduate

Get in the queue for the podiatrist asap if there's any chance of a long wait. They may have self-referral where you are - and they may operate some sort of priority too.

It doesn't seem too great an idea to leave someone walking around with one leg shorter than the other and no plan to address it (as you say, inserts seem 'obvious' though I don't know if they would be)... going to cause strain whether you want to run or not. But I imagine at the time getting over the immediate injuries were the priority.

paulb67 profile image
paulb67Graduate in reply to GoogleMe

Well i think wear and tear over the years is catching up with me. Not experienced this problem before. I played football into my 40's and ran for years in my 30's. It was a pretty major injury at the time, almost lost my leg completely. I can go to the local running shop where they analyse your running style etc and can make special inserts to correct and compensate and also recommend the best running shoes for you. I'm going to take a week off, do some physio and ice treatments and see how it is.

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