I graduated last Friday and was excited to get out on my own 30 min runs However an old knee injury has flared up badly.
I did jog very slowly on Monday and Wednesday, but my knee was really painful and swollen on Wednesday afternoon. I've iced it and rested it and it is feeling a bit better.
I so want to keep my fitness level up as I worked so hard to graduate. What do I do? Rest more until completely better? Or go slow, walk/run and see how it goes? Advice most welcome!
First rest, then don't push yourself. Every run doesn't have to be 30 minutes, do a few shorter runs and work out what you can do without injury, once your knee is comfortable you can make one run a bit longer, painful l knees need to be looked after .Good luck and enjoy what you can do,
Oh no! Poor you-that’s such rubbish news.
Our number one rule here is “don’t run in pain”. You’re ultimately likely to make your recovery longer.
Have you had any input from anyone trained (physio)? What worked for you last time?
I totally get your frustration. I’m coming back from IT band problems and it was no fun at all not being able to run. You might be able to do other activities that don’t cause you any pain, such as swimming, cycling or walking but that will depend on your particular injury. It’s worth checking with a pro who can look at you and take into account your personal history. Strength and flex work could be helpful too but again, it might be worth getting real life advice. The stronger you are, the more resistant to injury you’ll be in the future so it’s really worth picking up this sort of training alongside your running. Seeing a physio has been a massive game changer for me. The strength and flex board has some great suggestions for seated exercises that wouldn’t involve your knee at all.
Injuries are rubbish when they happen but my experience is that whole recovery is a frustrating process, you might find you come back even stronger.
Thank you. That's so kind of you and others who have answered with advice. I will take it easy for now and seek some professional advice. I very much appreciate the support here. Its so helpful!
The support on here is brilliant-it’s got me through some really miserable times when my knee’s been behaving badly! Everybody gets that we all want to be out running all the time and it’s no fun when we can’t. None of us are experts on the specifics of how each person needs to recover but we are all good at hand holding and sympathy!!
Really hope you’re back on your feet soon. Keep holding on to the fact that you’ll be back when you’re ready and you’ll likely be stronger for it in the long term. ❤️
Injury is such a curse, I've been there too. Initially I used Ibuprofen gel to reduce inflammation and pain. When able, I then did brisk walks rather than running, which I did in my 'running slot' of the day. In addition 'strength and flex' exercises too, have you checked that forum here on HU? Look for knee exercises there, which will help to strengthen them for all the stresses and strains of running. I also read that on a pain score of 1 to 10, you shouldn't run on anything more than mild discomfort, which would be 2 or 3. Hope that helps and that your injury heels sooner rather than later.
Thank you!
Sorry! I am strictly amateur and graduated at the same time as you, but I'd strongly suggest you don't push through it. I'm seeing a physio for slipped disc and rotator cuff injuries. It was him that suggested Couch25K too. Deeply, deeply frustrating, but try to rest and try to consult a professional. You said "flared up again", so you've been here before; again this is something to speak to a physio about - to sort the issue now and strengthen long term. Good luck & take care.
Thank you for your wise words. Yes it was a yoga injury from last year. I've finally got an MRI on Sunday to find out what it is!
I was an injury magnet in my early years with bad knee and ankle injuries. As a result I restarted and then repeated an entire program. Twice.
So, first thing first. You never run through pain. Pain means you’re injured and further running will aggravate it. I did it and the cost for a private physio was not fun. Twice.
Second. You must figure out how/why you got injured. In my case it started off with inadequate shoes and no insoles for my flat feet. My shoes were good, branded and not cheap - BUT they were not the right shoes for my feet. I sorted that all out through gait analysis.
Also, my hips were not aligned causing me to go off balance hence l was putting more weight onto one knee (first injury) and that then put more pressure onto the opposite ankle (second injury). Combined treatment for both was over 5 months of non running and parallel physio treatment. Fun. Fun. Fun.
Third. Once you’ve got it all fixed and you’ve got the proper shoes you must try and avoid getting hurt the same way again. In my case it was about stretching, strength exercises, hydration, diet, taking supplements and getting to know my body more - you don’t copy others simply because they’ve done it, otherwise we’d all go and run marathons in two hours and sprint 100m in a few seconds. Life and genes don’t work that way.
After my injury chaos I’ve managed to stay injury free for the past 4 years if l exclude minor niggles due to tiredness and overwork. Oh, and l completed marathon and ultra (50K) distances sometimes running up to 320km per month. 😉
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