Iliotibial band injury

slow pedelar

Hi all,

I am looking for some help or advice for an IT band injury I have. I started cycling last May, I started off from a zero fitness base doing 3 to 4 10k cycles a week and built up over a few months to doing a 50k at the weekends and 2 to 3 20ks during the week.

After about 4 months I started getting a pain in the side of my knee the morning after a cycle, this progressed to a niggle while I was cycling and eventually sharp pain while I was cycling. I went to a physio who told me it was a tight IT band. Iwas given excercises and foam roller to do and told to get a bike fit done all of which I did but 3 months later still had the problem.

I Then went to a different physio to get a second opinion, the second physio gave the same diagnosis but gave me some different stretches and also did dry needling. Now 2 months later I still have the problem.

I would be very greatful if anyone on here can offer any advice or help on how or where I can get this problem sorted so I can get back out on my bike.

Thanks

rollingscone

I suffer from the unstable Knee/tight IT band combination too. It's something that you have to manage, stretching and foam rolling helps but you should look into doing exercises to stabilise your knee so it's not so easily pulled by your IT band.

I do a bit of trail (i.e. offroad) running and Kettlebell circuits, which along with the occassional ice pack during flare ups seems to keep me relatively functional. I do get occassional twinges of pain while cycling but I stick to one of my many former physio's guidelines "A little pain is alright, a lot is not".

lescol

This should be worth a read:- http://www.kinetic-revolution.com/itb-or-not-itb-that-is-the-question/

thejaguar

Agree with rolling stone - stretching and flexibility alone probably won't be enough.
I've had the same issue for a few years now, I do some stretching & foam rolling and I'll hit the gym twice a week (when I'm being good or doing a lot of cycling) to do some specific exercises to strengthen the areas around my knees.

If I'm not doing that, I know I'll have some pain if I cycle any decent distance. Even with the stretching and rolling.

nak

Had the same problem in my right knee after surgery a few years ago due to muscle weakness. Massage once a month, stretching, foam roller and gym work did the trick for me. Physio had me doing squats and lunges everyday, building up to bar squats in the gym (3-5 times a week).

Gets a bit tight sometimes, but haven't had any pain since I stopped going to physio.

mirrormatrix

Have the same thing myself. Foam rolling helps, but you need to look at the root cause.

For me, the issue was a weakness in my glute muscles, causing me to use my ITB to support me when running. This led to ITB tightness which then transferred over to cycling. So for me, strengthening excercises in this area have really helped.

The ITB tightness might be due to some underlying cause. If you can determine what that is then you stand a much better chance of fixing the problem.

Captain Havoc

Please see a professional for medical advice, thread closed.