Run 58, 2009 …are you having problems with unresolved injuries of mysterious origin?

Today’s run felt really good. I ran 11.15 kilometers at a 7:11 pace. I ran my usual route, over paced country roads plus 2.5 km of trail at the bird sanctuary. I have this muscle/tendon/ligament problem back of my left knee on the outside which I am sure has been the cause of my knee problems. Massaging that and working out those muscle knots really helped me. This is just a tip for other runners who have unresolved mysterious knee problems. I’ve been to doctors and have had an MRI done on that knee and they say it is normal, nothing seems to be wrong but often my knee pops or cracks, especially on trails or going up hill. That is only an annoyance and does not cause pain or anything other than worry. But my left knee is famous for getting kinks and pains which rapidly develop into full blown swelling which is crippling and the run must be aborted. I’m speaking about the past here. Now that I’ve finally figured out what might be causing the problem things look manageable. I figure my left knee joint was being pulled out of alignment by that ropey connecting tissue back of the outside of my knee and just below the knee joint. I still don’t know if this imbalance is caused by some other bio mechanical gait problem. At least not yet.

The hard part in dealing with any recurring injury is figuring out what the heck is causing it. In my case, it could have been pronation problems, bad shoes, arthritis, Patella Femoral Syndrome, IT band, or a host of other common problems that lead to knee injuries. All of these have been ruled out. I think I might finally have it nailed! My problem (which has been a recurring problem for many years) is that I have certain muscles that are pulling my knee joint out of alignment. Stretching, massaging and working the muscles around that joint seems to fix it. But it has to be done regularly.

Hopefully, this might help other runners who are having problems like this. If all else fails, and even if you are still seeing doctors about any particular problem, try working the muscles around the problem area while you are searching for other possibilities. You may also find that (apart from muscle imbalances) you really have no incurable problem after all.

I have also avoided major toe surgery (big toe joint) by working and stretching the muscles surrounding that joint. My toe joint has become inflexible due to bone spurs and the cartilage is pretty much gone, but rather than having me get cut open and having the joint fused, I relieved pressure on the joint by stretching the muscles on top of the toe.

The message here is: Always try non-invasive techniques first.