Post Punk Kitchen Forum

I just finished week two of couch to 5k. I've gone jogging periodically, but wanted to start c25k again to work up to some sort of lengthier run instead of the "run as hard as I can until I feel I'm going to die then walk it off" routine I've done in the past. The first week was awesome, day one of week 2 was even better. Day two of week 2 I got some knee pain, but finished the run. I decided to rest for two days between the next run. Today was terrible. I did my brisk walk and could feel a bit of pain, but ignored it. Once I started running I got the pain again. I only got through half of the run before deciding to do a long walk instead.

The pain is on the inside of both knees, the knobby part that would touch if you were sleeping in the fetal position. I've tried to sleep with a pillow between my legs because I thought maybe that was it, but I'm not sure. My shoes aren't that worn. The only thing I can remember doing differently these last two runs (the ones with knee pain) was wearing different socks. These are much thinner than the other ones. Could that be enough to give me knee pain?

I really want to keep this up because it's making me feel good and is a lifesaver during PMS. I really, really want to be a runner. Anyone had this or have recommendations of what might be causing it?

I'm at a pretty low fitness level - not doing anything but running right now. I'm open to some exercises that might strengthen muscles in case that's the culprit.

I'm dealing with the exact same thing right now. I'm in week two of the C25K plan. At first both of my knees hurt, now it's just my right knee that's killing me. The pain is on the underside of my knee cap and a bit on the knobby part as you described. At first it only hurt when I was up and walking. Now it also hurts when I'm sitting/laying down if I've recently been active. It started to feel better, and I took a break from the gym/running the next day and went on a leisurely, but long walk instead but that actually made it a lot worse and it's been really forked up since.

From what I can tell it's just runner's knee. I've been icing it (20-30 min 3 times a day) and trying to stay off of it, but even standing up to bake cookies yesterday made it hurt more.

My question is for those of you who may have had this experience before, is it better to do as little as possible, or try going to the gym and doing cycling or something instead? Keeping in mind my gym is a ten minute walk from my house. Should I stay home and do sit ups (noooo i hate sit ups)

Here's a thingy on runners knee. It recommends staying off of it as much as possible, icing, and stretching.

http://www.webmd.com/pain-management/knee-pain/runners-knee

I was reading online that what I'm dealing with could be soreness from just upping the amount of running (in which case it's okay to run through it, but only if it's a very dull pain). It's not hurting now or even when I try to run barefoot in the house. I took some ibuprofen last night and iced both my knees. I'm going to try again tomorrow with thicker socks and see if that gives me the extra cushion I need. The sock thing may just be a coincidence, but might as well check.

Nebraska, I went through something similar when I first tried running a few years ago and the pain was terrible. Knee pain for weeks after just trying to run around the block. Turns out my shoes were wrong for me. They were made for someone who turns their knees out when they run and I turn my knees in so the shoes were turning my knees even further inward. The ones I have were fitted professionally at a running shop - they even video taped me running on a treadmill to see what my feet did when running! You might want to double check that your shoes are okay and fitted for you.

I'm also looking into some exercises that might strengthen the muscles in my quads and legs. Apparently people with wide hips (majority women) are more prone to running knee issues since our hamstrings make a more severe angle on the way to the knee. Or something. Squats are supposed to help - and leg raises.

What surface are you running on?

Pavement bike path. It's the absolute only option. No gym membership for treadmills and grass next to bike paths (if it's there) is full of dog shiitake.

Concrete can be pretty hard on your knees but lots of people manage to run on it. I haven't been jogging regularly lately, I'm sure someone will have some advice.
When I was running in Europe I found it hard to breathe in the cold! Good work for getting out there!

I've never run in sub-freezing temperatures before moving here, but i like it I think! As long as my head and hands and feet are warm it's actually pretty nice (except for when the bike path freezes over and I can't run).

I think this is probably right. When I was visiting my parents for the first week of C25K I was wearing my moms shoes and my knees were totally fine. When I came home and started using my shoes they started to hurt immediately. So, that totally makes sense.