C.Andrade

Hi everyone,

I've ridden my bike for long periods of time with many breaks in between, this past Sunday, I rode 25 miles which is 7 miles more than my norm without braking since I didn't feel like having mosquitos snack on me!

Right after the 25 mile mark, I noticed intense pain on my left and right knee.. I do have a torn meniscus on my right knee but I have been fine riding my bike at a steady pace. My left knee had been trouble free until after my ride! I'm guessing I tore my meniscus on that one as well because there is no other way to explain the pain I was under. I walked the last 1/2 mile to my truck and finally collapsed. Has anyone ever experienced something like I have? My constant speed was 10 mph with a few climbs, nothing major. Again, it's my first time doing anything over 25 miles and not taking a breather, could that be it? The weather was great so i know it wasn't heat related.. maybe over did it this time

I will not be able to bike for a wile even tho I feel a littler better and can finally walk without holding on too something, I am worried it will happen again.

Any advise? I do have my saddle extended so I get a good leg stretch on every rotation.

I ride on trails and asphalt and I own a Hybrid bike if that helps.

Many thanks!

Little Darwin

There are factors other than distance, etc... although it could be a factor. Any time you push beyond what you have done before, I believe there is a greater chance of injury.

What cadence do you pedal? If you are a masher, that could contribute to (but possibly not be a sole cause) for knee or leg problems. Low rpm pedaling is very hard on my legs, and knees, so for me, a cadence of below 75 is not in the cards for me.

I recently rode 46 miles with someone who has a torn meniscus, so 25 miles is not likely to be a problem if nothing else contributes. In her case, she is a bit of a masher, but I would guess her cadence is 60 rpm or so... As she tells, her issue with the meniscus arose based on simply turning around to pick something up, and her assumption is that this was the culmination of damage caused earlier. Is something like that a possibility for you?

no1mad 

Do you use any kind of foot retention? I tweaked my knee back around Memorial Day and either I did while riding (for the first time in a while, pushing too tall a gear), or while walking- either earlier that day or the next and the pain got progressively worse as the ROM in my left knee decreased.

Never did see a doctor about it and occasionally will feel a twinge if I stretch at an awkward angle and fairly sure I now have arthritis, but I can walk and ride again pain free.

Fastfingaz

O.K. Andrade you came to the right place but before I can make any prognostications I must have some personal Information,,, first (age) next (Height) after that (Weight)also( inseam length) for stand over purposes and last your social security number!!!! please submit soon as possible

C.Andrade

Hi,

I would think low cadence if I understand the question, I am definitely a pedal masher. I had a very similar think happen wile I was at the store, I turned around with the shopping card and I felt that very second the most excruciating pain! had to limp and drag my butt out of there.

No foot retention, I think I gave it more than what I had to give that morning so chances are, I over worked my knees. I do pound those peddles pretty hard, not sure why to be honest, I am walking just fine now but worried that pain might come back at the worst time possible!

I'm mid 30's and measure 5'11'', I weight 185 and my inseam is at 32. My social is 123-45-6789.

Thanks fellas for the response, I need to find the right riding pace for my sake! Liking the forum so far, thanks again.

Machka 

Spinning is better than mashing ... aim for something over 80 rpm. Easier on the knees.

Also, you say you have your saddle extended so you get a good leg stretch on every rotation ... perhaps it is too high. Find a flat bit of road and ride for a minute or two. Then coast with one leg in the 6:00 position. Place that heel on the pedal. Your leg should have just a very slight bend at the knee. It should not be locked straight, and it should not be quite noticeable bent.

Fastfingaz

Hey Andrade you seem pretty normal physically, I don't think that going 7 miles over the norm would have that much effect on your knees? the only thing I can think of is over extention on your down stroke? But I'm no MD! your ss # is pretty easy to remember Huh?

knobster

Sure sounds like your meniscus. Did you have some swelling bellow the knees? I'm not sure how you'd improve this other than having an ortho surgeon take a look at it. Doubt it would be a real issue but to improve it, you may have to get that meniscus trimmed or apply the RICE procedure...

Caliper

Point of clarification: is that your pants inseam, or cycling inseam? We like to measure inseam from crotch to ground here.

Start reading up in the fit subforum. I'm still amazed sometimes how even small tweaks to the saddle or bars can make a big change in fit.

qclabrat

Not sure what's wrong with your knee, but you may want to consider pedals with more float, pedals with little or no float are really tough on the knees

Lone

your hurt knee is probably shorter than the other knee. move your hurt knee cleat towards your heel for more direct power from your big leg muscles.
since it took me so long to know this, i'll add that for the shorter leg, your cleat should be farther towards your toes. so you have to move your longer leg cleats even closer to your heel.

C.Andrade

I agree, but for some reason I mash not realizing that I'm doing so, I might just need to retrain my brain to spin and not try to climb to the moon.
I have done just that to see if I have adjusted accordingly, I do have just enough bend but now that I think about it, I use the front of the foot more trying to work out the calf muscle, that might be what did it? I can see that putting more strain on the knee.

Lol, My wife would argue that statement! I think it's my peddling that's breaking me. I'm sitting right here typing this and lifting my foot by the toes and I could feel a terrible pain in my knee, I just need to adjust, Might put those damn biking shoes to work even tho I hate them!

No swelling that i've noticed, I've had it torn for a little over a year with no time to fix it unfortunately, I will soon tho. I have had a Ortho check it out and indeed is torn, never did check the left, but the pain compares to the right knee so I'm positive it's torn too, just my luck!

That's my pants inseam lol, the more I read on this forum, the more technical terms I find! I will definitely read up that sub forum. I obviously have no idea what of what I thought I knew. Glad I found this forum, you guys sure know your stuff!

I actually installed the Click'r pedals so I would have something of decent quality on the bike as oppose to the $5 pedals that come on it! I forgot too mention that I used to break pedals on my old bike.. I might be too much of a beast on that crank. I will try to ease it down a bit, I'm sure that will help.

C.Andrade

Found a good article that helped a bit, passing it on to you fellas, good read. bikefitting.com | made to measure

Dave Horne

It's been a while since I've had any pain in my knees but I have noticed one thing that will cause it. I work out at the gym nearly every day and use the cross trainer for 60 minutes. If I use a setting where I'm 'mashing', I'll have pain the next day.

Since I live in Holland and there aren't many hills, I rarely have to work very hard when I bike. I would think just taking it easy to begin with would avoid many problems.

Clem von Jones

I notice knee pain more often if the saddle is too low. When it's too high I notice rocking hips but not so much knee pain. The correct height for me leaves my heel about 1 cm off the pedal but I have huge feet.

Machka 

To retrain your brain, take a spinning class over the winter (are you going into winter soon?). I was a low-80s cadence person until I started taking spinning classes. Now I'm a high-80s person.

And you're supposed to ride with the ball of your foot on the pedal. You use your heel to determine saddle height, but don't ride with your heel.

Machka 

An article about knee pain that might help: CYCLING PERFORMANCE TIPS - Leg, Knee, and Hip Pain

C.Andrade

Thanks for the advice fellas, Knees are finally feeling much better.
I'll be biking this weekend and see if I can re-adjust.

C.Andrade

Thanks! that was a good read.

Fastfingaz

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Never heard of such a thing, One knee shorter than the other??? unless of course you're talking about the weenie ?

GravelMN

From what you describe, and your history of a knee problem, I suspect that you have more going on than a simple overuse problem from a long ride. A trip to your physician may be in order. I've had knee soreness and leg weakness after a long, hard ride, but not the kind of pain or disability you describe.

+1 each on getting a bike fitting, spinning instead of mashing, and using some form of foot retention. If you go clipless, make sure to get them set up properly so that you can clip out easily and intuitively.

delcrossv

He might have phrased it wrong, but it's true, no one's legs are exactly the same length. Usually the difference is taken up by the pelvis tilting, but for some adding shims to the cleats helps..

Fastfingaz

To tell you the delcross I've heard that before,I was being a little dramatic and using it as a lead in to my punch line,,,,,

HIPCHIP

Go see a good sports orthopedist, hopefully one who is also knowledgeable about cycling. There are so many structures involved with the knee it's really hard to determine what's wrong in a forum. Better to find out exactly what is wrong and get it fixed now before it gets worse. Check with your local college's Athletic Trainer who the team orthopedist is (hopefully they'll have a cycling team too) and get it checked. It might be something as simple as an overuse injury, but the meniscus does not have blood flow, so it heals really slowly, so better to have it repaired now before it gets worse, if that is the problem. It could be the cartilage on the backside of your knee. If that is the problem, it can be fixed easily with a knee sleeve and some strengthening, but if you let it continue, then you'll need surgery to clean it up, so have it checked ASAP.