ziggydcat

Ok, so a little background. I was a 1500 - 2000 mile per year rider, always on the bigger side. Last year I was off the bike due to an umbilical hernia, the surgery to fix the aforementioned hernia, my wedding to my beautiful bride and the blending of our families. I was able to get in a basic ride here and there but nothing of much substance. At the end of August I started back with great gusto and proceeded to work my way back up to about 100 miles every week. Then my right knee/leg started to hurt and cramp. On the bike, off the bike, at work, home, in bed... The worst was in the car around Thanksgiving. Almost like restless leg syndrome. My Doctor sent me for a MRI and an ultrasound to rule out a blood clot from the surgery. All negative, BTW! Tried glucosamine, which does nothing for me. Being the man that I am, I just figured that it would go away on its own. It did not. In fact the pain became so bad I had a hard time switching from the brake to the gas pedal. Tried riding this spring. Managed 3 miles, most of it with my left leg. I finally bit the bullet and went to the Orthopedist after all of the work doctors (not really doctors so well just keep them lowercase) diagnosed me with everything from a torn meniscus to carpal tunnel of the knee.

The Orthopedic surgeon (Orthopedic Associates in Port Huron, MI) was great. He figured it was a meniscal tear and had another MRI done. I was ecstatic about finally getting back to normal. Alas, the results were negative. As in, your knee is perfectly healthy. A touch of arthritis and some inflammation in the ACL but nothing surgery would help. So back to square one. He recommended Motrin for the inflammation and physical therapy for the rest. Remember the whole waiting out the pain deal? Yeah, so I didn't go to therapy and my knee and leg stayed sore and stiff.

I finally caved and went to therapy. And so glad that I did. The Motrin was helping with the stiffness but the pain in my knee and hip was massively uncomfortable. My therapist (Munger Physical Therapy, Fort Gratiot, MI) took some measurements and looked at my flexibility. She prescribed several stretches and some light strength training exercises. We set up 5 weeks of appointments and she sent me on my way. I did and continue to do the stretching RELIGIOUSLY! By the second appointment I was back to walking normally and with nominal pain. She Okayed cycling after week 3 and discharged me from therapy after week 4. I was able to complete two 30 mile rides and several 10 - 20 mile rides that week.

That was last week. I am virtually pain free now. But the stretches are imperative. I will probably need to continue the IT Band stretching a couple of times a day for the rest of my life, but its a small price to pay for the relief. I wish I had treated this sooner. I'm not sure how long I've been dealing with this but I can tell you that I feel better on the bike than I have in years! I'll be pushing towards a 50 miler this weekend and shooting for a 100 mile ride by the end of September.

Anyone else have any experiences with this?