this post was submitted on 23 Jul 2026
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Running
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I developed intense knee pain one day after running. I had been sick for a few weeks and went back to my regular routine and after my 20 miler of the week I found I could no longer walk up the three steps to get into my house. It isn't that it hurt so much but that my knee felt weak and unstable. I sat and layed in front of my steps for a few hours until I could get up enough to unlock my door. In that time, I decided I was weak and just needed to cut back mileage for a couple of weeks. I was wrong. It's about ten years later and I still can't run more than 9 or 10 miles without a week of prep first. I saw doctors, PT and hippies. Pain relievers and muscle relaxers helped but made it hard to keep my cadence. PT gave me stretches and a resistance band and told me to do exercises for three weeks before trying a short run. The hippy gave me some RC that was kind of like acid. I wish I had just listened to the PT. The IT band stretches ended up relieving my pain and made it so I could reliably go up stairs again. I recommend seeing a PT or sports med guy and doing what they say. Otherwise, for me it was IT band stretching and switching to zero drop shoes. Good luck, get healthy and stay there!
Seriously, bands are good stuff. This is good advice and not just for running. Not only does it warm you up, but bands let you add resistance in novel ways, so you can work stabilizing muscles without heavy wear.
Foam rollers are also great as they help prevent some of the sore/tightness that leads to you compromising on form and in turn, injuring yourself.