Body Pains Explained - Knee

Knees

Cycling, done properly, is much less stressful to the knees than many other aerobic activities, because there's no impact involved. Nevertheless, knee injuries do occur, again usually as a result of poor technique or position.

Gear Selection
A principal cause of knee problems is over-stress caused by using too high a gear.

Saddle Height
Another common cause of knee problems is incorrect saddle adjustment, particularly if the saddle is too low.

Cleat Adjustment
Some knee problems result from incorrect placement of shoe cleats. Everybody has a natural angle that their feet take when cycling. When you ride with plain pedals, your foot assumes this angle, and everything is fine.

However, if you use cleated shoes and matching pedals, it is important that the cleat is adjusted so as to permit your foot to be at its natural angle. If your cleats are misadjusted, the resulting twist on your lower leg will affect the alignment of the knee joint, and cause problems.

This is less of an issue if you ride pedals with "float" in the cleat attachment. Most newer clipless pedals offer at least some float.

Lateral Movement - Chondromalacia
The knee joint is basically a ball-and-socket joint, with the ball at the bottom of the femur and the socket at the top of the shinbone. A common cycling-related injury is called "chondromalacia", and has to do with irritation of the cartilage pad in the "socket" which provides lubrication for this joint.

Chondromalacia is often blamed on lateral movement of the joint, and a common prescription is to strengthen the quadriceps muscles which run along the front of the thigh and along side the front of the kneecap. It is these muscles which provide lateral positioning for the joint.

Long Cranks
The longer your cranks are, the further your knees will have to flex on each stroke. Different riders will have different amounts of flexibility, but riding with longer cranks than you are used to can definitely cause problems.

Source: cobr

Knee Injury Checklist : Are You At Risk?

Knee problems are caused by one of four things:

1. Riding too hard, too soon: Don’t get impatient. It’s going to be a long season. Pay attention to your body.

2. Riding too far: Your body is not a machine and cannot always cope with your ambitions. Increasing your average weekly kilometres by more than 60km over less than two to three weeks can put you at risk.

3. Spinning too slow: Save the big ring climbs and sprints for later. Get comfortable at high rpms and you’ll be flying when everyone else is at the physio.

4. Seat too low: It can feel powerful but it loads the patella and is probably the most common cause of knee pain.

If this info comes too late and your knees are already complaining, start your rehab!

Source: Australian Cyclist- Fitness.

Chondromalacia

Chondromalacia is the degeneration of the cartilage in your knees. Generally it is described as a pain beneath or on the sides of your knee caps. There can also be swelling, in severe cases you can hear the bones grinding.

This can be caused by a muscle imbalance (Weak quadriceps and strong hamstrings, etc.) Excessive pronation (arch collapsing too much, causing the knee cap to twist side ways) can also be a source of chondromalacia.

There are things you can do to self treat. For example decreasing activity, icing for swelling, even aspirin.

Biking should actually help chondromalacia, not hurt the condition. You should remember to stay off the large chain ring, avoid hills and adjust your saddle so that your knee is only slightly bent at the bottom of the pedal stroke.

Source: About: Bicycling- Beginners Bicycling website/ photo courtesy of GetImage