Is it common for one's knees to hurt after jogging?

[Droopy]

I'm overweight and out of shape, but I've recently started working out to change that. I run around a 1/16 mile track at the gym as a part of my workout. I can only run 1/8 of a mile before I have to start walking although I have run 3/16 of a mile a few times. After I've walked a few laps I start running again. Today was my best day yet. I ran a total of 3/4 of a mile and walked 1 and 1/4 of a mile. I have a slight problem though. My knees are aching a little bit. It's not too bad, but I'm wondering if that is common.

[JimmyJazz]

1. It's very common. If you are overweight (as you state) you might

find working out on an elliptical machine a better work out - you will be able to last longer because you won't get as winded and you will find that it is no impact and therefore, much easier on the knees.

[Droopy]

9. They have the eliptical machines at the gym

But I would rather run. But if it gets to hurting too much I might have to go with the machines.

[JimmyJazz]

19. I have found really good results from the elliptical.

As a former smoker, I don't have the VO capacity I once had and, as a person with arthritis, I can't do the treadmill or even the track as I once did. But, I put on my headphones and get a REALLY good workout from the elliptical and I have lost 20 pounds in two months with very little change to my diet.

My knees have each been "scoped" twice, so I know where you are coming from.

BTW - congratulations for starting an exercise program. Anything we do to better ourselves should be commended. :hi:

[Tallison]

36. Yes, ellipticals are fantastic

I'm not overweight but have always had knee problems from running any further than 3 miles, never figured out the reason - my peculiar physiology, one trainer posited. Changing shoes/support souls only ever helped slightly. Ellipticals are the best low-impact cardio workout I've found as an alternative. I love 'em.

on edit: And yes, Droopy, I'd rather run, too, but I think any aching feedback may be our bodies' wise way of saying our physiologies just aren't suited for a particular activity at a certain point. :)

[Dastard Stepchild]

2. Are you a woman?

I suppose I could check your profile :)

But I ask because running is tougher on a woman's knees.

[Droopy]

4. I'm a guy

[Dastard Stepchild]

27. Well ok....

There goes my theory. :)

I can't run. Just can't. Never could. Tears up my knees something awful.

Perhaps yours is more a case of taking on a new activity.

[Skink]

6. Interval taining is good. Jog for a minute walk for 3 and so on...

[iconoclastic cat]

3. Ten bucks says it's your shoes.

When I started running after years of total slack, I didn't have the right kind of shoes, and my knees felt like they were coming apart. I spent the fifty bucks on some ugly and well-designed running shoes, and the pain went away.

[Droopy]

7. I've got New Balance gym shoes

I don't know if they were designed for running or not.

[iconoclastic cat]

10. I didn't think it mattered either until I bought running shoes.

I had shoes that were "all-purpose" cross-trainers, and I thought that was enough. I was proven wrong.

[sendero]

15. I'm going to agree...

... really- knee pain is not good. It might not mean much, but the fact is that it is quite likely that if your (OP's) knees are already stressed it will only get worse as you work yourself up to the 2-3 mile runs you need to be doing.

Shoes are the most likely culprit, assuming you don't have some sort of latent knee problem.

Get some REAL running shoes. They will cost a few bucks but they will make all the difference. Not only will you save your knees, you will find that running actually takes less effort (which you will compensate for by running more) but that stress will be reduced on your knees, shins, feet, everything.

And if you are already using some quality shoes, then you need to be careful. DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT, assume that you can "work through the pain". If this problem continues, you have to stop running until you figure it out because the last thing you want is wrecked knees.

And congrats for getting out and doing it!

[KitchenWitch]

5. It could be your shoes

If you are doing something as high impact as jogging, it would benefit you to get either running shoes or cross trainers.

[JimmyJazz]

11. If he's overweight and out of shape, it could be his knees --

the wrong shoes tend to affect the lower back and the feet and general stamina moreso that the knees. Knee pain can easily be caused by the strain of the body weight or the aging process.

I'm not discounting your opinon. It could be the shoes, but that's not the first thing I would look at in someone who is jogging and is overweight.

[KitchenWitch]

20. True but proper footwear does help to cushion the impact

think shinsplints - when I used to jog, I would start to get shinsplints when my shoes were old and breaking down.

[JimmyJazz]

23. Think shinsplints???? I've been plagued with them since I was

9 years old and doing gymnastics. Oy - now my shins hurt :silly:

You are absolutely correct that proper and new footwear is essential. My point is that if that doesn't correct the problem, it may be a physical one that can be alleviated by a lower impact work out.

We are on the same page, just on a different paragraph :)

[Elidor]

8. What kind of surface are you running on?

During the winter months, I walk around the outside corridor of a basketball arena, but the flat concrete floor has one terrible drawback: it's murder on the knees. Even with good shoes, it hurts like hell after a couple of miles. Jogging trails with wood chips are much gentler on the joints. Or any kind of turf.

New Balance shoes are supposedly very good. My elderly parents swear by them, but I tend to wear them out very fast.

[iconoclastic cat]

13. Yep, that's what I have: New Balance running shoes.

[Droopy]

14. I think it's a metal track

It's suspended above a basketball court. It could also be cement. Whatever it is, it is not too cushioned.

[Elidor]

17. That's part of your problem

Shoes could be another part. And some of it is just being not so young anymore. (I'll be 40 this Friday.)

I'd limit the indoor track time and find an outdoor track - not a sport track, but like a walking trail - for when the weather is nice. It will make a big difference to your knees.

[jrthin]

12. I don't

know if it's common, and there could be many variables, i.e. weak quads muscles causing extra knee stress and therefore the knees hurt. But with me, I run 7/miles 4 days weekly, I've noticed that my knee will always hurt or "feel funny" the week or so before my period. I understand the reason the knee hurts during that time is due to a fluction of the harmone, especially estrogen.

[jrthin]

18. Oops, guess I should

have checked your profile.

[Dogmudgeon]

16. Walk, Don't Run!

I'm also a mess, after four years of poor health, foot problems, obesity (much of it now antibiotic-related, just like in cows), and burgeoning heart disease.

So I started walking again, and should be up to a full mile a day this week.

If you're obese, or even "just" overweight, you should always start out walking -- give it at least a month if you're over 30. It will give your bones and joints time to adjust to the added stress. Resistence exercises are also helpful, even something as simple as deep knee bends or squats.

Good luck!

--p!

[Floogeldy]

21. Thank you. Droopy, DON'T OVERDO IT!

Go slow.

[Droopy]

24. You might be right

But I hate to just walk. Jogging is a much more intense workout and I'd like to lose weight as quickly as possible. But I might just have to settle for walking if my body tells me to.

[Dogmudgeon]

29. Walking is about 75% as efficient as running

That is, for most people. The more overweight you are, the closer it is in efficiency to running.

It's only when you get into serious training at a low body-fat level that running becomes super-efficient. This is true of all exercises. Weight loss is tied to metabolic response, and in de-conditioned people, even mild exercise will produce substantial gains in fitness and losses in weight, if done regularly, frequently, and diligently.

Plus all exercise-based weight loss takes place on an S-shaped curve. At first, there is very little weight loss; then, as your body makes more mitachondria and improves its nutrient use processes, weight loss become more rapid than just plain calorie expenditure would account for. Further along, as you approach a state of high fitness at low body fat, the "progress" slows and eventually stops. But you maintain the high level of fitness.

The time to consider switching to running is when walking no longer elevates your pulse rate to the magic 70% max point. You can calculate this by subtracting your age from 220 -- then multiply that by 70%.

If you're 35, your max is 185 bpm, and your 70% point is right about 130 bpm. (I suspect you already know how to do this calculation, but I mention it just in case -- and for those who may not have heard of it.)

Good luck. Stay healthy!

--p!

[Ladyhawk]

32. I walked and swam the other day and my left knee still didn't like it.

Good luck, Droopy. I'm trying to get more fit, too. I think I overdid it, though. The lake is interesting to explore and I forget to take it easy. I almost didn't make it back to my car after overdoing it snorkeling. The legs...they didn't want to work. I groaned most of the way to my car.

[quisp]

22. I'd go easy on the running until you take some weight off...

I've lost 15 lbs over the last 4 months and did most of it just walking 2-3 miles a day and watching what I ate. Get back on your bike too. It's much easier on your knees.

And finally, I have just started taking the dietary supplement SAM-e and STRONLY RECOMMEND IT! Seriously, I don't like/take pills much but man, oh man, this stuff is GREAT! My knees always ached some when I went down the stairs to get coffee. Once I started taking SAM-e the ache is gone!

oh yeah, and carry 2 to 3 lbs weights when you walk, it adds a lot to the workout.

good luck

[Droopy]

25. That's probably the best thing to do

But I have lost 6 pounds in the last 11 days. I really don't want to give up that rate of weight loss. But I don't want to end up with knee problems, either.

[quisp]

28. I would bet that most of the weight is water weight and

you can't expect to sustain that rate of weight loss. It isn't healthy. 1 to 2 pounds a week is much easier to reach and (the kicker) easier to KEEP off. And if you are really over weight you can screw you knees pretty good.

[Dogmudgeon]

33. And part of it is stored glucose

That initial weight loss is quite healthy, but your body doesn't store all that much glucose -- maybe 5-10 pounds, which includes the fluid to maintain it. But it is good for your liver and especially your pancreas (and blood sugar, of course).

Part of the weight loss is from serum naturiemic factor, one of the salt-retention hormones. Getting rid of this is why a lot of people have rapid blood pressure drops (to a normal level) early in exercising.

Within another week, you're going to think your weight loss stopped. Whether you run or walk, you'll still lose weight, but not as fast as you have. Unless you're prepared to do something like go on a medically-supervised fast with protein supplements, you can't expect to stay healthy and lose more than 1% of your body weight per week (which is about 1.5-2.5 pounds per week for most people).

--p!

[Southsideirish]

26. Triflora can be purchased at the health food store, about $8.00 a tube.

Rub it into your knees after a warm bath before you go to bed and first thing in the morning. My Chinese Medicine Dr recommended it for me and it works very well

[xmas74]

30. Walk instead.

You might be putting too much weight on your knees.
Better yet, if you are having knee problems you might want to look into water activities.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

31. Hi Droopy!

No advice from me tonight; there's plenty here for you from these good folks...

Just wanted to say: Good for you! You're doing yourself a whole lot of good things by all this concentration on exercise and diet...

I'm really happy about your efforts to make your health better...

CONGRATULATIONS! :woohoo: :woohoo: :applause: :applause:

[DS1]

34. Having you considered getting a road bike?

My knees and shins are absolutely shot to shit thx to running around in full gear and boots in the Marines - so I got a bike - and lost a crapload of weight. And it made my knees and legs incredibly strong, still don't run though. I don't run for anything.

[Wetzelbill]

35. it is common....

It would be best to ride a bike or one of the other machines until you get your wind up and lose a few pounds. Then you'll be better prepared for the stress of running. Also, make sure you ice your knees everytime after you are done working out. It seems trivial but it saves you a lot of soreness and wear and tear on you cartilege etc.

[Spock_is_Skeptical]

37. Yes, but try to find some insoles for your shoes

it might help out quite a lot.

[Kaylee]

38. I ditto the elliptical training....

Once you build up your muscle mass in your quads and shins, you will find that your knees don't hurt as much. I've found that when I was training for a marathon, once I reached a point where these muscles were very developed, they tended to take a lot of pressure off of my achy knees. I'm out of shape now (post 2 kids), so I will start again with the elliptical and work my way back up to running.