# jumper's knee / patellar tendonitis



## YuriB (Jan 12, 2004)

anyone else? better? what worked?

after a few months of trying to ignore it i came to realize i better take better care of my knee.
i'm staying off the bike and started acupuncture treatment. seems to help.


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## xcguy (Apr 18, 2004)

*Stay off the bike for awhile*



YuriB said:


> anyone else? better? what worked?
> 
> after a few months of trying to ignore it i came to realize i better take better care of my knee.
> i'm staying off the bike and started acupuncture treatment. seems to help.


I don't have what I'd call Jumpers Knee (that says that I can jump--used to be able to touch the rim but that was years ago) but I have had PTendenitis. The only solution was just to not ride. There are other things you can do to keep fit but the pedaling motion, while good for some knee ailments, just sucks when you've strained your patella. I find it flares up when I grind endlessly up long ascents in tall gears--something's gotta give.


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## SiZzLaX (Jun 12, 2007)

jumpers knee? im guessig this has something to do with joint pain? take glucosamine, maybe even some omega 3's for anti infmas.


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## wingsno19 (Mar 25, 2007)

I have had this problem for about two years. Here is the cure. 1). Move your seat back. I have many bikes and found that some hurt my knee and some didn't. With some trial and error I found that bikes with a forward position relative to the pedals was causing the pain. Move the seat back and you are good. 2). Get a Chopat. This is a knee sleeve that relieves the pressure on the patellar tendon. It works! If you are in really bad shape, use the combination of the two and you will be fine in no time.


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## YuriB (Jan 12, 2004)

Thanks for the reminder on the knee strap. I forgot about those things.
I've been keeping myself off the bike and receiving acupuncture for the last two weeks or so which seems to help. I'm more concerned with determining the root cause. My current ortho has been not so helpful so i'm getting a second opinion next week. i've also been taking msm/glucoasmine and weird herbs the acupuncturist gave me.
i think the seats are set most of the way back on my bikes. fit is a hard issue since i ride 5 different bikes with different purposes and geometry.
i did drop the seats a bit as i read the having your seat too high can be a problem.


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## dobbs (Jan 12, 2004)

Yuri - I know a good PT in town. I had an ACL reconstruction, among other orthopedic problems, and I've not met anyone who knows PT better than this guy. PM me if you want his contact info.


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## mbcracken (Aug 12, 2006)

I had Patella Tendinitis about 20 years ago from playing way too much volleyball. Ice & deep massage helped breakup the scar tissue that developed over the Patella Tendon. I would suggest finding a good PT that has an excellent massage person there. At the time of my injury, college, I had no health coverage for stuff like that. I broke up the tissue myself. Painful, but it worked.

Cheers,
Mike


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## vick (Apr 11, 2006)

I've been dealing with it for about the past 1.5 yrs, though mine was more a result of running than riding (admittedly I run more than I ride). I went to see my general doc a few times and he kept telling me to reduce activity, ice it, and take ibuprofen as needed. 

After it still hadn't gone away after a year I got a referral to an orthopedic specialist. She confirmed the initial diagnosis (patellar tendonitis) and general treatment - ice, proper stretching, reduce exertion of the joint, and prescribed an amped up ibuprofen. She also prescribed physical therapy which I simply have not had time to begin.

The interesting thing is the degree of dissent over the effectiveness of a patellar strap. I spoke with a friend who is a PT and she recommended trying one. I asked my doc and ortho specialist about them and they felt that there is only anecdotal evidence that they are effective - there have been no conclusive clinical trials to support the claims.

Figuring it couldn't hurt to try, I picked one up up from the local drug store. So far it has proven to be far and away the most effective measure I have taken. There is drastically reduced discomfort while running/riding and there is far less soreness after the workout. Throw in some stretching and IB as needed and my knee feels the best it has since this began. I wouldn't say I am completely over it, but I'm going to stick with the strap for now.


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## SteveF (Mar 5, 2004)

YuriB said:


> Thanks for the reminder on the knee strap. I forgot about those things.
> I've been keeping myself off the bike and receiving acupuncture for the last two weeks or so which seems to help. I'm more concerned with determining the root cause. My current ortho has been not so helpful so i'm getting a second opinion next week. i've also been taking msm/glucoasmine and weird herbs the acupuncturist gave me.
> i think the seats are set most of the way back on my bikes. fit is a hard issue since i ride 5 different bikes with different purposes and geometry.
> i did drop the seats a bit as i read the having your seat too high can be a problem.


This is a pain on the front of your knee, just under/below the kneecap, right? Got that, too, off and on. I believe the rule of thumb re. seat height is if the front of your knee hurts, _raise_ the seat--if the back of your knee hurts, _lower_ it.

My problem is the back of my left knee hurts, and the front of my right. I dunno_ which_ way to move my seat!

Re, setting the fore/aft position of your saddle, figure out which of your bikes is best set up for you, and you can get the same set back by dropping a weighted string from the nose of the saddle past the bottom bracket spindle (lean the bike slightly toward the string to keep it from hanging up on the top tube) and measure from the center of the crankbolt to the string. Then measure your other bikes and move them as needed to match.


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## FM (Apr 30, 2003)

Just found this thread with the handy search function  

So I have this got checked out by a PT yesterday and there is no doubt. Funny thing is, I did not get it from over-use. Rather, I landed a big drop 8-10 weeks ago, and my knee has been slightly tweaked ever since. I have never taken more than 7-10 days off the bike, and it's gradually gotten worse. Running and doing trail work have aggravated it even more.

My plan is to ice 2x a day, use the choprat strap, and cut way back on riding for 6 weeks, and go super easy when I do ride (maybe once every other week). So far, riding doesn't seem to bother it nearly as much as doing trailwork (hiking steeps), so none of that obviously.

Question about the choprat strap, when do you wear it? When you are riding, just kicking back, all the time or?

Given my approach, does 4-6 weeks seem like a realistic time line for getting better? I'd rather take time off now and be able to snowboard and ride in 2 months if possible.


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## YuriB (Jan 12, 2004)

Well here I am 4-5 months later and I'm finally starting to get over the whole thing. I still have some pain but nothing like before.
I tried and did everything and here is what I am doing now.
MSM/Glucosaine/Chondrotin.
Stretching, strengthening.
Foam roller.
Ultrasound 1x a week at the Chiro.
I don't use the choprat strap any more.


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## FM (Apr 30, 2003)

well, glad to hear you're getting better at least. 4-5 months though, wow.

How bad was yours when you started treatment? Also, how long did you experience any sort of pain before seeking help?

I am thinking I am ahead of the curve. Currently, it hurts for 4-6hrs after I do something which aggravates it, like hiking really steep terrain. But when I am not actice, it feels fine....


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## YuriB (Jan 12, 2004)

FM said:


> well, glad to hear you're getting better at least. 4-5 months though, wow.
> 
> How bad was yours when you started treatment? Also, how long did you experience any sort of pain before seeking help?
> 
> I am thinking I am ahead of the curve. Currently, it hurts for 4-6hrs after I do something which aggravates it, like hiking really steep terrain. But when I am not actice, it feels fine....


Well 4-5 to get to the point where I can do 6+ hours on the bike and not regret it for days.
Mine was pretty bad before I got treatment but I had multi-day touring ride planned for a year and I wasn't about to let my knee stop me...


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