Does anyone know what might be wrong with my knee? There is a very sharp pain that comes with every back kick of my run. It has gotten to the point where I can't stretch my quad because of a very sharp pain that occurs on the bottom/inside area of my knee. It does get better as the run goes along which hopefully means it's not something bone related. If it's some type of tendinitis can I expect to be able to ice but run through it?
Take a day off. Ice. Aleve. If that doesn't work then take more time off. Sounds like some kind of inflammation, very common. Front, below knee cap? Patellar Tendonitis. Actually feels more under the knee cap or in the knee itself? "Runner's Knee" aka Chondromalacia...inflammation/irritation of tissues under the kneecap. A little more serious and harder to reach via ice.
Ibruprofen: upwards of 3000mg is recommended for reduction in inflammation (800mg x 2-3 day). If you take Aleve or any brand of Naproxen Sodium cut that in half.
Ice: 10-15 minutes at a time, multiple times per day.
Stretch: Only stretch if no sharp pain. Dull tightness you can stretch.
Trying to run through a constant pain/tightness = you'll be worse off in the end. Take a day or two off now will save you taking a months off later.
Alan
I had this exact problem my senior year of high school. I tried to tell my coach there was a problem, but he wouldn't let me rest and I ended up getting into a huge fight with him over it. I would take 4 ibuprofen an hour before my runs to try to cope and could do speed work, but a jog killed me. I ended up going to puerto rico and not running for like 10 days in order to ultimately get better. I still have trouble stretching that quad though. The best advice I can give is to cross train for a while and dont run.
Had the same thing, and now have had 3 months off and counting. I didn't think much of it, but after several weeks the pain got too great to run on and I've been off ever since. Looking back I should have worked on quad, ITB and hamstring flexibility and ice as much as possible.
There are quad stretches where you are extended at the hip, which stretches the upper portion of your quad to spare the sore area on your knee. Try those maybe.
Go for a walk to warm your muscles up and get the blood flowing. If you can stretch pain free after that you can increase your flexibility as the pain goes down. My opinion, anyway.