How to protect my knees

[Peanutbutterblood]

Morning ladies

I've been running for a year, not huge distances, I did c25k last january and most of last year ran 3km or 5km 3 times a week as well as some walking.

Since december I've been working on upping my distances and in January managed 2 10kms. I do a couple of online hiit type workouts every week to.

I've noticed this week my knees are making a lot of noise. They click a lot when walking around the house on an evening and when doing bicycle crunches yesterday I could hear the cartilage grinding. I dont have any pain whatsoever. If I couldnt hear the noises I wouldnt guess anything was wrong but even my dh was concerned about the noise

What can I do to protect my knees? I take a standard multivitamin and an extra vitamin D.

Are you running in decent cushioned shoes, which aren't too old? They do say shoes should be replaced every 300 miles or so to ensure the cushioning is intact, so at circa 10 miles a week you should've replaced yours in the last year.

Thank you, yes I got new trainers last January, June and for Christmas . They seem supportive enough to me. I do want to see a professional for my next pair but the shop that checks gait etc is shut for now

You don't necessarily need gait analysis - what sort of shoes are they?

Doubling the distance of your long runs in a month is quite an ask

What are your running plans over the next couple of months?

Agree about the shoes - unfortunately it's not easy at the moment to go to a friendly running shop, and try on lots until your find a pair that's just right. But if you know what you like, or want to re-buy your current shoe, it shouldn't be too difficult to find online.

Other things to consider are a one off with a physio or osteopath to see what they think could be going on with your joints. Also a few sessions withba running coach, to see if there's anything about the way you run that could be changed (stride, arm carriage, anything, everything!) to reduce wear and tear.

And remember, running is generally protective of joints. Get thus sorted now and there's no reason to think you'll need to curtail

Do you do any strength training? Stuff like squats, lunges etc will help protect your knees.

Lots of stuff online if you have a google

Thank you both

I have bunions and a slight lean inwards which is my main reason for wanting to see a professional. Atm I'm wearing some Adidas trainers, I dont know what they're called but they were about £70. I dont have loads of cash for trainers

I ran a few 7/8kms in december to try and work up. I dont want to increase distance over 10km. I'd like to run two 5kms midweek and then a longer run on a weekend (say 7/8km) and one 10km a month

Be careful. I was a runner and ignored knee clicking and grinding, thinking it just came with the territory. Turned out it was osteoarthritis and I ended up having a total knee replacement at 55 after several years of pain. No more running for me. I'd consult your GP and get yourself checked over by a specialist in sports medicine.

Gosh @QueenAnnesHat that's a scary thought. I'll look at speaking to a gp

I have a lot of clicking and grinding too; knees and ankles. I have a bunion too and don't know if that's related. I recently saw a physio and she thinks that building up the muscles around my knees and ankles should help. I've been doing strengthening exercises and I do feel it's making a difference to my running (I'm doing c25k) and to my general clickiness.
Have you seen the GP?

What do you do apart from running - exercise wise?

I try to do at least 2 pilates type sessions a week, with the occasional few stretches while I wait for the kettle to boil during the day.

There are lots of people on Youtube, ideas on Runnersworld etc.
I follow Pilates for Runners on instagram and she posts some good mini sets of exercises.

I'm also taking joint supplements - one with Collagen and Glucosamine, and looking at Turmeric. It might be snake oil, but we give our old Labrador Glucosamine tablets and her joints have definitely improved in the year we've been doing it.

I'd go to a physio rather than a GP much better at assessing the knee. I say that as a GP!