Runners Help!!! - IT Band misery

Lots of people will say foam roller and stretching but root cause may very well be weak glutes.

Speaking as a non-runner but the husband of a runner, get a foam roller and use it regularly.

Roll out and strengthen the lateral hip i.e. the TFL and glutes. Don't roll the IT band itself. Also look to do some single leg strength work e.g. RDL, pistol squats etc to help the knee pain.
Some good info here:

root cause may very well be weak glutes.

my buns of steel are not buns of steel.... this disappoints me 🙁

Not sure you can stretch an ITB band - one physio described it to me as like trying to stretch a seatbelt. You can certainly go to town on it with the roller though. You can get different levels of foam hardness - it may feel very painful on a hard one. Better to start with something you can feel, but roll properly, rather than going life and death with a hard roller - you can work up to that level if you like it.

I had a few years back. Things I did that sorted it out (not sure of individual effectiveness, but the combination worked):
* Dry needling
* Pretzel stretch
* Strength work

Stretch:

Hi.

So firstly... I'm no doctor or physio.  But I recognise some of what you describe.

I'm a fairly big lad (too much timber by far at present) - but whilst absolutley no natural runner, I've done a good few half marathons, and also have done several full marathons as part of full distance ('ironman' distance) triathlons.  So I have 'run a bit' !

Getting decent running shoes that fit and suit how you run is defo the 1st step. If they don't support your foot and the way you move, you're only a hiding to nothing from the start. (Go to a proper run shop. Accept its full price. Bit get someone who knows what they are on about look at how you land and run ('running gait' as they call it).  Ohh and run shoes are often knackered waaay before they look it.

Then here's my experience of getting an increasingly sore right knee on the outside, in the past:- it wasn't the IT band.  It was because of a weak feeble core / the small muscles around the hip area.  Each and every time I landed, my knee would roll inwards on my right leg (the weaker on the 2 legs). And hey presto, eventually pain on the outside.

Try standing in front of a mirror. Stand on one leg.  Start to crouch down (on one leg). Watch where your knee goes. Straight up and down in line?  or all wobbly and bowing inwards ?  For me, it was rubbish on the right leg. No problem on the left. Never a left knee pain ! Always the right.

Good news is some simple exercises to strengthen then works (if you do them !!)

The other potential contribution is where you run. On pavement next to a road ? If so Is it absolutely level ? Or is the pavement actually angled toward the road to drain water into the gutter. (Which is usual).   I used to exacerbate the problem when I did an out-and back route where the pavement was tilted. OK one way (for the good leg) but the other way gave me grief as it made the right knee roll further.  (Solution- I changed where I ran, onto trails and canal / riverside paths). Same on country roads as the road is crowned to aid draining - try to run in the middle (whilst not getting run over obvs).

And finally- I'd suggest seeing a properly qualified physio with a sports interest, not an osteoquack !

Hope you get sorted.

How old are your current shoes? I find I start to pick up niggles when my shoes are at the end of their useful life.
This often is well before they seem to be past their best visually or falling apart, so maybe try some new shoes. Loads on offer at the moment so shouldn't be a problem tracking down some competent shoes.
In terms of what's been said above, foam roller is good. Also, I find recovery leggings really useful. They don't magically make your legs feel amazing but more that they keep your legs feeling more normal and less battered.
It's maybe worth getting checked out with a physio and get their take on what's going on so you can get a recovery plan going forward that's specific for you. Good luck.

Same here. Common in cyclists with tight hamstrings in particular. Use a foam roller, then use it some more. Make it a habit. Hip flexor stretches are good too. Doing similar distances and find 10k is normally OK now. If you start to feel it, I read a good move is to kick your heals up to your arse whislt you're running. Looks daft but offers a bit of temporary relief.

amazing stuff! Lots for me to investigate here, cheers everyone.

i will look into getting a roller and doing some of the mentioned stretches.

How old are your current shoes

Around 5 or 6 months old. Seeing an average of 10k a week. So not a huge amount. When i got them, i did go to a 'proper' shop, although they didnt have a treadmill, but they did see me run up the road. He mentioned my right leg 'kicked' a little. maybe this is the source of my problem?

Try standing in front of a mirror. Stand on one leg. Start to crouch down (on one leg). Watch where your knee goes. Straight up and down in line? or all wobbly and bowing inwards ? For me, it was rubbish on the right leg. No problem on the left. Never a left knee pain ! Always the right.

good stuff, will give that a go.

The other potential contribution is where you run.

whether its smooth flat tarmac along the seafront or on wonky pavement... the pain comes regardless.

As mentioned above, you can't roll the IT Band. But you can rol the muscles connecting to it, which if tight could be pulling on it. I roll legs aafter a longer run, and quads really well, in three separate sections on and down - inside, middle and then really well on the lateral side which is connecting to the IT Band. Roll the glutes too, espcially the glute medius area.

I've had similar injury before, I am back running now and so far I'm doing Ok.

What's different is now a couple of times a week I do strength work for glutes, just some goblet squats with a kettle bell, some kettle bell swings, and some clam shells with resistance band.

IANAP, but I've found that hip hitches help when I have similar issues:

https://www.biomechanicseducation.com/hip-hitch-technique-biomechanics/

I have had this problem for over 20 years now.
The things I find that have worked for me, have been:
- stretching - hip stretches like that pretzel stretch above, pigeon pose and other yoga stretches.
- hamstring strengthening exercises. If you lay on the floor with bent knees (heels close to your bum), can you push your bum & hips right off the floor until your body is in a straight line from your chest to your knees? And how much effort is that on your hamstrings? Does your body dip in the middle? I really struggle with this. Lying on the floor & doing reps of this really helps, plus variations of it.
- not sure if this helped or not, but I saw an article about doing the outside of your hip exercise (sorry, I can't remember the muscle name) where you lay on your side & lift your upper leg up as high as it will go and back down again. I do those as well, but think it's mainly the stretching & hamstring strengthening that sorts me out.

I recognise a lot of the comments that robertajobb makes.
The knee rolling inwards during a single leg squat which happens every time your foot lands when running & causes the pain, as well as the mention of the angle of the ground you run on. If running on pavement, I always try to minimise the amount of 'lean'. Particularly bad camber the 'wrong' way can bring the pain on in minutes.
Since everyone started running on the road in lock-down I tend to so this where I can on quieter roads if the camber is less than that of the pavement.

I have had this problem for over 20 years now.

so its not something that can be fixed? it needs constant attention?

Sounds like you need to do some stretching and gym work to strengthen the opposing muscles to running (antagonist muscles).

https://reachphysio.com/fab-strength-exercises-runners/

You get similar symptoms if you do too much of the same exercise/activity.

This stretching video is great, even though its aimed at cyclists it stretches the same muscles that you use for running.

Physio rather than osteo I'd suggest - should speed up recovery and deal with the underlying cause, and prescribe exercises to stop it recurring.

Fwiw, I found acupuncture really good when I had ITB issues - couple of sessions to relieve the immediate pressure points and then doing the exercises sorted it over a month

Cause and solution identified in this video

v7fmp

so its not something that can be fixed? it needs constant attention?

I'm sure it's something you can get on top of, with a small amount of regular attention.
I focus mainly on cycling these days (and not even very well at that!) and have very little spare time for core work/strengthening etc.
I used to do a lot of running in my teens/early 20s and find that I can just go out on a run & my aerobic capacity holds me in relatively good stead. But, it's all the other bits that I don't maintain that struggle.
My Wife always grumbles about the fact that I can go for 6 months without running and then just decide to do a 5km without any issue, at an 'OK' pace.

If I get on top of the IT band issues & into a routine of regular running/stretching/strengthening then it is fine.
But, as soon as I stop doing that and then start running again, the problem returns. I have very tight hips and my hamstrings are weak. If I took the time to address those issues with a regular, manageable plan I would probably be fine. But, the reality of life & trying to squeeze too many other things into a normal day means it doesn't happen.

I'm sure it's something you can manage better than I do.

@stumpy01 - cool, that makes sense. I guess its getting over the initial issue, then as you say, keep going with small amounts to keep on top of it.

Thanks for the stretching videos that have been posted, book marked to have a watch later.

Yoga or Pilates (I prefer yoga personally). I found a regular yoga class makes a big difference to aches and niggles.  Plus going to a class helps you get the poses right so you can practice at home. Most of the stretches above are to be found in various yoga poses.

My wife and I have both had it issues. Numerous physios prescribed it band stretches, rolling and massage. What we both found worked was when another physio prescribed glute med strengthening. An easy exercise was a semi squat with a band round the knees and taking small steps sideways focussing on keeping your knees and feet aligned.

Have you done piriformis release? I had similar pains in my knees, so bad it used to wake me up until I read an article about the piriformis and what it causes when too tight, It's a muscle across the top of your bum, between spine and hip. There are lots of vids on you tube. It was life changing for me. Basiclally do a pretzel with a tennis ball under the top of you bum, kind of near the hip. It was instant joy and relief

Really common for runners and also if you sit about too much

Have you done piriformis release?

i havent! i will defo take a look tho.

Have a look at "Chase Mountains" on YouTube. I had multiple physios and doing this guy's app-based course was what finally sorted me out.

The last time I had the problem I sought help and the man cracked my back. Amazingly that fixed it.

I never had a problem until I went to a proper running shop and they told me I over pronate , and sold me trainers to correct it….. went back to neutral trainers and ran pain free ever since

Best thing you can do is go.here and spend a few quid on downloading this:

https://www.painscience.com/tutorials/iliotibial-band-syndrome.php

Sports masseur sorted mine out or helped massively. Made me promise not to punch her before she started, it hurt.