Iliotibial Band Syndrome

Newbie

I have the classic signs of inflammation of the Iliotibial Band on the outside of my right leg. Up until 2 days ago, it just bothered me slightly after running. On Monday, mile 2 of an 8 mile run, I got sharp pain that caused me to walk for about a minute. Then when it stopped hurting, I sucked it up and ran again, and it didn't give me much trouble except for feeling a little weak. I ran 10 this morning and it did feel a little weak but no sharp pain. I've been icing it for about an hour each day since Monday. Is there anything else I could do, like a stretch?
Thanks

Member

I've been taught one stretch. You put your left hand on a wall, your right foot behind your left which is about an arm-length away from the wall, and kind of kick you hip out to the right. Switch and do it with the other leg and arm.

However, I found that what helped the most was riding the bicycle. I didn't ride hard. Maybe just 1 or 2 hours every other day at a really easy pace. After I started doing that, my IT-band issues went away. I figure it was because I was getting a more balanced ratio between muscle groups.

Former FFL Champion

I've been there.

Stretch your hips, butt, hamstrings, quads, calves, and lower back. Someone at another site told me this a few years ago and I thought they were crazy. But it helped.

Focus on your hips, but be aware that your IT Band goes down most of your leg, so all of your muscle groups need to be relaxed. Maybe they don't "have" to, but it sure does seem to help.

This is my fave. I do 2 sets of 30 seconds after each run. Note that shelflifers was the model for the images displayed.:

http://www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/itband.html

And on these, do the first one and the fourth ones from the top.

http://www.chap.com/lgmain.htm

(And the one at the very bottom has nothing to do with ITBS, but it feels really good. It helps keep the outside of your lower leg loose and I've noticed it helps in keeping my Achilles issues under control.)

Good luck.

Member

My husband had severe ITB issues this winter. He was in PT for months and received injections. He did the above stretch (runner x's) constantly. He also has a styrofoam cylinder type roll.....that he has to roll over up and down the entire length from above the hip to below the knee.

If you have a large ball, another good one is to lie on your back with both legs on top and run one leg up and down the calf. It is a great for core strength (have to use your abs to maintain both legs on the ball) as well as stretching out calves.

Of course if this is a continuous problem, you might have issues that need to be dealt with before stretching can even help. My husband did also have to get orthotics in the process of correcting his problems.

sue

Member

I know this is a little off topic...but i gotta commend you on your outstanding name, nice lebowski reference!

Member

Member

"Smokey, this is not Nam, this is bowling. There are rules."

Iliotibial Band Syndrome

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