knee pain follow-up.

so i went to a sports medicine ortho thursday morning to figure out what happened to my knee during sunday's 15k. i spent a lot of time with dr. google prior to my ortho visit so i had some idea of what may have been the cause of my pain and subsequent DNF.  my suspicions were confirmed when i met with an actual doctor... i have ITBS (illotibial band syndrome), a form of runners knee.

what is an IT band?

• the IT band runs down the outside of your thigh, connecting your hip to your knee, providing stabilization for the knee during walking/running.

what is ITBS?

• ITBS is an inflammation of this band caused by repeated rubbing of the band over the knee.

what causes ITBS?

many things - these are what i think contributed to my problem...

• running on banked surfaces (uh hello, central park)
• excessive up and downhill training (hello again, central park)
• tightness in the IT band (this is definitely my fault as i have a hate-hate relationship with my foam roller)
• weak hip abductor muscles (how many times have i been told this? too many. time to strengthen these damn hips.)

how am i going to treat my ITBS?

• 6 weeks of physical therapy with a sports physical therapist.  when my doc recommended this, i couldn't turn it down.  now i get to spend twice a week with someone who is going to help stretch and strengthen me so that this doesn't get in the way of say, idk, a marathon i'd like to run in october.  
• RICE (rest, ice, compress, elevate).  i'm going to take the next month or so to slowly build up mileage.  no super long runs for me.  and icing.  lots and lots of icing.
• Cross-training.  with less running on the horizon for the next few weeks, cross-training is going to become huge in maintaining my current fitness level.  i've spent time cycling and elliptical-ing this week and i think that has helped to keep me sane.  i'm also going to take up swimming even though i'm nervous that other people (lifeguards, mostly) are going to judge me because i suck.  
• foam rolling. i have foam rolled EVERY DAY since sunday.  it hurts.  it's awful.  but i'd rather suffer through a few minutes of foam rolling than not be able to run a marathon in the fall.

see those 4 bullet points, (sh)IT band? they are going to take you downnnnnn.

on another note, here's a little tidbit of information i learned from my x-rays this past week: i have tilted knees.

normally, when a knee bends, the patella fits perfectly into the knee like so:

however, a tilted knee cap does not do this.  oh no, it slides to the side, very NOT like a puzzle.  

where do my kneecaps go when i bend my knee, you ask?

when i go for my PT, i might stop by the radiology dept to see if i can get my x-ray just to show you how ridiculously far away from my knee my patella slides.  it is absolutely absurd.  the OCD part of me is cranky and annoyed because i feel like everything should fit together perfectly and how dare my knees disobey order.  

stay tuned for all (sh)IT band related issues.  and for the chance to see my misbehaved kneecaps.  

anyone else ever have ITBS? how did you deal?  any suggestions for me?

also, who's training for a spring race and super excited/nervous?  i'm excited for you since i'm on a racing hiatus.  i might also be a little jealous.  but mostly excited.  i think :-P