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Thread: IT Band/Meniscus Injury

  1. #1
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    Default IT Band/Meniscus Injury

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    I hurt either my IT band or my lateral meniscus about 3 weeks ago and am needing advice on my best course of training action here. The injury was nothing to do with training and I can't even really pinpoint a definite mechanism of injury - either playing flag football or getting too enthusiastic spinning my kids on a thing at the playground (lesson learned, playgrounds aren't for full sized children like myself). I went to a physio who did the IT band release (my god, I saw colours I didn't know existed) and also did the tests for a lateral meniscus injury, of which I failed about half. That said, I'm not really worried that if I did tear the meniscus that it's a serious tear since it's getting better slowly (likely in the "red zone" that gets blood and will hopefully heal and whatnot), if it's not simply an IT band thing.

    My range of motion isn't limited at all, but when I do a squatting motion I pass through a very brief moment of pain and what can only be described as instability (possibly due to the pain). Even things like stairs where I'm loading that leg cause the same sensation to a smaller degree. The pain has gone from almost causing collapse (right after injury, whatever it may have been) to being just a dull nagging that flares up when I load that leg. I've rehabbed a few muscle injuries pretty successfully using the resources here, but am in the dark about what to do with joint injuries such as this. I searched the forums but didn't find anything quite like what I'm experiencing so I thought I'd ask (and I apologize if I missed it being addressed already). Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by Justin Smale View Post
    I hurt either my IT band or my lateral meniscus about 3 weeks ago and am needing advice on my best course of training action here. The injury was nothing to do with training and I can't even really pinpoint a definite mechanism of injury - either playing flag football or getting too enthusiastic spinning my kids on a thing at the playground (lesson learned, playgrounds aren't for full sized children like myself). I went to a physio who did the IT band release (my god, I saw colours I didn't know existed) and also did the tests for a lateral meniscus injury, of which I failed about half. That said, I'm not really worried that if I did tear the meniscus that it's a serious tear since it's getting better slowly (likely in the "red zone" that gets blood and will hopefully heal and whatnot), if it's not simply an IT band thing.

    My range of motion isn't limited at all, but when I do a squatting motion I pass through a very brief moment of pain and what can only be described as instability (possibly due to the pain). Even things like stairs where I'm loading that leg cause the same sensation to a smaller degree. The pain has gone from almost causing collapse (right after injury, whatever it may have been) to being just a dull nagging that flares up when I load that leg. I've rehabbed a few muscle injuries pretty successfully using the resources here, but am in the dark about what to do with joint injuries such as this. I searched the forums but didn't find anything quite like what I'm experiencing so I thought I'd ask (and I apologize if I missed it being addressed already). Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.
    If we just assume there is a meniscal pathology here, the typical guidance would be to use tempo squats through the full range of motion and progress each workout. Everything else should be the same. Menisci rehab exceptionally well so long as there are no mechanical locking symptoms.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Will Morris View Post
    If we just assume there is a meniscal pathology here, the typical guidance would be to use tempo squats through the full range of motion and progress each workout. Everything else should be the same. Menisci rehab exceptionally well so long as there are no mechanical locking symptoms.
    Thanks! What set and rep range would you recommend for the tempo squats? I see 3-0-3 bandied around a fair bit, and have heard 5 sets of 3 instead of 3 sets of 5 but that's more using them as a supplemental exercise rather than a tool of rehab.

  4. #4
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    For injury rehab, I don't think you can beat 3-1-2 tempos. I think 4x3 - 4 x 4, or 5 x 3 is my typical prescription. There is a lot of time under tension on these, so we drop the in-set volume a bit to prevent fatigue related form deviations.

  5. #5
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    One more question, how often would you recommend doing this? I started super light today just to give it a shot and it went ok, should I treat it like the Starr method (despite the fact it’s not a muscle thing) and do it every day with small daily increases?

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Justin Smale View Post
    One more question, how often would you recommend doing this? I started super light today just to give it a shot and it went ok, should I treat it like the Starr method (despite the fact it’s not a muscle thing) and do it every day with small daily increases?
    It depends on the starting weight relative to your training weights before the injury. If they are very light, you can train everyday until they start to feel heavy, and then you switch to a more regular training schedule.

  7. #7
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    To dredge this up again, the meniscus tear reared it’s ugly head again. Not the pain, but that knee feels “loose” in the same way it did for the first few months when I was rehabbing it before. I’ve dropped the weight on my squats and have switched to tempo squats as per the above. However I’ve had 2 good physios recommend split squats be part of a rehab program for meniscus injuries. Has anyone else had any experience with this, and if so how did you program them?

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