This article on the knee is the third of three segments on the most injured body parts in military / athletic training.  Check out the Stew Smith Archives for previous articles specifically discussing injury prevention and rehab of the lower back and shoulder.  Like the shoulder and the lower back, the knee joint is susceptible to injuries of the connecting tissues of ligaments and tendons, compression tissue of the cartilage, and muscular strength and flexibility imbalances.  Often running can cause these issues especially if the runner is overweight, wearing improper footwear, or using poor technique.

The most common of knee injuries is Patello-Femoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS) or commonly called “runner’s knee.”(link  http://www.drpribut.com/sports/spknees.html) and Iliotibial Band (ITB) (link http://www.drpribut.com/sports/spitb.html)   For most people these injuries are classified in the “over-use injury” category.  In fact, the nick name for ITB at SEAL training is “I Tried BUDS” due to so many students failing out of training with this over-use injury.  PFPS can occur in avid runners as well as people who decide to go running for the first time in several months or even years without proper training prior to running again.  It is also important to rule out other knee problems when knee pain occurs and not assume every pain as "runner's knee" for you could be suffering from a knee injury that requires surgery.  Usually, if your knee injury involves ligaments or cartilage, surgery is required and can be relatively quick with a speedy recovery thanks to the latest in arthroscopic surgery techniques.

 To help prevent injuries such as runner’s knee, ITB, and other injuries (not including sudden impact damage) there are a few rules of thumb to go by:

2)      Replace old shoes every 300-400 miles of at least every 6 months and try not to use your running shoes as your everyday shoes.  We walk differently than we run.