Concept2 Forum

I've now had my model D for about a week know. I had been using it about once a week at the work gym. This has been added to my other fitness activities of running and an elliptical trainer.

After a few sessions on the erg, my knees have started to hurt. I don't know if I've just been pushing it too hard too quickly, or if my technique is wrong. I started by having someone else watch me and show me the proper form. I might have been going too far forward.

Any ideas?

Are you rowing every day, or are you going every-other-day? Have you taken a day off this week? I know that I was in fairly good shape when I got my erg, and while I knew that wouldn't translate immediately to the erg, I was surprised my first week difficulties. The two exercises you are doing are both very different in how they stress your leg muscles and joints, and if you are already fit in these other activities it is likely that you've pushed a bit too hard too often.

If you aren't because of the excitement of the new toy, slowly add the erg into your cross training program to give your body plenty of time to recover from the stress of the new exercise. Ice your knees for about 15 minutes after you exercise if they are getting sore, even if they don't get sore immediately. Concentrate on your form even if that means that you have to back off the intensity, and have this person look at your form from time to time if you can to make sure you don't let bad habits creep in. The soreness should slowly go away in the next couple weeks as long as you are letting your body adapt to the new stress by strengthening the muscles, tendons, and ligaments. If this doesn't happen, then you'll need to take additional steps and seek out more help.

Good luck!

Can you describe the pain. Is it limited to the outside of the knee?

Not sure exactly how to describe the pain, but probably most just the outside of the knees. What would that indicate?

It's gotten a lot better, so I'm probably going to try rowing lightly tomorrow.

I've occasionally had sore knees and it was always technique problems. Keep your knees in a plane. Don't let them go out to the side.. Don't over compress. Shins never past vertical.

Nosmo said

Shins never past vertical.

I agree with Nosmo. If your knees are sore, until they are better you could even do a three-quarter or half slide instead of full slide. That is, stop the recovery and take the catch before the shins are vertical. I think you'll notice that you still get a good workout.

Byron

d3z wrote:Not sure exactly how to describe the pain, but probably most just the outside of the knees. What would that indicate?

It's gotten a lot better, so I'm probably going to try rowing lightly tomorrow.

If it is on the side of the knee, it could be IT band syndrome, a injury most frequently seen in runners, but also seen sometimes in cyclists. It doesn't appear to be very common in rowers, but anything is possible.

If it is IT band the pain is most prevalent when the knee is bent slightly, about 30 degrees. It can be a tricky injury for runners in that it can creep up on them when they least expect it.

If it is not bothering you anymore, I wouldn't wory about it, but pay close attention to any knee pain that you may develop. I'll try to forward some additional information.

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