1.
Cycling Knee
Pain
Causes and Solutions
By http://www.fix-knee-pain.com/

2.
3
Common causes
for
cycling knee pain
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3.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #1:
Bad Bicycle Fit
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4.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #1: Bad Bicycle Fit
Saddle height and Knee Pain:
If the saddle is too high:
• Pain in the back of the knee (posterior
knee pain)
• Irritated IT band
• Patellofemoral loading
• Hips suffer from rocking side to side
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5.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #1: Bad Bicycle Fit
Saddle height and Knee Pain:
If the saddle is too low:
• Pain in front of the knee (anterior knee
pain)
• Patellar tendinosis (pain below knee
cap)
• Quadriceps tendinosis (pain above
knee cap)
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6.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #1: Bad Bicycle Fit
Saddle Aft/Forward Position:
If the saddle is too far forward:
• Pain in front of the knee (anterior knee
pain)
If the saddle is too far backward:
• IT Band Syndrome
• Pain in the back of the knee
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7.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #1: Bad Bicycle Fit
Cleat Rotation:
Externally rotated cleats (foot points
outward) can cause:
• Medial Knee Pain (pain on the inner
side of the knee)
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8.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #1: Bad Bicycle Fit
Crank Arm Length:
If the saddle is too long:
• Pain in front of the knee (anterior knee
pain)
• Patellar Tendinosis
• Quadriceps Tendinosis
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9.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #1: Bad Bicycle Fit
Solution:
Professional bike fit.
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10.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #2:
Bad Posture
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11.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #2: Bad Posture
Poor movement patterns and bad posture
cause
poor tissue quality and muscle length
which strengthens
poor movement patterns and bad posture. 11

12.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #2: Bad Posture
... and ultimately
cause pain!
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13.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #2: Bad Posture
To break the cycle:
• Improve tissue quality
o By foamrolling
o By getting an ART-massage (active release technique)
• Improve movement patterns & posture
o Conscious movement
o Check your posture every now and then
o Get help from a Functional Movement Practicioner
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14.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #3:
Overtraining
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15.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #3: Overtraining
What is overtraining?
• Training with too much intensity too
often
• You exceed your body‘s ability to
recover
• Your body starts breaking down:
o Tendon degeneration (tendinosis)
o Cartilage breakdown (arthritis)
o Bone density decreases (osteoporosis)
o Weaker immune system
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16.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #3: Overtraining
Signs of overtraining:
• Feeling overly fatigued and sluggish
• Joints start hurting
• Nagging injuries pile up
• You get sick more often (decreased
immune system)
• Bodyfat gain
• Regular inability to complete workouts
• Lack of motivation for training
• Loss of appetite
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17.
Cycling Knee Pain cause #3: Overtraining
Preventing overtraining:
• Get to bed around 10 PM and get 8 hours of
sleep
• Avoid chronic stress
• Eat healthy foods (i.e. everything not man made or in other
words: if it comes in a box, don‘t eat it)
• Have ample recovery time between your
workouts
• Listen to your body and dial down your workouts
accordingly
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18.
Cycling Knee Pain
• For more information:
cycling and knee pain
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