I have self-diagnosed my knee pain as Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS) or Runner’s Knee. I have a mild pain in both knees, near the top of the knee.

I think a couple of factors have contributed to this injury.

1. I was running in old, worn out shoes.
2. I have tight hamstrings.
3. I have been doing a lot of squats and lunges.
4. I’ve been working out 4 days in a row for months.

The things I’ve done to try to fix this:

1. I bought new shoes.
2. I took a couple of days off from running this week and I think it has helped.  I still did the boot camp classes, but just didn’t run on the days between.
3. I’ve been doing leg lifts (laying on my back, one leg bent, straight leg lifts slowly up and down).

My knees are better but I can still feel a little bit of soreness.

I’m going to try to run tomorrow morning, but just a short run of 2 or 3 miles to see how they feel.  I’m dying to try out my new shoes.   I don’t want to push it and make it worse, but I really need to test my knees out.  I really don’t want to go another week without running if I don’t need to.

Also, when I don’t run for a few days I begin to get a restless feeling.  I am convinced that running really does help to create a sense of emotional well being.  I’m sure it’s all chemical/hormonal.  But hey, it works, and I love feeling great.  Who doesn’t?