Pain behind the knee (right side only)
 

In recent weeks, I have been experiencing some pain or swelling behind my right knee. I feel it more when I am riding the bike. I don't recall doing anything different or any drastic change in my normal routine and this is the first time this has happened to me. I did a bit of online research and something I have never heard before came up:

"Baker's cyst, which is a buildup of synovial fluid behind the knee..."

I wonder what others think, whether there are other explanations, and what's the best way to treat the condition.

http://www.med-health.net/images/10415891/image001.jpg

On another note, I have been riding more consistent and stronger (read: closer to what I know I am capable of) than ever before over the last few months ever since i started using the Medicine Ball to release the "knots" that had been bothering me for a long time under my buttocks, especially the left side. I don't know why it took me so long to do it. I had the ball with me for years (bought it after reading William's pal recommendation right here on this forum) but is just recently that I started using it regularly to relieve the myofascial pain. I guess once the pain subsided, and my back no longer bother me as much, I was able to ride better....I mean, a lot better...to the point that my buddies were asking me every time I am at the front of the group or leading up a climb - "Hey bro, what are you on today?", to which I promptly answered "EPO" always. :D

http://www.premierrubbers.com/images...-Ball/img1.jpg

It may be generalized tendonitis in the area from over use or a position issue. As your fitness and flexibility improve you may find that you position/fit needs also change. Particularly with respect to hamstring, glut, and quad flexibility.

Looks like it could be easily confused with ITB syndrome.

It is hard to tell, if it's bad go to a doctor. I've had pain behind the knee when the issue was a kneecap injury. Edema from the kneecap damage moved through the joint and caused pressure on the back of the knee. I never would have guessed it was the kneecap. There is a lot going on there and symptoms can be confusing which is what Doctors are for.

take this comment with a grain of salt as i am not a coach or a doctor. a friend of mine that is an ex pro would tell me he knows when his fitness is coming along when he starts to feel some pain after workouts which means he's able to push bigger gears. pain eventually goes away after a couple of weeks. might be related to you being able to ride stronger/harder

second might be related to fit and which muscles youre using the most. recently got some fit advice from a masters racer, multi time masters national track champ, who told me im relying on my quads too much and suggested small changes which allows me to use my hamstrings and glutes more. definitely felt it in the first couple of weeks, in the same area you're feeling pain in. pain felt similar to stretching trying to touch your toes. i can push bigger gears for longer periods of time and after a few weeks, pain is pretty much gone now.

Have you made any fitting changes recently, even small ones? Changed shoes? Cleats? Saddles?

Thanks to all for chiming in. To answer questions related to fit: No, I haven't made any changes at all to my fit EXCEPT...just this past one ride, I thought the pain could be caused by leg length discrepancy and I tried putting some cleat spacers on the right side (where the pain is). Obviously, it didn't fix the problem, so back to square one.

It's possible that the relief of pain under my buttocks have unconsciously changed my position from the previous one that was compensated for the discomfort.

Interesting point about improved fitness and the temporal nature of the pain. Hopefully that's true and it will go away after a short while. It's been almost four weeks since the pain becomes noticeable.

I've had baker's cyst issues in the past and they usually just go away on their own. I think you can have them drained but you really don't need to.
Pretty easy to tell if that's is what you have going on as they're not super comfortable and you can feel them quite easily as in it's a big lump usually on the backside of your knee or high in the calf area.

it sounds like itb to me too. had the same problem did yoga/itb stretches and it helped a lot.

Go see a doctor. You don't want to play with knee issues as a cyclist.

SH

Pain towards back of the knee: often saddle too high.
Pain toward back of the knee (outside only): I sure would be thinking about IT band as well....

GL.......

'EPO knee', well known in the pro ranks. :D

But seriously... ITB and/or hamstring myofascial issues are perhaps more likely.

That's what I was taught many moons ago as a young newbie cyclist, too.

I was also taught the opposite, i.e., pain in the front of the knee (behind the kneecap) often equals a saddle too low. For that very reason, if you decide to try lowering your saddle, do it in small increments. I wouldn't change it more than half a centimeter (5mm) at a time, but others may have different ideas.

I've had the same symptoms but not sure if it is the same problem as you, but what worked for me was a combination of lowering my saddle and moving my cleats as far back as possible.

I hurt this area of my leg in 2008, early in the year doing more miles pushing a bigger gear etc. I went and saw a couple sports medicine doctors, and neither of them could give a concrete diagnosis. I went to physical therapy for most of the summer and stayed off the bike. It didn't really help, and finally I just said screw it, and started riding again in November. Every year since then I've had to be careful in the spring with longer rides and pushing the bigger gears. Last year after it was was bothering me yet again I went in for another fitting but this time with someone who does sports PT and fittings. His diagnosis was a combination of inflexible hamstrings, saddle to high, cleats too far forward making the issue worse. He also put the shims in my shoes to bring my knees into better alignment. I am glad to say, this year I haven't had any issues with it. I am really bad about stretching, so I am sure I am not any more flexible than I have been in years past.

I thought about saddle height as well but since it only affects one side (right), I decided to try with the cleat spacer first.

I am gonna focus a bit more on stretching to see if it helps before I go to a doctor.

Again, nothing has changed to my fit and this is the first time I have experienced this problem.

I cant help you figure it out as i am having the same problem - the outer band in the back of my left knee was causing some minor discomfort - I had lowered my saddle a bit (trying to shorten my reach to the bars). Rode thru this discomfort on 2 rides. Then yesterday I went for a run - half a mile in I had to quit and walk home - my hamstring was killing me, and still is.
I am just getting old, but still......