[pct-l] Lingering Knee Pain After Hike?

[DJ Brown]

Melissa – after our 2011 PCT thruhike, my then-fiance and I both had achy knees for probably 6 weeks. We also felt it most after sitting, and also when going up and down stairs. It didn’t really hurt that much once you were walking for awhile. It eventually faded away. Not everybody had this same problem, or for this long. We thought it was a combo of age (both in our early 40s) along with the intensity of the hike. I did NOT have the same problem in 1998 at age 27 when finished thruhiking the AT, but I also wore leather boots and hiked at a more relaxed pace. Unless you have catching, locking or instability in your knee (feeling like it might give out), it is unlikely there is any ligament or cartilage (meniscus) injury. [It actually sounds like something called patellofemoral syndrome.] I would advise giving it a little more time as a doctor’s visit is unlikely to do anything except cost you and give you the same advice.

Best wishes for a speedy recovery!
- Deb, aka Topsy Turvy

On Sun, Aug 18, 2013 at 3:18 PM, Melissa Cappetti <
melissa.cappetti at gmail.com> wrote:

> I've been off the trail for about 3 weeks and my knees are both still
> really sore, achy, and stiff after I sit for any length of time.  Is this
> normal?  Has anyone else experienced this after getting off the trail?  I
> didn't have any abnormal knee pain on the trail and did not injure my knees
> although I did notice towards the end of the day that my leg muscles were
> fatigued and sometimes when I would step down into those deep rocky steps
> my knees would slightly hyper-extend causing some discomfort.  But it never
> felt like I injured my knees.
>
> Just wondering if this is common after a long hike.  I did about 950 miles
> (Mexico to Yosemite Valley).
>
> I've had similar pain after a marathon but that usually went away in 2-3
> days. It's been close to 23 days and I'm wondering if I should visit a
> doctor.
>
> Thanks!
> Near Miss