If your shoes have lost their cush, or if they allow your foot to collapse inward or outward, you may develop ankle, knee, hip or back pain. Keeping good shoes on your feet may keep your whole body comfortable while running. But if you already have pain in one or both knees, you may be able to stop it by buying a new pair of running shoes.
Good Shoes
The value of a running shoe is in the help it gives its wearer while training or racing. Every runner is a unique combination of mass, gaits, joint stability characteristics, training regimen, chronic injury liabilities, soft and hard tissue attributes and fitness level. Mess with one facet and any of your joints, including knees, may hurt. To avoid developing knee pain, find shoes that suit your posture, weight, training distance, gait and motion tendencies, such as pronation or supination.
New Shoes
Sometimes switching from unsuitable to well-chosen running shoes is enough to stop knee pain. A different arch, more cushioning in the forefoot or a stiffer sole can all end your pain. If you have worn the same shoes for too long, new padding and strong support may help. If so, pain will fade over the first few weeks you train.
Choosing
If your knees have been sore for some time, consult a doctor, physical therapist, chiropractor or podiatrist, depending upon your preference. After watching you move, this professional may suggest a configuration of shoe, or even a couple of models. Shop when your knees are sore. Bring running socks. Work with a knowledgeable sporting shoe clerk who can notice whether ankle, knee or hip joints collapse inward or outward as you jog in a candidate shoe. Pay attention to your knees' reaction to each model.
Knee Pain
Runner's knee is the common name for chondromalacia patellae or patello-femoral pain syndrome, and all it means is that your knee or knees hurt around or under the kneecap, the patella. Other sources of knee pain and swelling are damage to the area's ligaments, tendons, muscles, meniscus or bone structures, bursitis and arthritis. Any of these conditions can develop from overuse or from an acute injury. It takes a professional to diagnose the specific condition and prescribe treatment.
Tips
If you train daily or almost daily, buy two new pairs of running shoes and alternate using them. Each pair will last longer and protect your joints better if allowed to rest between working. While your sore knees heal, consider wearing training shoes most of the time, even to work. Their superior support and padding will cushion and may speed your joints' recovery. Orthotics to correct foot issues often enhance the benefit of running shoes and stave off knee pain.
