A Knee Jerk Reaction ?

Last summer I stepped up my exercise walking, so to speak, and would go out for 5 or 6 mile walks every day.

Sometimes I'd be enjoying it so much I'd go 7 or more miles.

Every so often my left knee would give me a sharp pain and as a result, my leg would semi crumple and I'd stumble for a pace or two. It didn't happen on every walk and as I was leaving for my 6 months in America, I didn't want to see my doctor about it then. I also got the odd pain going up and down the stairs and this wasn't good as a crumple on the stairs would have risked potentially serious consequences.

While over in the US I continued my walking most days and once again, every so often the knee would give the same sharp pain. After Christmas, even though I was in Florida. I wasn't walking as much and I wasn't getting any pains either. On my return in February this year, I mostly gave up on walking and noticed I wasn't getting any pains when using the stairs.

However I did go to my doctor and he said he'd make an appointment for me to see a physiotherapist at the local hospital and that took place yesterday. Gotta love the NHS.

Anyway as I'd not had a pain of any sort all year, I felt a bit of a cheat in the physio dept when everyone else was in a wheelchair, on crutches, using walking sticks or pushing walkers.

The lovely physio (Katie) said I'd done the right thing and after a chat and an exam, she said my left knee was slightly 'wasted' (trust me to have a drunk knee !!) and the pain was caused when some of the cartilage between the bones had been trapped or nipped.

So in order to strengthen the poor old knee, she showed me 3 easy exercises which I was to do several times a day and she'd see me again in 2 weeks time.

Well I started them this morning and also did them just before setting out on my walk today. I did my usual 3 mile easy route and guess which was the only part of my body to give me some discomfort by the end.........yes the part that I'd exercised prior to my walk - my left knee !

Go figure.