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So I decided to do something 'concrete' to sort of acknowledge that I've been working out and eating better and all that. So I entered and ran the 2008 PrideRun 10k in San Francisco last weekend (pride weekend).

For an out of shape guy who hasn't run a road race in about 10 years, I'm pretty happy with my results; I nearly cracked the top half and kept my time just over 9 minutes/mile.

Unfortunately, since race day, my knee has hurt like a bugger! the pain is just below and to the left of the kneecap. Lifting my leg is very painful and requires serious effort. I've been chomping advil and hobbling around for a week. I think I'm going to hit the doctor's office soon.

Any theories or advice on what this may be? I suspect I over-extended when I was in the final sprint and the doctor will just tell me to avoid exercising it for a while.

It sounds like it could be tendinitis. You may want to ice it and do some stretching and strengthening exercises.

You are brave soul for entering a 10km race! Did you have proper shoes BTW? Running on concrete can be very hard on the knees.

If it is as painful as it sounds you should definitely ice it and stop running for awhile. The doctor may send you to a specialist if he or she thinks you have done other damage.

I had a sore knee for a few weeks in the winter due to trying to get back to running to quickly after being sick. I limited myself to walking on a treadmill in terms of cardio, running was just aggravating it.

It's a good thing that it's not swollen as it could be water on the knee. While icing it, I would keep your foot elevated. With your knee bent, it may irritate it more. I'd lay off the Advil too and try just regular old aspirin. Too much Advil isn't a good thing. Let us know what happens. Happy Healing!

Does Advil help with inflammation? If not, you may want to try aspirin. Also, omega-3 oil helps a lot with inflammation. Cod liver oil is a good source. Taping the knee cap in place may help.