Hi guys,
This is a great discussion and I won’t be the first to say that I’m glad I’m not the only one experiencing this oddity.
To contribute my story
Riding background
I’ve been riding for approximately 4 years (periods of hiatus for a few months)
I generally commute to work every day, approximately 40-45 kms per day
Weekends rides, my local loops will varying, from a 50-60 to 120 kms
I’ve had three attacks this year
Jan
Was in Bright, Victoria for a short away trip with the fiancée. During one of our hikes, as we started to descend down Mount Buffalo, I started to experience pain in my left leg, particularly around my upper thigh quad region. The more I stepped down, the pain continue to exacerbate to the point it was debilitating I had stop for a few minutes, I had to endure it until I got to the base (slowlest decent in my entire lol).
It felt like somebody was stabbing my leg and it was incredibly difficult to flex, bend and stretch. After that experience I avoided any further hikes/climbs for the rest of the trip.
March
Morning commute, about a few minutes into the ride my left thigh/quad started to seize up, the continuous pedalling made it worse to the point I could only pedal with the my right leg and then had to eventually get off the bike.
Similar symptoms as first attack
Stabbing/burning sensation around the quad, not localized it changes time to time above knee, outer or inner thigh.
As a result I was unable to walk, I was limping to take the weight impact off my leg for a few days.
I visited the physio, and he concluded I may have mild quad strain and muscle weakness. He suggested/recommended leg strength conditioning workouts, i.e. squats, leg curls and lunges and use a foam roller. About a week later the issues went away.
Present
So as of Monday morning, I experienced a similar attack as above, leg seized up becoming too painful to cycle and walk.
Going for a walk, both my quads flare up in pain, the pain seems to circulate around my quads. It can be above the knee, outer or inner thigh and sometimes just below my hips.
I end up limping around by trying to not put too much weight on my left leg (it’s more problematic than my right)
Sitting down or standing for a few minutes the pain will go away, but as soon as I start moving the quads flare up in pain again.
The situation hasn’t improved since Monday and if I squeeze my quads, I can feel they’re quite tender/sore.
I have a physio appointment booked tomorrow. So I'll see how I go and share any feedback with you all.