knee pain on side leg lift & roundhouse

hi folks, i'm getting back into karate after a ~20 year gap & am having problems with getting height on sideways leg lift (like that shown in kurtz's articles http://www.fightingarts.com/reading/article.php?id=16)

the problem is not just on the hip (which is a little painful), but mainly on the knee of the lifted leg - particularly after returning the leg to the rest position.

the pain is around the front bottom/outward side of the kneecap, and it's pretty much the same for both legs.

i get a similar problem trying to do the mid-level roundhouse kicks (mawashi geri)

i've never been great with my knee flexibility - not been able to do full lotus, for example, and even half-lotus is pretty lame. when i was a kid, however, i was able to get pretty decent height to side & roundhouse kicks.

there seems to be a lot of discussion on proper body alignment to reduce *hip* pain, but i haven't seen a similar description of the knee pain i'm experiencing.

it could be a part of my problem is that i have some muscle memory of how to do the kicks from 20 years ago, but my 36yo body can't quite manage the same state i was at after 3yrs of training.


does anyone have any suggestions?

Check these:

http://physicaltherapy.about.com/od/flexibilityexercises/qt/kneestretch.htm

http://www.thestretchinghandbook.com/archives/knee-pain.php

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/knee-pain/DS00555/DSECTION=symptoms

http://www.medicinenet.com/knee_pain/page2.htm

http://www.sportsinjuryclinic.net/cybertherapist/knee_injuries.htm#anterior

thanks

Quote:

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http://www.thestretchinghandbook.com/archives/knee-pain.php

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this one was the most relevant.

anyone else having/had this sort of problem? i'd be keen to hear any success stories for overcoming it.