I was wondering what the source of my leg pain might be/if anyone else is annoyed by this. The pain is just under the knee, pretty much centered. I have never had any knee injuries nor any bone issues. The pain comes when I walk up stairs or push off of my foot hard...running, jumping, occassionally while making a cut while playing basketball or football. I'm not sure if its a soft tissue problem or what. The pain isn't bad enough to the point I can't do day-to-day things. Also the pain only last as long as the pressure is being applied.
What you describe sounds a lot like patellar tracking dysfunction. When the outer quad muscle(s) get stronger than the inner quad muscle they no longer pull the patella up in a straight line, but rather more to the outside than the inside. This is a problem because the upper leg bone (femur) has a groove in it where the patella is supposed to glide without making contact. But when the patella is not pulled in a straight line it rubs the soft cartilage on the back of the kneecap against the leg bone and it leads to inflammation and pain.
To treat it do low weight high reps (2-3 sets of 20) at the top 30 degrees of a leg extension machine. If that is not available then place the affected leg on a step and lift your body up like you're going to take a step up to the next step, but as soon as the leg locks out let yourself back down slowly using leg strength. Do this for the same reps as the leg extension machine.
Please let us know if this helps.
Best in Health and Training, J. R.