Runner's knee

Does walking around Walmart for an hour with a shopping cart for support count?

I started out strong with the Runner's world beginning run program. It seemed to me that it really increased too fast, but didn't listen to my own self's advice to do what I felt more comfortable with. Megan was on the same program too, and she is suffering with shin splints right now. I am suffering with knee pain. I cut out the Saturday and Monday runs and am still in pain. I went for a walk today and felt at each step my knee could go out. It hurts like hell to walk down stairs, and seems to get inflamed walking up stairs.

Today I realized I am still doing something wrong, so I looked for advice from Runner's World Apparently it is patellofemoral pain syndrome or Runner's Knee. It is an over-use injury that affects lots of runners.

To prevent PFPS, run on softer surfaces, keep mileage increases less than 10 percent per week, and gradually increase hill work in your program. Visit a specialty running shop to make sure you're wearing the proper shoes for your foot type and gait. Also, strengthening your quadriceps will improve patellar tracking, and stretching your hamstrings and calves will prevent overpronation. (Try the exercises below from Pribut.)
At the first sign of pain, cut back your mileage. The sooner you lessen the knee's workload, the faster healing begins, says Pribut. Avoid knee-bending activities, canted surfaces, and downward stairs and slopes until the pain subsides. As you rebuild mileage, use a smaller stride on hills. Consider orthotics if new shoes don't fix the problem. "If your feet have good form, your knees will follow," says Pribut. See a doctor if the pain persists, to rule out another condition.

on another page they list "strength training, wearing a knee brace, taping your arches or wearing an orthotic, and replacing worn shoes or wearing motion-control shoes can help" to prevent and help the problem. The shoes should be ok. They hadn't been worn that much, and I really don't want to break out the new pair until I have lost weight and have a good strong stride. I will definitely use the knee brace, cut back on distance for a while, and strengthen my quads.

I intend to still walk, hopefully, and when the pain subsides, add the running back into the program. I'll probably stick with the 1 minute run to 2 minute walk for a few more weeks, then slowly add more running time in. Not go from 1 min run to 2 min walk to 4 min run to 1 min walk in the span of two weeks. That's what I should have done to begin with.