I've had an achilles issue that I've been managing for 4 years. I have had xrays and do not have haglunds. If you're up for a challenge, here’s a puzzle for you. Your mission should you choose to accept it..
For the past 5 months, I have been running in the New Balance Fresh Foam Tempos only. I had 3 pair that I rotated. Achilles had been improving and I was doing “baby” workouts. I typically ran 5 days followed by 1 day on the bike. Foot was not perfect but generally pain-free enough to not have to limp around. Often, I could run more than 5 days in a row, but was cautious and tried to stick with the 5 day run/ 1 day bike rotation.
About a month ago, I just felt achy - like I needed new shoes, or needed more “cushion” or a different shoe in the rotation. I took a risk and added 2 new shoes in the rotation - the New Balance Fresh Foam Beacon and the Saucony Kinvara. I thought these would both be shoes that would allow for freedom of movement like the Tempo, but give me a bit more of a cushy landing for less impact. Both of the Beacon and the Kinvaras felt great to run in. I especially liked the feel of the Beacons, so ran in them probably 2 out of 3 days. After a few weeks, my foot was worse than it had been in over a year.
For the past 7 days, I’ve run ONLY in the New Balance Fresh Foam Tempos with great improvement. I have less pain and less swelling. I am still feeling a little twinge upon starting running, but it loosens up. I am having a bit of stiffness through the day if I sit a long time, but nothing like it was.
Obviously, I’m going to stick with the Tempos for now, but it would be nice to be able to find another / other shoes when they are inevitably discontinued! Or, maybe there’s another shoe that would make it even better!
THOUGHTS???
Shoe conundrum/ Achilles issue - advice appreciated!
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I find having a shoe rotation with shoes of different brands has fixed my chronic Achilles issues personally.
I’d say the reason for this is different shoes making you footstrike differently and with different amounts of force, and this reduces the chronic strain on the Achilles and works to strengthen it using different movements as well.
Anyways, happy it’s helping! Achilles issues suck. -
My achilles sucks too :/ It gets stiff when sitting around (at work) but I don't limp around, just a minor stretch resolve it.
I've tried rotating, I went from Vibram Barefoot to trying more regular shoes with various drops: Clifton 6/7, Carbon X, Peg 36, ZF3, Infinity Run, etc. I think there is something in varying the drop and cushion, as CopperRunner states.
In my current runs, I've had some real tightness when using the Clifton. That goes away with the softer Infinity run, so maybe the softness helps currently -- or the drop.
Previously, I found using the Carbon X also helped, which is a much firmer shoe. So maybe it does go both ways? -
the type of surface you run on can exacerbate achilles problems. I used to live near sand dunes and would run in them weekly. I'm not sure if it was running barefoot and zero drop or the irregularity of the surface but I had to be careful running when running on irregular surfaces
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Not surprised the Kinvara wrecked your Achilles, that's like a 4mm drop shoe. I've had good luck with my Achilles with the old-school 1400, the Rebel and the Fuelcell TC. The Zante v4 (predecessor to Tempo) and the Beacon tended to bother it more.
I also highly recommend the Brooks Ghost as a daily trainer. I rotate between that and the 880s. -
I would take a look at foot strike, shoe drop, and whatever other imbalances might be going on. Gotta hammer out the eccentric calf raises but usually it goes beyond that. Maybe it's a hip issue. Or your hamstrings/quads.
I think finding the right footwear, and keeping a schedule with built in rest is a good start. I would pencil in 2-3 strength sessions a week if those aren't consistent already. Heel drops daily or pretty close to it.
