Post your Achilles Tendon injury and recovery experience story

Another story for the collection:

Last spring, was training for a race up a mountain, so doing lots of hills and some long incline workouts on the treadmill. Was feeling fine. Ran a 10k one Sunday, felt great, PR'd by a small margin. Was a bit sore Monday, but decided to do my treadmill routine anyway, a fairly hard 45m at 6-9% incline. 10m in I felt something "strange" in my ankle and decided to keep running right through it. It got slightly worse during the workout -- probably 4 out of 10. Next morning I couldn't put any pressure on my foot without moderate pain.

All of which bought me three wonderful months of summertime workouts on the elliptical in my basement.

At this point it still hurt but just a tiny bit. I was on a trip and went to the hotel gym to use the f*cking elliptical and there was a treadmill... I jumped on and started going. The first few miles felt absolutely amazing after three months of no running. Then I suddenly felt a jolt of pain, it didn't go away, and I had to slam the stop button. Right back to square one.

I finally felt absolutely zero pain when walking just a few weeks ago and started slow, short jogs. A half mile at first. Now I'm doing around three a day, somewhat faster. Just trying to get back some distance, feel comfortable and solid, and most importantly do anything other than the elliptical.

I've been doing heel drops fairly consistently the entire time but I don't feel like they really help much. Sometimes I think they exacerbate the issue. I have a fairly strong stick massager and that does seem to help, but I only started using it in the fall so I might have already been on the mend.

Obviously the biggest theme here is to not be an idiot and try to run through pain and/or rush recovery...

I needed new travel Orthotic sneakers and a pair of comfortable dress shoes for a trip we are taking this summer. Orthofeet was recommended by my Physio Therapist. The website is easy to navigate and the ordering process was simple. The delivery took a little longer than I expected because I am in Canada. I did have to pay customs fees as well. But the shoes are great! They fit true to size and they are beautiful and VERY comfortable. Very happy with my purchase.

Another data point. Time off worked for me. Eccentric calf drops at first. Concentric and eccentric later. If you can't do the calf raise without pain, you can't run. You need to strengthen with both movements, calf raises and calf drops. Forget the advice to do only calf drops after the initial pain goes away. The night splint helped too. Soft version that lets you sleep.

Orthofeet have got me walking straighter and for longer hikes in our bosque woods … I’ve actually lost 5 pounds since getting them as I can walk without any pain at all. And I just got a compliment from a young man at the Apple Store the other day … diggin’ the style of the shoes. I’ve also purchased a pair of othofeet … and they are one fine, comfy pair of shoes to wear as my in the house shoes. The shoes are pure walk-gliding comfort and I’m so pleased with them. Thanks !!!

My brother has very big feet as well as hammer toes and deformity due to an accident. After we purchased so many shoes but didn't lose pain, finally I found Orthofeet and it was perfect in any way.

Recovering faster now, from a second Achilles strain back in March during a hard basketball game when it wasn't even 90% yet from the first one, a year before that. I've been able to go for 25 minute runs at around 730 pace with minimal pain, and my Achilles isn't super stiff in the morning the next day. I run every other day, but it's starting to feel like I can run back to back now. At the end of the days that I run, I massage the sore spots directly on my Achilles, in all directions and circular. It's alittle sore the next day but I'm not running so it can heal. The day after that it feels better. Every week, I find that the scar tissue on my Achilles is slowly disappearing and I feel less pain.

For me, the biggest things that helped me heal were:

1. Focusing on other aspects of my life other than running, like school so I studied more and kept my mind off the injury

2. Massaging the sore spots on the Achilles

3. Allowing time to heal

4. I did do flat eccentric drops, weighted, 3x10 up to like 5/10 pain but I think it helped not specifically in the sense of healing the Achilles, but strengthening my calves so as to support my running and put less stress on the Achilles later.

5. Added heel insole to my running shoes temporarily

You're the OP? It's rare to see someone report back after a few years.

Anyway, good for you!

I am on my feet all day and by evening they are hurting also I am suffering from Achilles Tendon Pain. I am still breaking them in but foot pain is decreasing. My feet feel snug and supported. The arch support is very noticeable and feels good. Will be trying sandals also. orthofeet sneakers felt great as soon as i put them on. I am walking several miles a day and even started running some.

https://www.orthofeet.com/collections/achilles-tendon-pain

Chronic Hatlund's Deformity for years, with large solid protruding bone on both heals. Got to the point where I always walked with a limp, but could still run for hours, just with a shuffling gate as oppsed to a lengthy stride. Got the surgery where they completely detached both my tendons. Was running full speed about 6 months after surgery, and slower before then. Never have any pain or stiffness with my Achilles, and no longer walk with a limp. However, they also aren't 100% as stong as they used to be, even with doing hard-core PT after surgery. They're still strong, just not pre-surgery strong. My push-off isn't as forceful.

3 months since original injury of insertional achilles tendonopathy and retrocalcaneal bursitis due to several longish runs through mountains followed by a week of speedwork culminating in a 17 mile run @ 7:00 pace with non-comfy tempo shoes.

This week I made it up to 20 minutes at 7:30 pace one day and another day of 1 hour of 9:00 @ 7:30 pace, 1:00 walking.

Hoping to continue increasing running and decreasing rest over the next few weeks until I can do an hour of easy mileage each day, then SLOWLY get back into workouts. Stupidly signed up many months ago for a half marathon in 3 weeks so going to have to just easy run through it and hang with some hobby joggers.

Weighted heel drops seem to have worked the most for me, along with deep tissue massage by PT (I had a huge knot in calf muscle above the achilles/heel). I did spin bike everyday for an hour, lots of upper body and core work, and occasionally light leg lifts. Stretching and heel drops 2-3 times per day. Ice in the evenings as many days as possible.

Would have healed faster if I didn't travel on weekends so much (hiking, dancing at weddings, walking a lot, going out drinking, etc.). Really hoping when its fully healed I don't damage it by ratcheting up workouts too quickly.

Posting my story since this thread piqued my interest.

Sophomore year of college (~4 years ago) developed some tendinitis in the left achilles as a result of too much speed work and general over use. My bio-mechanics in the left leg are not perfect when I run, so that may have something to do with it. At that time I was probably doing about 35-40 mpw on average. The injury got to the point where the tendon swelled noticeably when compared to the healthy one, and there was a 'popping' or 'clicking' at the end of runs. If I remember correctly, the pain was moderate. Eventually I took a week off to try to let it heal. Came back after a week off and managed to finish my season successfully without too much pain and suffering. (This seems like a miracle in hindsight.)

Ever since then, I have always had to be careful with that left Achilles. Sometimes during periods of higher mileage I wake up in the morning and the tendon is stiff and will pop as I walk down the stairs, but there is no pain and it warms up as the day goes on. For the past few years calf raises have been a part of my usual strength training routine, so I probably have decent calf/Achilles strength.

Fast forward to today, where I built my mileage up to 50-55 mpw for a good chunk of the summer with the intent of hitting and holding 60 mpw for a couple weeks. (I will hit 60 for the first time this week if all goes well.) Around 6 weeks ago, my left Achilles started feeling tight on some runs and would pop in the morning. I took 3 days off from Jul 6-8 to let it rest. I should note that my calves felt very tight during this phase of my build up. I resumed running with a HUGE focus on keeping my calves loose, and started to do more calf raises to improve strength in hopes that it would keep the Achilles injury at bay. Two and a half weeks later I did my first workout of the season (2x2 mile tempo ~5:45 pace) and the Achilles felt great during. However, the next day I went a did a 10 mile recovery run at a very relaxed pace and my AT was stiffer and tighter than ever before, to the point where I had to stop and stretch it multiple times over the course of the run. (I note that there was very minimal pain in the tendon during this whole thing, just tightness and popping.)

I got home and noticed it popping again as I walked around. I then took a whole week off to try and keep it at bay and prevent the appearance of actual pain when running. During this rest phase I made sure to ice, stretch, and roll thoroughly. I also added a lot of eccentric calf drops to my routine. After returning to running, I have successfully been able to hit the mileage I wanted for the last couple of weeks with minimal issues. I started running in Hoka Gaviotas, which help with the general fatigue of running, and so far seem to help the AT slightly. (Counter-intuitive as Hokas have less heel/toe drop than traditional running shoes!) I do have to do a fair amount of preventative maintenance to make sure it doesn't get too tight. I am still experiencing some tightness during the runs, but no pain. The AT still likes to pop in the morning, but it isn't as severe as it used to be and usually goes away after the first hour of my day.

Here's what I have tried and what I do to maintain the injury and allow myself to maintain the mileage I want:

1. Stretch! A little in the morning (don't wanna overstretch when your muscles are not warmed up), stretch once during the work day, and a good amount of stretching after the run in the evening.

2. Lots of warmups before the run. This includes dynamic warmups for my legs and applying some liniment about 30 minutes before the run to help warm the tendons and muscles up.

3. Rolling the calves/AT. I roll in the morning, afternoon, and after the evening run. I really try to dig into sore spots.

4. KT tape. Wore this stuff on the AT for about a week. Not sure if this helped much or not, but it may be worth a try.

5. Calf compression sleeves. I wear these at night and sometimes during a run. I've always loved these things.

6. Eccentric heel drops! I think these may be the single most important thing for my AT injury. I do 3x15 straight and 3x15 bent knee drops with 20 lbs extra weight on the stairs twice a day. The tendon usually pops during the bent knee drops in the morning, but this may be getting better.

7. Ice! I ice the AT for about an hour (10 on 10 off) after each run to minimize/prevent the swelling. (Also take some ibuprofen here and there to help.)

I start workouts late next week, which is the next big moment of truth for me and my injury, so I may post an update after a workout or two. I also wanted to try using a Gua Sha on the AT and was wondering if anyone else had experience with this?

Hi,

I had a complete rupture of the Achilles tendon 6 weeks ago. I'm 38 years old. I had played basketball throughout my 20s and was a fairly athletic player. I'm around 6'1" and could dunk so for a white Irish guy we consider that athletic :-) I wonder did all the jumping and training in that regard weaken the tendon over time.

Anyway, I hadn't played since I was about 30 and have very recently got out of a long relationship and was looking for a way to pass the time and take my mind off things. So I went back playing. The very first night back 3 minutes into a scrimmage I felt like someone hit me with a baseball bat in the back of the leg and sure enough I had ruptured my achilles.

I've watched a lot of stuff on youtube and everyone seems to be in the boot right away and partial weight bearing at 5-6 weeks etc. I'm in Ireland and it hasn't been like that for me. I chose non surgical and my foot was put in a cast with the toe pointed down. 3 weeks later it was moved to a more 45 degree angle and last week it was moved to a neutral position. I'm due to get the cast off for good this coming week and go into the boot then. One nasty little bonus of having my leg in a cast is that I've had to inject myself in the stomach with anti blood clotting medication every morning. Thankfully just 3 more of those to go!

I'm just hoping that I've had the right treatment because I'm frightened of a rerupture. It's been a very difficult 6 weeks being on crutches and living on my own so the last thing I need is any setbacks. I will seek out the correct physiotherapy for the recovery once I'm given the all clear to do that.

So that's my little story, still ongoing unfortunately but I look at every hospital visit as a marker and this week is a big one with finally getting rid of the cast.

Try shockwave therapy and low level laser therapy and pool work within a couple of days. Very effective.

Has anyone tried to tenex? Looks promising and is relatively new

Hi All,

My name is Mitesh Panchal and I am a masters student in Advanced Physiotherapy at Kings College University in London. I am currently in the process of doing a research project and am looking to recruit participants who have been suffering from Achilles tendon pain for over 3 months.

The aim of the research is to investigate whether pain processing is altered in people with chronic Achilles tendon pain. It will hopefully provide a better understanding of why tendon pain persists beyond natural healing times.

If you feel you fit the criteria (achilles tendon pain longer than 3 months duration) and would like to be part of this research or would like further information, please do not hesitate to contact me on:

mitesh.panchal@kcl.ac.uk

.

Thank you

Mitesh Panchal

MSc student in Advanced Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy

I've had Achilles soreness off and on at various times. Besides rest, which is very important, is to do what I saw one physical therapist displayed. That is pinching the tendon with your thumb and index finger for a couple of minutes at a time. To know if you're doing it correctly, your fingers should get tired. Do it as hard as you can for as long as you can. You won't damage your tendon, and it will really help the healing process. Trust me, it works.

Hi, Can you explain what types of eccentric exercises you did every day?

Thank you!

I had a serious Achilles injury in college (running competitively Div 1).

The single most important thing in my recovery was standing on an incline board religiously before and after every single run for at least 15 min straight. I was skeptical when one of my athletic trainers recommended this but was desperate for improvement. Provides a full stretch of your entire leg without any strain. A few min seems like nothing is happening, but 10+ min will reveal differently.. I did this for the next three years of competition. Consistent use kept me from any recurrence. I still do it 20 yrs later when my legs are tight.

Also iced when felt any twinges, but ice alone never solved my problems like the incline board.

I've been struggling with insertional tendonitis for years. The heal drops helped to a point but I could still only run once or twice a week. I've been doing slow backwards downhill running for the past month and it's helped more than anything else I've tried. Just be careful.