Paul_iow said:
Using a heel raise in the affected leg will take some of the pressure off the achilles tendon therefore allowing it to rest and heal itself. My advice is rest the leg as much as possible, take a week or 2 of completely from exercise and long walks, and ice it to reduce the inflammation, Ibuprofen gel works well to help this.
Once the leg is feeling better begin to gently stretch the muscle by standing on a step with your heels hanging over the edge and slowly drop your heels down. You should feel the stretch in the back of the leg. Hold for 10-15 seconds to start with and repeat on both legs, as it will benefit your other leg, 3 times. try that morning and evening each day.
I was doing these stretches as you describe on my stairs. I had not done them before. Two weeks in having done them everyday twice a day in reps of 10-15 and feeling good but now while out running after about 5 miles I felt my left Achillies "give way". I had to hobble 2 miles home. As I was hobbling my right Achillies started playing up. I was in agony the next day. So hit on the idea of massaging them myself as I previously described having had a hot shower. Four weeks later I could cycle again and 6-8 weeks later I was running gently again building up strength. I no longer do those particular stretching the Achillies exercises on my stairs, but I do other stretching.
One stretcherize that has really helped is sitting on the floor/carpet with legs out in front of you. With your right hand reach to your left leg to hold the outside edge of your foot. Keep your leg not quite straight. Then once you have a good hold of the outside of the foot with opposite hand try to raise your leg, straightening your leg into a locked position. Use you other hand to GENTLY press on your knee to straighten your leg. It will hurt!!! But do not press too long or too hard. A matter of seconds. Feel the muscles of the lower leg heat up as they are stretched. Repeat a couple of times. Gently press on your knee to straighten your leg feeling the limit as you stretch the muscles and tendons. DO THIS GENTLY. DO NOT DO LOTS OF REPS OR USE ALOT OF FORCE. Be gentle. Once you've done it a few occasions your leg suppleness and strength will greatly improve. After stretching both legs put legs out in front of you and gently bounce them on the carpet relaxing the leg muscles for a minute or so. Stretch forward and touch your toes. Repeat a few times. lightly bounce your legs on the carpet again to loosen the tension in the muscles.
I too have very good running shoes
Nike Air Max Volumetrico top of the range jobbies. I tried other makes of shoes suggested by specialist running shops despite telling them I can only run in Nikes as they are the softest, but found the shock absorption on the heels of New Balance, Asics, Adidas, etc. insufficient for me. Plus I run on grass around football fields not road running to mimimise impact on my heels and lower leg muscles. In previous years I have run a lot of road miles and started to collect frequent injuries, but now avoid road running.
IMHO cross training is very bad for injuries especially running and cycling. Chapeau to triathletes.
There's an article about self massage on bikeradar to rejuvenate your muscles. It's not a bad thing to stretch regularly and massage after a long ride or run. I always massage my Achillies now when watching TV. Multi-tasking
. A great way to relax and strenghten them.
. Pull your leg up and heal onto the sofa to take the tension off it and gently massge it. It will feel very sore and a bit painful at first but as you gently push and pull it this will loosen it up bringing relief. I found this great for reducing aches in it as I do a fair bit of running and cycling so they are taking a regular hammering. Recently though when running I have avoided going full speed to build the strength up again by just taking a gentle jog as my Achilies have been feeling a little sore as a had a few months break in running due to another injury. Hope this helps.
