Achilles Tendinitis Exercises
We demonstrate Achilles Tendinitis exercises in the video below. Achilles tendinitis exercises that focus on loading the Achilles tendon have been shown to have significant outcomes in pain and function. Many Achilles tendonitis rehab plans fall short by showing patients very low level exercises such as stretches and foam rolling. That is not to say those exercises are not helpful for a patient, they might be. With a successful achilles tendinopathy exercise program, we have find the most challenging strength exercises that patients do well. If a patient has been performing the same exercises for 12 weeks, they are not being challenged sufficiently!
Every achilles tendinopathy rehab program is different. A patient may start achilles tendon exercises at a different point than the next. It depends on the patient’s achilles tendonitis exercise tolerance to Achilles tendon loading and goals around the outcome of treatments. A sedentary individual with a goal of walking pain free will have a significantly different program from an in season college basketball player.
Example of Achilles Tendinitis Exercises
A recent patient dealing with Achilles tendinitis is a high level amateur tennis player and plays pickleball for fun. She had Achilles tendinitis for 1 month, with prior history of multiple calf strains on that leg. She did not seek treatment as she thought the pain would subside. The pain slowly worsened until she was unable to play tennis and pickleball due to Achilles Pain.
Achilles Tendinitis Exam and Treatment
We went through a thorough Achilles tendinitis exam and treatment on the first visit. The lower leg with achilles tendinitis was significantly more weak than the other leg. For example, we performed a single leg calf raise endurance test. The uninjured leg, she performed 40 easily in 1 minute. On the injured side, she performed 20, with poor movement quality starting at 8! An important note, she felt some soreness but it did not get worse with challenging the tendon with exercise.
Challenge with Exercise
Knowing pain was not a limiting factor, we were able to prescribe daily, calf loading exercises to improve strength. This was the obvious improvement that was needed to help her injury. After 2 weeks, she showed significant improvement in pain. She was able to perform the same number of reps unbroken as the healthy leg at that point. At this point we progressed to dynamic exercises such as pogo hops, squat jumps, and four square hops. She had minor discomfort at first, but as she performed the plyometrics pain started to dissipate and confidence increased.
It was very important to keep progressing this tennis athlete quickly, and get her to more sport specific activities. This, with graduated return to play, will help avoid recurrence of Achilles injury, and avoid future injury.
If you are looking for a well rounded assessment and detailed treatment plan, schedule with us! Don’t let prior poor physical therapy for Achilles tendinitis deter you from finding the right treatment approach. Our team of sport chiropractors are trained to assess, treat, and prescribed exercises for achilles tendinitis and other causes of heel pain. We are located in Mission Valley, San Diego near the neighborhoods of La Jolla, Scripps Ranch, and Point Loma!
