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Has anyone pulled their achilles tendon, and if so, how long did it take you to heal? Mind you, I'm 50 years old....just as a thing to know.

Yup, I've been through that -- twice.

Took a couple weeks rest to put behind me, but it also depends on severity of the tear:

http://www.achillestendon.com/TreatingInjuries.html

Also, make sure that the injury is, in fact, to the Achilles.

Best of luck!

Agree with Ken totally. I've had achilles problems twice in the last couple of years. Ultimately, it turned out that the achilles tendon was just the bit that was hurting the most. It wasn't the cause of the problem on either occasion.

Get a podiatrist or a chiro to have a look at your gait, especially if they can do video and computer analysis. If your cant, try to find one who can. The answer may lay in basic leg function, tightness elsewhere, bad shoes, or whatever.

If it is a tear in the achilles, be kind to it. The achilles has poor blood supply, and mends slowly. I am a total fan of eccentric calf lowers as a means of rehabilitation. You should be able to find a web article about these. As a side benefit, they also help tone up your calves.

If the problem is occasional, get hold of a Cho Pat Achilles Tendon strap. These things are great at providing some relief when you're running - but they are not a substitute for proper treatment, a bit of rest, and due care and attention.

I was comparing notes on achillles tendonitis with one of my running buddies. He's had more problems than I have, and is a physician.

A first line of defense is the trigger point in the mid-inner calf. If you can work on that to get some release of knots in the calf, or get a massage therapist to get that to release, it eases up a lot of the stress on the achilles.

RICE on a regular basis (rest, ice, compression, elevation) is an obvious thing to do, and it really helps.

There's a boot that people wear during the night, that keeps the foot in a posture that doesn't allow the tendon to contract - it works pretty well, and is available from medical supply stores.

There are the classic exercises designed to build up the calves - including raises off the toes.

Acupuncture is helpful to increase the blood flow to the area. My friend got adept at putting in the needles himself.

Some analysis of what you're doing in your gait can help. Sometimes it can be stupid things, like the way you walk around your house or up stairs- a contributory cause.

I'd try to avoid orthodics, however, which is often times the default that podiatrists will try to steer you in. The problem with orthodics is that they trigger changes in the muscles up and down the legs and hips, and can create other problems in the chain. Try to solve it without resorting to orthodics - because once you get into them, you really can't abandon them.

Typically, achilles problems are slow to resolve, so you have to have patience, and be willing to back off, when appropriate, give it some rest, then readdress the underlying causes - which could be that one calf muscle is stronger than the other and causing an aysemmetric pull. (or many others....over pronation, too much road running, floppy shoes without enough mid-foot support etc etc etc).

Thanks for the tips guys.....it's all stuff that I sort of knew anyway...but it's good to affirm what I was thinking.
I did it playing football.....yes..TACKLE football.....I play for a local law enforcement team that does a huge fund raiser. We practice and play on artificial turf and I have heard that it can be rough on the Achilles tendons for many folks...just something that one of our coaches told us.
So...I guess I gotta slow down and seek some help other than the physical therapist....I have never tried acupuncture but am not opposed to the idea.
This getting old stuff is for the birds!!!! I guess my pads and cleats need to be hung up for good and just stick with track running. Hopefully it won't take too long to mend....I want to continue with my training for the up coming summer track season. Thanks again for all the advice.
Steve

I think I will use this thread to ask my question since I think it is related.

Doing my intervals last week, I felt a twinge in my lower calf area on my left leg, it was just below the bulk part of the calf muscle.
I stopped my work out and gave it rest, some icing and tried to race this last weekend. I was able to run, but had to back off my full pace because I could feel that area just wanting to strain.

My questions are am I looking at Achilles tendinitis?

Once I rest it, should I move to racing flats instead of my cross country spikes for the 1,500 meters?

What about those calf compression sleeves, are they worth the money, would they work for shorter distances?

I am currently taking napersin, how long should I take it before I should quit running for the season.

Am I ok to still race if I can keep it from totally straining, (I am just running 1 - 2 times a week easy then my race)?

See a real doctor. I ran (and raced 10k) with a partially torn achilles tendon for several months. We didn't know it was torn until the doctor was operating. Neither an X-ray or an MRI gave clear evidence of the tear.

We did physical therapy, electical steroid delivery, cortisone shot, etc...

Read my post on my experience. BTW I'm 47, and not new to running. But never in my 1000+ mile summers, or 100+ mile weeks in HS and college did I ever have injuries like this one.

I did go to a doctor this last summer, and he sent me to physical therapy.
My calf did get better, but unfortunately, I went on to strain both hamstrings in different races.


I ran high school and college injury free.
I never really was injured until I turned 30.
I was warming up for a mile road race, when it felt like someone stabbed me in the calf with a knife, at the time I was still able to run close to a 1:56 800 meters.
And since then, this is where I tend to get injured when I try to race and do speed work.

I think I really need to focus a lot more on stretching and strengthening before I go into my speed workouts.

Getting older is painFULL. I stretch before I run, after my warmup, and after the workout. I also stretch before going to bed.

I did my mile trial today - cold & windy w/ snow flurries in the air. Although the time was slower than I wanted (5:29), I'm happy about my tendon. As I slowly increase stress on it, it stays together. I still am unsure about how hard to go, but the days after the hard stuff, it feels really good.

I hope the physical therapy helps. If it is a serious tendon injury it will take a long time to heal. I felt when mine tore - it was a big step up in pain level, but not quite stabbing.

I find I have to be much more deliberate and gradual - no sudden stops & starts (doctor's orders, actually). I really felt like it was strong when I did some pretty hard starts while playing touch football. It take a full 10 minutes of warmup before things feel normal. I'm very careful with morning races, taking 15 minutes of warmup, followed by strides & stretching. I'm not even thinking of finish sprints, yet, either. Not until a full year.

Be careful, and keep us posted.