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Partial Achilles Tear Surgically Repaired - My Story
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Author:  MasterCouper [ Wed Nov 19, 2008 6:19 pm ]
Post subject:  Partial Achilles Tear Surgically Repaired - My Story

It's been 9.5 months since a scheduled surgery for Haglund's deformity revealed a 25-50% tear of my right achilles tendon. The workout that took the injury from tendonitis to tear was a 12 X 300 workout that I was doing way too hard & fast. It tore on the 10th, but did I stop? Of course not because I had to finish the workout.... :shock:

My recovery has been steady, but with definite plateaus. I went from walking to a little running on schedule, but after 6 months, I was stuck with moderate pain.

Cross country coaching and the opportunity to rush from point to point got me off the last plateau, and into pretty good shape to boot. So once the season ended, I started to test my condition.

I ran the HS 5k course in 19:02. Then I ran a series of 5k races in 18:06, 17:41, and 17:37. My workouts have been getting better, too.

Lessons:
1. If it hurts, figure out why.
2. Don't surprise your body with stress or significant changes in training.
3. Enjoy running!

My goals are to stay healthy, especially finishing the first year post-surgery. I want to break 5:00 in the mile this coming Spring. There is a track meet in May with a meet record of 5:20+ that I've got my eye on.

Author:  MasterCouper [ Sat Feb 20, 2010 8:30 am ]
Post subject: 

Well, this is a long-overdue update. Current indoor times; 4:54 mile and 9:39 3k. I did get the record at the outdoor meet, running 4:56.

The tendon is fully recovered. Plantar fascitis reared its ugly head in June after overloading training. So summer was pretty low-key, fall was ramped up with 5k races (17:30 was my best). Then I hit the specific training with only a minor flare up that I took care of with 2 easy weeks.

I'm watching my training very carefully, changing workouts even while mid-stream. It's very hard for me to do, but the results are very encouraging. My weekly mileage is about 40.

I'm planning to race the indoor championships in Boston, then it's on to the outdoor invitational for my last turn in the 45-49 age group. I'm hoping for sub 4:50.

Author:  MasterCouper [ Sat Mar 13, 2010 5:59 pm ]
Post subject: 

I'm amazed at how painful it is to get out of bed in the morning - even while the foot continues to improve! I've been doing the foot flex/stretch routine before standing, but the first few steps.... It makes me wonder how it will feel 10 years from now. :shock: However, it does confirm two things:
1. The PF problem is due to inadequacies surrounding the ankle. I have soreness in other places down there.
2. Running different paces (stressing the foot differently due to foot plant & toe off) helps. Both during and after some pure (masters) speed workouts, the PF foot showed good response.

It looks like I'll have another healthy 40+ mile week which included some excellent workouts. I'm feeling optimistic about the race in two weeks. Stay tuned.

Author:  MasterCouper [ Sat Mar 27, 2010 6:13 pm ]
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Foot stretching and sprints have done the trick and significantly reduced morning and running pain. I've been able to do the training I've wanted, and it worked: 9:24 at the indoor championships! 2:28/4:58 splits. :D

The season has exceeded my expectations. I took 25 seconds off my 3k time between early January and late March. Many workouts were less than max in either reps, effort, or pace, but were effective. Now I'll turn my attention to phase 4 workouts (Daniels) for a May 8 mile track race.

Author:  MasterCouper [ Mon May 03, 2010 3:55 pm ]
Post subject: 

More treatment help for plantar fascitis. Put your entire foot in a very cold water bath. My foot stopped getting better when I stopped doing it. So tonight after a short run (missing several days over last week due to pain) and at the end of a full day of work on my feet, I did the cold bath. And boy did it make it feel better!! My foot feels the best it's felt all day. I will do daily until the foot is 100%.

So add a cold bath, not just cold pack, to your treatment plan.

Author:  MasterCouper [ Sun May 09, 2010 1:09 pm ]
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So I'm ready to close the book on the achilles tendon recovery. It's been many months, miles, workouts, sprints, races, and it's held up with no issues whatsoever. Get a good diagnosis, good surgeon, good rehab program and stay on schedule.

As for the PF, I've gotten to the post-season with another flare up that I managed through my 4:52.54 mile on Saturday. I took a few days off, and skipped a few workouts, but the only thing that really suffered was my confidence. I think I could've run faster, but I'm completely satisfied from the big picture perspective. Now I will work the recovery and rebuild and enjoy the off-season.

Author:  Craig Godwin [ Wed Jul 21, 2010 2:54 pm ]
Post subject: 

Thanks for all the information. I've been considering achilles surgery for years now (both achilles), but I've heard such bad things about the recovery and people worse after the surgery than before. I have a very good doctor, and he has recommended against it as long as I'm still able to function semi-normally. But semi-normally still means limited activity and constant pain, so I think it may be time for the surgery. It is good to hear from someone with a positive experience.

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