Finding out if the pain at your heel is Achilles Tendinopathy is the first step to resolving, what can be a tricky problem to treat. Sometimes you may be completely unaware that you have a tendon that is unhealthy early signs are often missed and tendon stiffness or creaking is put down to old age. The severity of this problem varies greatly from constant pain and unable to walk to those whose tendon just feels stiff coming down the stairs in the morning.
So let’s see if we can work it out together.
Below are the common symptoms associated with Achilles Tendinopathy – have a look and see if some of them sound familiar.
Common symptoms
- Pain at the heel or just above.
- Warm-up pain – Pain is often worse at the beginning of a walk/run and often will ease off after a while, sometimes returning again towards the end of the activity.
- Delayed pain after an activity – sometimes the pain is not too bad during the activity but later that day or the next day pain increases.
- Stiffness within the tendon – first thing in the morning or after resting for long periods – eases off with movement.
- Creaking/squeaking of the tendon when you move your ankle.
- Tenderness within the tendon there tends to be a particular part that is sore.
- Swelling/thickening of the tendon. Have a feel of the tendon is it thicker than the other side?
I don’t expect you to have all of these – although you might. The presence of just one shows that your tendon is not as healthy as it could be and you have tendinopathy. Catching this problem makes it easy to treat. Don’t be like the young chap who missed the early signs and ended up with a ruptured tendon, see his case study here.
If you’ve looked at this list and you haven’t got any of these symptoms, then it’s likely that it is not Achilles Tendinopathy that is causing your pain.
So now we know what the problem is what are we going to do about it?
FIND OUT HOW I CAN HELP YOU IMPROVE YOUR ACHILLES TENDON – Click here
It’s all about LOAD …
There are many aspects we need to consider to settle this problem fast and prevent it from returning. But one of the main focus points when returning the tendon to health is LOAD and its management.
A healthy tendon needs load through it almost every day for it to retain its strength. Back in the day when we called this problem tendonitis (inflammation of the tendon), we were told to rest. We now understand that rest makes the tendon more unhealthy. But as you will probably all be aware doing too much makes it worse…… Argh! It’s a difficult one to manage but it’s all about balancing load and if you manage that then you will settle down your pain. The next step in regaining a healthy tendon and preventing the problem from returning is to begin adding load to the tendon and actively strengthening it. This is done gradually so that you do not overload the tendon and flare it up again. Find out more about eccentric loading an essential ingredient in Achilles Tendon rehab here.
Next steps
With the right approach, your Achilles Tendinopathy can be a thing of the past. Catching the problem in the early stages before it escalates makes it much easier to treat. I’ve been perfecting this for many years now helping people just like you become pain-free and return to activity. I know exactly what to do to settle this down quickly and prevent it from returning and I would love to share that with you. In the Achilles Tendinopathy Program, I guide you through the whole process in an easy-to-follow program. This complete program includes everything you need to get back to doing what you love whether that’s walking the dog or running Ultra Marathons. Have a look at the course curriculum there are parts of it you can do without even enrolling – have a look knowledge is power.
Conclusion
So maybe it has just registered that you have Achilles Tendinopathy or maybe you have known for a while either way you now know what you need to do to resolve this often difficult-to-treat problem. There’s no need to struggle any longer – let’s get you back up and running. Join my FREE Masterclass together we assess your tendon so you know exactly what is going on and what to do about it.
Take care, Helen
Helen Manders BSc (Hons) MCSP HCPC.
Chartered Physiotherapist Since 2001
