Back to Running after Achilles Tendonitis

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On 26 January 2019, I was leaning against a wall at the beach promenade in Malaga, Spain. I had been ignoring the nagging pain in the achilles tendon for weeks, but now it was hurting so much that I had to stop running. Kai and I decided to take break in one of the small beach cafes (chiringuitos) where we sat down for a break and a coffee. After 30 minutes of sitting, I thought I’d be able to continue my run. But instead, I could barely walk. I hobbled back home, feeling completely frustrated that I wouldn’t be able to participate in the Torremolinos halfmarathon on 3 February. It’s a good thing I didn’t know then that my break from running would last 10 months! I would have been devasted.

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After 3 months of not running in Spain, I finally went to the Sportclinic in Zurich in April to see a doctor. Here is what we did:

1. Physiotherapy: the doctor sent me to Steffen, the best physiotherapist in the world. We met every 6-8 weeks where he checked on my progress and gave me a new set of exercises. The hardest thing for me was to learn balancing on the left foot (the one with AT). I am still struggling with that and probably will forever.
2. Gait analysis: I had an analysis done and got my new, customized orthotics in June. The insoles are in the Asics GT 2000, a very comfortable neutral running shoe. I wear the shoes all the time when I’m outdoors.
3. Foam rolling and massaging the calf and tendon with CBD oil: I do this daily. I feel that it does a lot to relax the fascia and tense muscles.
4. Build core strength: the only strength exercises I ever did was Bodypump, which doesn’t focus too much on core strength. So I added Pilates and dedicated core exercises to my programm. What a difference! It has improved my flexibility and the strength of my abdominal muscles, lower back, hips and buttocks. Overall, I have a much better posture now, which will be very beneficial for running.
5. Ultrasound tests: every few weeks, I went to the doctor’s to check the status of the achilles with the ultrasound. In the beginning, it was full of red blood cells (bad sign), but they became less and less as we went along. This kept me motivated and positive.
6. Running schedule: in the beginning of September, I started running on a special recovery schedule. In the beginning, it was 2 minutes running, 2 minutes walking for a total of 4 times. Now I am at 14 minutes running with 2 minutes walking for a total of two times. That way, I am easing back into running in a controlled manner – if it wasn’t for this schedule I would definitely overdo it.
7. Light stretching before any running sessions. Easy-going heel drops after running to stretch out the tendons and calf muscles.

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We did some more things which I am not sure how much they helped:

1. Shock wave therapy: the treatment was not painful at all. I felt good afterwards, perhaps like after a massage. However, I am not sure how much it helped in healing the tendon.
2. I wore an achilles bandage (similar to a compression sock) for walking long distances. I didn’t like wearing it as it was very tight and I felt it cut off some blood circulation. Also, I taped the achilles but I am not sure how much that really helped.
3. Icing and resting: resting in the sense of not running definitely helped. The ice didn’t do anything for me and after any long inactivity, my tendon felt stiff and creaky. I felt best while walking on different kinds of terrain, like forest walks and barefoot walks on the beach.
4. Collagen intake: I bought some very expensive Swiss-made collagen which I took for 8 weeks. Not sure if it helped or not but I figured it couldn’t do any harm.

And here are some things that would have been possible but I didn’t try:

1. Cortisone injections: no, because Cortisone shots can soften the tendon which can cause a rupture.
2. Autohaemotherapy: no, I figured that as I am not an elite athlete, I can wait for the body to do its magic.
3. Anti-inflammatory medication: no, I haven’t taken any medication for many years and hope to keep it that way for as long as possible.

Achilles tendon injuries are depressing because they take sooooo long to recover from. Currently we are back in Naples, Florida, where we enjoy the great outdoors every day. It feels good to do my recovery runs in this neighbourhood and I am so grateful that the worst is now behind me. More on Naples in another post!

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