Today we are focusing on one of our most commonly seen injuries – Achilles pain. Achilles pain or tendinopathy is a condition that causes pain, swelling and stiffness of the Achilles tendon that joins your heel bone to your calf muscles. It is a relatively common soft tissue injury that can affect both athletes and non-athletes.
Many factors can increase the likeliness of Achilles tendinopathy occurring, including;
- Age: More common in middle aged people
- Gender: more common in the male population
- Weight: Higher than average body weight
- Diabetics: increase risk of developing tendinopathy
- Tight and/or weak calf muscles
- Poor core stability around the hip and knee
- Stiff joints in the foot
You can take measures to reduce the risk of getting Achilles pain;
- Increase your activity level gradually. … if you are training for an event, then slowly increase your training distances / times. You should aim for no more than a 10% increase each time.
- Take it easy. …don’t push your limits too much!
- Choose your shoes carefully. … seeking professional advice regarding running shoes can have a big impact on injury reduction.
- Stretch daily. … even if you aren’t a runner, daily stretching of the calf muscles is really beneficial. Even walking the dog can cause tightening of the calf and lead to achilles problems…
- Strengthen your calf muscles. …doing some simple heel raises will improve strength in the calf muscles that can help reduce chances of injury.
If you have heel pain that is not settling then why not give us a ring so one of our experienced physiotherapists can help you get back to comfortable walking and achieve your training goals!
01276 37670
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