Following on from my Feelgood February post; I am going to look at possible reasons why your Achilles tendon may be feeling a little tender...but first let's look into what it is!
The Achilles tendon is the thick elastic tissue which joins the big calf muscles to the heel bone. Tendons are not as elastic as the muscle itself put provide some 'give' in terms of shock and power absorption. If put under too much stress by overuse, sudden changes in exercise intensity or lack of care and attention to stretching it can become inflamed or tear.
More often than not Achilles tendonitis can be avoided but correct training techniques and care of the calf muscles in terms of stretching. We tend to neglect our calves as they are used daily. I cycle to work and because it is not 'dedicated exercise training' I am as guilty as the next person in not stretching them! As a result I got a calf strain at my Thai boxing class in the summer but it could as easily have been the Achilles! Fortunately a combination of massage, exercise rehabilitation and stretching and I was back to class within 2 weeks but if left to heal without help it could have been a lot longer.
For more information on Achilles tendonitis take a look at my achilles fact sheet.
More often than not Achilles tendonitis can be avoided but correct training techniques and care of the calf muscles in terms of stretching. We tend to neglect our calves as they are used daily. I cycle to work and because it is not 'dedicated exercise training' I am as guilty as the next person in not stretching them! As a result I got a calf strain at my Thai boxing class in the summer but it could as easily have been the Achilles! Fortunately a combination of massage, exercise rehabilitation and stretching and I was back to class within 2 weeks but if left to heal without help it could have been a lot longer.
For more information on Achilles tendonitis take a look at my achilles fact sheet.
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