advice from runners please- achilles tendon pain

pearshapedmum

The last two runs that I have been on (only about 6 miles) I did them when I had slightly tight hamstrings from kickboxing the previous day and each time ended up with a pain in my Achilles tendon. It never happened instantly, just sort of slowly set in during the run. It took about 4 days of rest for it to go each time. Could this be a result of the hamstrings being a bit tight, even though they felt fine to run on? I have also been increasing my mileage a bit after 2 months off running, but I have always felt fine after a run (started back in doing 3 miles, then upped by a mile each week to 6 miles, and then increased number of weekly runs to 2, and then 3)

cheshirecatastrophe

Possibly too much too fast (one six mile run to two six mile runs? You doubled your mileage?), likely some issues with weakness and lack of flexibility in your upper legs , hips, glutes as well as the tendon itself.

JustWant2Run

Are you rolling/stretching? Achilles pain can often be a result of tight calves or hamstrings.

I'm also thinking doubling and tripling mileage might be the cause.

brianpperkins

A rapid increase in mileage rarely ends well. You coupled that with beginning runs while tight. Pain is natures way of saying to relook a lot of things ... shoes, form, warm up/cooldown, mileage progression, etc.

pearshapedmum

thanks for the advice. I was never really sure about what constituted 'too much too fast'. before I stopped for winter I was running 2x 8 miles and 1 x 12 miles per week with no problem and no pain. I have never had Achilles tendon pain before. So I guess it doesn't matter if I was previously used to running those distances, I still have to work up more slowly to it?

jrline

What others have said is good advice. How old are your shoes? I have several friends that are Doctors that run and all say good shoes are key to injury prevention. I have discovered that I can't go further than 3 miles in minimalist shoes. Good luck getting your problem resolved.

lawkat

It also good to stretch. I find that standing on a stair and lowering your heels helps with stretching. I found that ice and rest helped a great deal. Sometimes it can take a while for that to heal. Also strengthen your legs and glutes.

cheshirecatastrophe

pearshapedmum wrote: »

thanks for the advice. I was never really sure about what constituted 'too much too fast'. before I stopped for winter I was running 2x 8 miles and 1 x 12 miles per week with no problem and no pain. I have never had Achilles tendon pain before. So I guess it doesn't matter if I was previously used to running those distances, I still have to work up more slowly to it?

Yes.

Also, n=1, this is NOT scientific, etc etc, BUT: the only times I have ever had problems with my Achilles tendon are when I try to increase mileage too quickly when returning to running after an injury. (So, a couple months with ZERO mileage, but still in some cardio shape from crosstraining and ready to get right back to where I was.) I don't know why this in particular would overstress the AT and not other parts, but, there you have it.

Doubling your weekly mileage in one go is "too much" by pretty much any metric.

brandiuntz

Yes to what everyone else has said. I've made the mistake of increasing my mileage too much too fast (was actively running but bumped it up too much within a month) and my AT started to complain.

Foam rolling and extra stretching made a difference (plus backing off the mileage for a bit). Making sure my calves aren't tight really seems to help me.