Achilles’ tendon stretches

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sylvahiker
sylvahiker Posts: 588 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Anyone have good stretches for the back of the calf? I have strained this area twice in the past year while running and I want to do my best to avoid again. Thanks !

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  • 7lenny7
    7lenny7 Posts: 3,493 Member
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    single leg eccentric heel drops. 3 sets of 10, three times per day. After a while you can start holding onto a dumbbell while you do these, or wear a backpack with weight in it.
  • zilkah
    zilkah Posts: 207 Member
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    I had Achilles pain for awhile and found it was actually because I was tight all the way up to the glute on that side. Foam rolling the glutes and legs all the way down for about 10 min helped immensely
  • sylvahiker
    sylvahiker Posts: 588 Member
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    Thank you for the advice ! I’ll try the foam roller
  • aishanow
    aishanow Posts: 5 Member
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    I love foam rolling!
  • sylvahiker
    sylvahiker Posts: 588 Member
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    What about compression socks ? Would they help at all ?
  • resale3108
    resale3108 Posts: 294 Member
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    I suffer these regularly. It’s traced all the way up to the small of my back!!
    Treatment is foam rolling the entire back of the leg, in stages, then lying flat on the floor, compressing a tennis ball into the muscles along either side of the spine in the small of the back. Then yoga back stretches - works every time
  • rperryspct
    rperryspct Posts: 8 Member
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    I USED to have problems here, but no more! The single leg heel drops are key and foam rolling is key. The previous posts are correct - not just the problem area, but all the way up the legs into the thighs and glutes. Here is key number 3: Before any length run I walk for 0.5mi (leisurely), followed by stretching. After the stretching, I jump rope for 2 or 3 min to really get the ankles/calves nice and warm. After the run, 0.5mi walk and stretching. I build this time into my workouts. Before I did this I would pull something every 4-6 weeks...I rarely if ever pull muscles any more.
  • sylvahiker
    sylvahiker Posts: 588 Member
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    Thank you all ! My daughter is a dancer and has foam rollers so I’ll use them- I do yoga occasionally so I can do stretches and poses specially for my back. I appreciate all the advice
  • sylvahiker
    sylvahiker Posts: 588 Member
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    zilkah wrote: »
    I had Achilles pain for awhile and found it was actually because I was tight all the way up to the glute on that side. Foam rolling the glutes and legs all the way down for about 10 min helped immensely

    Zilkah - do you follow any specific regimen or protocol for rolling ?
  • zilkah
    zilkah Posts: 207 Member
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    sylvahiker wrote: »
    zilkah wrote: »
    I had Achilles pain for awhile and found it was actually because I was tight all the way up to the glute on that side. Foam rolling the glutes and legs all the way down for about 10 min helped immensely

    Zilkah - do you follow any specific regimen or protocol for rolling ?

    Sylvahiker -- like someone else mentioned the best rolling I get is about 3-5 min of light walking for warm up , then I personally prefer to start top down . About a min on each glute, a min on back of hamstrings , side of hamstrings , then calves . I don't know if this is the best way but works best for me because I find if I start at my calves , the tight glutes and legs prevent me from getting fully loosened .

    First few days it might hurt A LOT especially on sides of legs , go easy and you will kinda feel it when it loosens :)
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,210 Member
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    sylvahiker wrote: »
    Anyone have good stretches for the back of the calf? I have strained this area twice in the past year while running and I want to do my best to avoid again. Thanks !

    Frequent stretching usually helps, but it's important to correct the cause of the problem. The usual reason for Achilles injuries is wearing shoes with a raised heel throughout the day (almost all shoes have raised heels), and also sitting too much. Do either of those apply to you?

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