Running: ankle injury.

yirara
yirara Posts: 9,986 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I somehow managed to get the first running injury ever, after 7 years. So I tried to run slower, made smaller, more steps. Somehow injured my heal or outer ankle at the first attempt. 3 weeks later my heal still hurts without any improvement. It's not very strong to start with though. Anyone know what kind of pain this is? It's right on the upper edge of the heel, on the outer side of the achilles heel. I can't figure out whether it's an achilles heel orself, something related to the outer ankle, or something completely different. Like I say, it's not strong, and it's not getting worse. I can still run and the pain eventually vanishes then but is back later on. My technique has improved after this first attempt at running slower, mind.

Replies

  • KarenSmith2018
    KarenSmith2018 Posts: 302 Member
    I would recommend physio look at it. Lots of ligaments and tendons around the ankle and they can take ages to heal!
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    yeah, what Karen said.

    Also, not really gonna heal while you keep running, unfortunately.
  • sarah_gale
    sarah_gale Posts: 2 Member
    edited August 2022
    :) in the meantime, you can swim
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,986 Member
    KarenSmith2018 wrote: »
    I would recommend physio look at it. Lots of ligaments and tendons around the ankle and they can take ages to heal!

    yeah, no physio available. Waiting times for an orthopedic surgeon take ages, and only they would give me a prescription, or just tell me to be careful. Physios are so oversubscribed that they only treat with prescription. But I'm on vacation anyway now. That's the annoyance with these tiny things. I'd get a faster appointment with something big, but not this. Oh well, lets see how things look like after the vacation.
  • westrich20940
    westrich20940 Posts: 921 Member
    Hmm...my strat when running tends to be, if it doesn't hurt when I run (or goes away as I run) I continue to run. However, yes at some point, you may need to consider taking a hard break from running. You say the pain will go away but then return later...that makes me think it's an achilles issue and it is related to inflammation (**but I'm no doctor). Hurts when you start your run, until you're loose and warmed up...then goes away...then rears it's ugly head when you're back home trying to walk around your house. Do NSAIDS make it feel any better? Ice?

    I'd also consider weakness/poor mobility in your ankle...what type of shoes are you wearing (maybe you need more supportive ones)? Do you over/under pronate? IDK, most popular running shoes are neutral....but maybe you need something different now post injury? Even while taking a break from running you can focus on strengthening/mobility/stretching.

    At the very least, rest during your vacation and see how it feels. I have had to come back from IT Band stuff...after ~2 weeks off of running at all and it's extremely hard since you still have your pre-injury cardio/respiratory fitness/stamina but you have to tell yourself to take it slow. I ***hated running only 2 miles when I came back bc I just KNEW that I could do more...but I def had runs where I increased my mileage and BAM knee pain back....so it'll be a bit of start/stop for a little.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
    I'm not a runner so the only advice I have is to take care of your ankles!
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
    Pain is not a very good diagnostic in terms of what is causing the problem. It certainly tells you that there IS a problem and you need to heed the warning. I'd apply ice to the spot every day.

    The Achilles attaches to the entire back of the heel bone and the plantar fascia attaches to the bottom. There are also stabilizing sheathes that attach to each side. Basically, the heel bone has ligaments attached all over it. If one or any of them is inflamed, it hurts!

    Almost no matter what the problem is, you can just start doing what they're going to tell you to do anyway: RICE: Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevate. And, take ibuprofen (the other I). It might just go away in a few days!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    It sounds very much like it could be Achilles Bursitis to me. I get it from time to time, generally due to tight calves. My 12 year old is currently going through it after a brutal week of soccer in which he had 5 games and played significant minutes in each...he's out for his game today to rest...basically an overuse issue in his case.

    Mine usually goes away within a week or so of rest, icing, calf rolling, and anti-inflammatories. But rest is pretty much full rest, and I go without shoes as much as possible to avoid rubbing on the inflamed bursa.

    There are lots of things going on in the foot though...I would RICE and if it hasn't improved in a couple of weeks see a podiatrist. That's pretty much what they're going to tell you at this point anyway. And take the R in RICE seriously. It's not going to heal if you keep grinding away on it.
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
    @cwolfman13 and I posted almost the same advice, so it must be right!
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,986 Member
    Yeah, so I took a break (due to a sprained ankle). The pain is still very mild and still there. Hmm..
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,027 Member
    I jacked both ankles and aggravated my plantar fasciitis wearing the wrong shoes and tried to run which made it worse. So I switched shoes, stretched more often, and laid off of running for 3 weeks. Finally ankles and plantar don't hurt anymore, and I'm running again. But haven't stopped the more intensive stretching to ensure less chance of inflammation coming back.

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  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,986 Member
    For me, the problem really is running with small steps and super slow. Walking no problem. Running faster with larger steps no problem. this is also how this problem came to be: super slow running :(

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