Jul 18 2014
5 months and change
It’s been around three weeks since I last wrote and only good news to report!
I’ve been on vacation and have been very active, walking, biking, hiking, swimming and otherwise using my leg. The biggest update is that I went surfing several times as well, probably the activity I most want to return to! All seemed well, though my leg is still weak and balance shaky.
In general, the achilles has faded as a day to day concern and I did everything I needed to do while on vacation with two active kids. I was more concerned with spraining my ankle on rocky hikes than hurting my tendon! Pain and swelling were minimal and everything seems well on its way to healing; I just need to keep building strength.
I went back to PT today and could do around 8 single leg calf raises, although most after the first one were at 1/2 height at best. That is still a big improvement from the 2-3 I could do 3 weeks ago before vacation. I abandoned all exercises while away, so all the strengthening has come from just being active.
The plan is to start easing back into jogging next week and continued strengthening of my calf over the next couple weeks to get to doing 3 sets of 10 single legged calf raises!
Smick, good to hear from you and even better to get your good report! I know that as I get more active as well, my Achilles’-specific exercise routine tends to get short-shrift. However, I think if I want to get back that last 10-15% of strength and functionality more quickly, I better not abandon it completely. Take care. -David
Good of you to share your great news. It’s always interesting to see how people who are further into recovery are doing. Good luck with the rest of your journey.
@davidk - it’s tempting to just go back to normal exercising (biking, walking, running, etc.) and not focus on calf strength as I have 80% of what i need right now, but i agree. I’m definitely going to keep doing calf raises to get that last 10-15% strength particularly at the high end of the range of motion.
Sounds terrific, Smick! You are in a great place right now. You know things are progressing well when you stop worrying about it. Keep up the good work!
What a boost to have such a great vacation, and surfing - awesome! Your recovery seems to be going very well, indeed! Wishing you more of the same!