ATR Progress Tracker & Timeline

Achilles Timeline Widget


“The information on this site is provided by individuals who have a mutual interest in injury, treatment and recovery from injuries to the Achilles tendon. The information provided is not necessarily based on any advice of medical doctors, physical therapists or others in the medical profession. One suggested treatment or protocol should not be considered any better than another. Please consult appropriate medical professionals for treatment relating to your specific injury and make decisions based on the information provided by these professionals. This information should not be considered authoritative or medical advice in any way, shape or fashion.”

32 Responses to “ATR Progress Tracker & Timeline”

  1. dennis, on March 25th, 2008 at 1:53 am Said:

    Here is an online version of injury dates and names. It only lists people who have filled out their Achilles Profile on their blogs, so this leaves some people out.

    http://achillesblog.com/atrpt.php

    It hasn’t been prettied up so it looks a bit plain right now.

  2. dennis, on March 25th, 2008 at 1:59 am Said:

    Also, age will be a bit off since I am not calculating it exactly right now.
    I’ll add a field to the Achilles Profile page so that you can enter “Which leg” :)

  3. brendan, on March 25th, 2008 at 9:09 am Said:

    Looks good Dennis…thanks for taking the time. Looks like I am the young ‘n’ of the bunch!

  4. daveleft, on June 5th, 2008 at 12:15 am Said:

    Dennis,

    I hate when people do this to me so I apologize in advance. I really love the ATR Progress Tracker. I was just wondering how much trouble it would be to add another field. As I am amazed at how global this community has gotten, I would love to see everyone’s location in the world.

    Also, to a lesser degree, maybe you might also consider adding gender. We seem to have a lot of ladies here (are the stats of this injury increasing or are females more likely to blog?),

    In any case, just a couple of things I thought I might suggest without any idea of how much trouble this might be for you. You’ll never know how much this blog has helped me through the first few weeks. Thanks again.

  5. dennis, on June 5th, 2008 at 12:52 am Said:

    daveleft -
    No problem. Thank you for those suggestions. It took me about 15 minutes to make the changes as adding fields is not time consuming.

    Please add your location in “your achilles profile”.

    Those kinds of comments are what I’ve been asking for, as I want to improve the site, and I like getting feedbacks.

    Please let me know if there are other things that you’d like to see.

    I am getting more and more comfortable with the these tools, and I realize that some really cool things can be achieved.

    Later on, I will create summaries on the progress tracker to give averages and other statistics. Other suggestions..? :P

  6. daveleft, on June 5th, 2008 at 1:04 am Said:

    Wow…that was fast. And I believe you began a real job this week…aside from achillesblog. I think it will be great to see how global this site is.

    And if you are open to suggestions…I don’t know if it’s a good idea or bad idea (I like how personal the way the community is currently) to incorporate a forum for ongoing discussions. For example, I’m curious as to what supplements/nutrients people are taking. This has spread out to a couple of different bloggers’ posts. Just a thought.

    Oh…about the NYC Page. On my screen, the location is on three lines and really spreads out the page. Any way to increase the width of the location field? And that’s all the suggestions I have for tonight. I promise!

    Thanks again (I’m sure you’ll here this many more times) for all your most appreciated efforts.

  7. dennis, on June 5th, 2008 at 6:22 am Said:

    daveleft -
    You caught me just before I was heading to bed.

  8. peter, on September 15th, 2008 at 9:37 pm Said:

    i am 5 weeks post op and im still in a hardcast.

    im going in for my 2nd post op tomorrow.

    will i get a boot?!

    surgeon said that my full rupture was the worst he has ever seen and said he was going to cast me for 3 months total.

    is this possible?!

    my leg feels strong and good. i can feel that it is healing very well and i could bear weight on it if i wanted (although I am not)

    if he puts me in a cast for another 1-2 months he might as well cut my leg off.

  9. shelley, on September 16th, 2008 at 9:57 am Said:

    Hey Peter,
    Just wanted to let you know you’re not alone in a long-term cast.
    My doc has prescribed 12 weeks in hard cast then 4 weeks in a boot. I am approx 3&1/2 weeks post-op right now. Looooooong time to go.
    Be patient. This time will pass.

  10. fourleaf, on December 23rd, 2008 at 11:44 am Said:

    Almost 5 month update.
    Pretty much life is back to normal, going to gym 4-5 times per week, stairmaster, high rep low weight, and stretching, walking etc.. Calf lift and wedge lifts and stretch 3 -4 times daily in my office.
    No PT all on my own, they did tell me to come back to relieve scar tissue went once (ouch!!) but hard to re-schedule.
    Back playing golf (cart) and wear out towards 18 but scores holding where I was before.
    I now buy into the full year for recovery my right calf is 60% of my left with strength the same.
    Do not ever want this injyry again. Real body and mind bummer.
    Hope this helps

  11. Ocall, on January 6th, 2009 at 1:48 pm Said:

    Thanks fourleaf for your detailed account of where you are at on your recovery. I had my surgery on November 25, 2008. My second post-op appt. is January 8, 2009. My Doctor told me that I will probably start my PT after this visit. I am a little anxious to see how my tendon is holding up. I have been on a boot since my first post-op appt. on December 11, 2008.

  12. mattachille, on July 29th, 2009 at 2:41 pm Said:

    Hi all. I’m probably being very dumb, but I got both my timeline & NYC tracker up & running fine, however I seem to be unable to edit information in them. When I click on edit in the plug ins window I get a little message saying “pop up editor disabled”. Any suggestions?

  13. tulga, on July 30th, 2011 at 1:59 pm Said:

    It is very useful information, please fill it full guys?! waiting for it!

  14. brian, on December 5th, 2011 at 7:26 pm Said:

    i had a full tear back on 5/14..i’m 44 yrs old….its been 6 1/2 months and i finally feel like im back to doing everything…one form of exercise i would HIGHLY recommend is yoga…doing bikram and vinyasa in a heated class is amazing for me…i’ve never done it before..my wife got me a 30 day unlimited…and now i’m hooked..not only do i stretch out my achilles,tight back,tight hamstrings and shoulders..i get to sweat out all the beers i drank watching the cowboys lose every week…and watching women sweat is amazing too !!

  15. rome24kr, on December 5th, 2011 at 8:27 pm Said:

    brian i’m going to take your advice and enroll in yoga as soon as i’m cleared! i’m also going to look into a stretching class. i was injured on nov.13 while playing football, surgery nov.18, and now just waiting till i get my boot. i plan on being back for my first game on the 2012 season in mid-sept. thanks for the info!!!

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  18. Lee, on April 26th, 2012 at 4:21 pm Said:

    Just wondering at what point have most folks transitioned from boot to shoe following the Non-Operative treatment. I am just starting week 6…hard cast first 2 weeks then walking boot up until this point with weight bearing and no heal lift the past two weeks.
    I have been following nearly the same non-surgical protocol listed on Norms page, exceptions being that my Ortho Surgeon told me I could go down to 1″ heal lift after week 3 then no heal lift after week 4. He also didn’t recommend any professional PT only the ankle ROM listed in the protocol on my own . I’ve been sleeping with the boot off the past 3 weeks, swimming, walking in the pool, and doing ROM exercises. I won’t see my Ortho PA for another week, but feel really good when I’ve tried walking around in a shoe. Does this sound pretty normal for the Non-operative coarse?
    Also at what point are most folks able to return to a full day of weight bearing with shoe? I’ve been off work for the past 6 weeks and am hoping to return within a few weeks. I’m and ICU RN and on my feet probably around 70% of the day during a 12hr shift. Lee

  19. Ultrarunning316, on April 26th, 2012 at 5:38 pm Said:

    Hi Lee, I too am non-op, I transitioned to two shoes at 7 weeks fwb…I also have a physically demanding job as a caddie, I wear my boot at work and my shoes or barefoot everywhere else…I would suggest that for you if it’s permitted. I returned to work after 47 days…The boot helps with feeling safe & trans-versing the rough terrain. God Bless you in your journey back!

  20. Harry H., on April 26th, 2012 at 7:47 pm Said:

    Hi Lee
    I am non-op.
    Could support full weight at week 8 with boot on and walk well at week 9 still wearing boot but without crutch for support.
    Tried 2 shoes at week 10 but physio told me off for wearing the wrong type!!! Apparently flat soled shoes are no good and I should be wearing raised heels ( trainers are the ideal footwear).
    My boot came off permanently at week 12.
    I am now at week 16 and can stay on my feet for most of the day though the ankle and foot remain swollen and a funny colour.
    Foot is still weak, working on the physiotherapy and should be able to start working soon, hopefully within the next 4 weeks.
    Take care and all the best with your recovery.

  21. Lee, on April 26th, 2012 at 9:45 pm Said:

    Thanks for the input…good to know I’m having an average rate of progression. Looking forward to see how my surgeon feels about it at my next checkup on April 4th. Really amazed I’m not having more pain!!! Up until a couple of days ago I had a fair amount of heel pain while in the boot, but over the past few days that’s seemed to have totally disappeared. Much more comfortable in my running shoes. Only a little tightness in the Achilles area on dorsiflexsion…and still absolutely nothing when I attempt to stand on my toes. Mahalo Lee

  22. Kelly, on April 30th, 2012 at 7:03 pm Said:

    I have a question about rehab if someone could help me out it would be greatly appreciated. I am 6 weeks post-op, and I am having my hard cast removed this week. My question is, when it comes to rehab, can I move this along with as much as I can take, or is it more of a step by step progression? I am so frustrated by my inactivity and just wanted to get back to regular activities asap. thanks

  23. normofthenorth, on April 30th, 2012 at 8:09 pm Said:

    Lee, the limit on your standing and walking isn’t directly connected to your AT, but probably more to swelling and maybe sensitivity in the bottom of the foot. It sounds like the sensitivity is fading, but I don’t think you mentioned swelling. If you elevate during the 30% of the day when you’re NOT on your feet, you may be able to keep the swelling down even if it’s still around.

    Many of us also felt vulnerable from general ankle instability and looseness when first in 2 shoes — again not directly AT-related, mostly from being immobilized and NWB for a while.

  24. normofthenorth, on April 30th, 2012 at 8:15 pm Said:

    Kelly, you’ve got to go step by step to be safe, sorry. The weeks when you first emerge from immobilization are the riskiest for re-injury, including re-rupture, with that risk fading fast around 12 weeks post-whatever (op or non-op). Look at the schedule at bit.ly/UWOProtocol and use it as a guideline. If it seems too slow and you want to catch up, then GRADUALLY catch up. E.g., maybe you can proceed through the steps twice as fast. But I wouldn’t just jump ahead.

    Quite a few of us have reinjured ourselves and suffered setbacks of various length (including “the big one”) without any serious warning from our leg that we were going way too far. So just “listen to your body” is not a guarantee of safety, alas!

  25. Lee, on May 8th, 2012 at 3:02 pm Said:

    Starting week 8 today and have been totally out of boot the past week. During week 6-7…I alternated one day off with one day on. Went on vacation back to the mainland last week, took the boot on the plane with me but ended up not wearing it the entire 6 days I was gone, except for the return trip since I didn’t have room to pack it!!! You’re right Norm, I do still have a significant amount of swelling by the end of the day, but only minimal heel pain at this point. I’ve noticed walking around in running shoes is much more comfortable than barefoot or flip-flops…which takes a bit of getting use too, since I rarely wear shoes around here when off work!!! Still very tight felling with dorsiflexion and some pain on climbing stairs.
    I had my 3rd follow-up appointment last Monday before flying out and my Ortho Surgeon was pleased with the progress. He has another patient in early 40’s who insisted on a surgical repair around the same time as my ATR, and said I’m actually a little ahead of him at this point. He seemed to think it was acceptable that I was out of the boot and encouraged me to continue with, ROM, swimming and the water activities I’ve been doing. He feels tendons actually repair a little quicker when stressed/worked. Also didn’t feel there was any need for professional PT or Rehab and gave me clearance to return to work on the 14th. Since I work just 3 day’s a week, I’ve had my schedule set up to work every other day the first few weeks back. Hopefully this will make it a little easier, but I won’t really know for sure until I actually do a couple of 12hr day’s.

  26. starshep, on May 8th, 2012 at 7:09 pm Said:

    Lee, Interesting that you mentioned that your doctor feels that tendons repair faster when stressed/worked. My therapist today mentioned that it has been found that bones and tendons do heel better and faster when an appropriate amount of stress is applied. This is the direct opposite to the old way of thinking about rehab and perhaps one of the reasons the new faster protocols work better.

  27. Lee, on May 30th, 2012 at 2:10 pm Said:

    Non-op ATR starting week 11 and all is going well. I’ve been back to work now for nearly 3 weeks, trying to work every other day with my 12hr day - 36/hr week schedule. Since I’m on my feet a majority of the time I’ve found this to be much more tolerable. It’s gone fairly well, although I do have some heel pain, a significant amount of swelling and as the day goes by my gait becomes a little more “gimpy”. Not much pain at this point in the Achilles area, everything in the general region just feel’s very “tight” and worse upon dorsiflexion.
    I’m continuing to swim 3 times a week, returned to the gym doing upper body lifting and 30-40 minutes of stationary cycling several times a week which is very boring since I’m a runner. My biggest concern right now is how far go push myself when I feel the pull or stretch in my AT while exercising or stretching…at what point is it therapeutic and when is it too much!!!
    My MD did not prescribe any formal PT, other than the WTO protocol. Luckily I have a friend at work who is a Physical Therapist and has shown me several different balance and stretch type exercises which seem to really isolate the Achilles and Calf area. Also when I’m in the pool I continue to work on toe raises. I find this a very beneficial therapy, after swimming for a while everything seem’s to loosen up a little. Back at week 5 or 6 as I started NWB walking without the boot, I would walk back and forth across the pool about chest deep in the water. As things improved I was able to move to a shallower area which required my body to support more of the weight. It’s the same now with the toe-raise exercises, I’m able to gradually move to shallower water and everything is getting a little stronger.
    I’m curious at what point other folks have returned to running without fear of a re rupture? The rehab protocol I have is kind of vague after 12 weeks. It just states” Continue to progress ROM,strength, proprioception…Retain strength, power, endurance…Increase dynamic weight-bearing exercise, plyometric training…Sort-specific retaining. I quite certain I’m not anywhere near running at this point, but would like to know when it’s same to attempt it!!!

  28. Stanley Wu, on June 26th, 2012 at 12:16 pm Said:

    What an amazing support group here. I wish I had known this sooner when a family member of mine got injured. It was a pain to witness a very strong man lose self-esteem because the injury disabled him. Keep on reaching out, guys. There many people out there who are in need of such support and knowledge that you provide.

  29. Rb, on July 26th, 2012 at 12:22 pm Said:

    Can you really do yoga if you were on a non-op procedure? I am on my 5 mos since the cast was removed but still feeling a bit of pain in my tendon area.

  30. starshep, on July 26th, 2012 at 3:37 pm Said:

    Rb:
    I’m also non-op and at about the same point as you. There are plenty of yoga poses you can do such as the Cobra, Cat, Headstand . . . which put little stress on the AT. I’m still a bit intimidated to try things like Downward Facing Dog, Warrior or Crescent Lunges. That said, I did take up yoga a few months before my ATR and wonder if some of those poses may have helped cause my ATR. I asked my orthopedic surgeon about that and he said he didn’t think yoga contributed to the ATR. Now that you’ve asked the question, I think I will bring one of my yoga books with me to PT tomorrow and ask my therapist about when I can think about doing some of those poses.

  31. gregoryp520, on August 20th, 2013 at 2:51 pm Said:

    I am a 25 year old, extremely active individual. I completely ruptured my achilles the day after my 25th birthday while playing in a rec basketball league. I was in the best shape of my life alternating between running, mountain biking, yoga, and basketball. I went to double jump for a rebound and it felt like Frankenstein kicked me in the back of the leg with a steel toed boot. Having said that, I opted for the surgical route 10 days after the injury. The first 4 days post surgery were horrible. It felt like someone sawed my leg in half. I’m not going to lie, it was extremely depressing because of my active lifestyle but there is light at the end of the tunnel. I took pain meds for a day, but they made me sick and didn’t stop the pain. I highly suggest smoking weed instead if possible. I am now 12 weeks post op. I can walk pretty much any distance without discomfort. Every day is better than the last. I can now jog. Biking has been very helpful in getting my calf strength back. I am close to being about to mountain bike again. The hardest thing is getting the toe life muscles back. I still cannot come close to a single leg toe raise. There seems to be a gap in my muscle but I will get it back eventually. I tore my achilles on May 30th, it is now August 20 (2013). 4 pieces of advice. 1. swim and bike as much as you can when you can. 2. Massage the shit out of you scar tissue when allowed. 3. Eat extremely healthy (lots of fruits/smoothies/greens/fish) 4. Understand that this is a injury that you can fully recover from and realize that you are lucky compared to many people that have permanent health issues. Good luck to you and comment to me if you have any questions!

  32. jammer, on August 20th, 2013 at 11:10 pm Said:

    Hi Gregoryp520. I’m on a very similar timeline to you (injury on June 1st, surgery on June 15th). I’m not quite where you are as I’m not jogging but do a lot of walking and a bit of level cycling. Good luck with your recovery.

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