October 7, 2015 - 20 Weeks Post-Op
Hard to believe it but I got out the calendar (as I do every Wednesday) and ticked off the number of weeks since my surgery on Wednesday, May 20, and today marks 20 weeks! At this point, I really don’t remember that I ruptured my Achilles unless I think about it. My gait is completely normal, but I feel a very slight “hitch” in my right ankle when walking in flat shoes. I am wearing either well-supported shoes with “Superfeet” arch supports or specialty shoes like Skechers Shape-Ups on a daily basis.
What I CAN do: I can walk normally up and down stairs, as I have a full range of motion. I am unlimited in terms of cardio work on a bicycle, elliptical trainer, or Stairmaster. 3-4 times a week I do specific strength and balance exercises in the gym, these include leg presses focused on eccentric strength, stability pad work, one-legged yoga poses on my “bad” leg, two legged calf raises, and plyometric hopping exercises. On the treadmill I walk at a 5km per hour (3.1 mph) pace for 30-60 minutes. I have absolutely no fear of rerupturing at this point and I work hard to put stress on my calf muscles as I seek to rebuild them.
What I cannot do is run - and I define running as leaving both feet at the same time in a forward motion. I feel like I could if I wanted to, but I am waiting at least another month while I continue to strengthen myself. I feel like I could probably do a one legged calf raise on my “bad” leg, but I am going to wait on that as well - in the mean time, I do about 100 2-legged calf raises a day and focus more and more of my weight on the “bad” foot. My biggest issue is eccentric strength. For example, when walking down stairs, I put the ball of my ATR foot down first and it is still very hard to prevent the heel from just plonking down - I just don’t have that eccentric strength (strength as the calf muscles lengthen) yet, but I recognize it and I am working on it every day.
The scar looks okay - I rub Bio-Oil on it a couple of times a day. It is small and even, the surgeon did a great job on it. I have lost 15 pounds of the 20 that I gained since the injury, and I am going to try to keep the momentum up and lose a little more.
That’s it! Very pleased with going the surgical route, with my early weight-bearing protocol and with getting in to physical therapy early (3-weeks post-op.) I am going to “walk” a couple of 5K’s this Fall - whereas my pre-injury 5K time was around half an hour, I just want to do the distance in an hour (I have been doing this on my own, but It will be fun to join an organized 5K event.)
Best of luck to you all in your continued recoveries.
Hi Bob! It is great to know you are fully recovering! I’m on week 17 and I still have pain in the bottom of my foot, also my ROM still stiff maybe 5 degrees past neutral DF. Are you totally pain free at this point? My Achilles doesn’t hurt for the most part and it has stop swelling, so I’m done elevating at this point. Keep up the good work and keep us informed, it is always good to read your blog.
Hi Ed! I had lingering pain in the bottom of my foot for quite a while, but it has been gone for the past few weeks. I am not totally pain free, I do feel a sort of “pulling” of the skin during high dorsiflexion, like walking downstairs, but the ROM is 100 percent. Like you, the swelling has gone away completely. This is quite a recovery process, as you well know! Best of luck in your continued recovery.
Glad to hear you’re recovering well, Bob. Are you sure you aren’t sponsored by Superfeet(TM) and Skechers? You’re always promoting their brands!
Keep it up, man. You’ll be running again in no time, I’m sure. When do you think you’ll try?
Great to hear that things are going so well, Bob. Your hard work and deliberate approach have paid off. Well done!