Eccentric heel drops post-op
Posted on March 3rd, 2013 by brownbeast
Does anyone know if or when it is a safe time to perform eccentric heel drops post op? I have been doing them at around 27 weeks post op, but do not know if it is ok to do them at this time.
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Two answers:
(1) Check out bit.ly/UWOProtocol . If the rest of your rehab has been close to that schedule, you should be able to follow their exercise schedule, too. (IIRC, they were talking about plyometrics long before 27 weeks post-whatever, and that’s WAY more scary-aggressive than eccentric heel drops.)
(2) In general, especially once you’re past the re-rupture-scare window (soon after ~12 weeks in), you can push yourself and your leg, preferably “listening to your body” AND always being incremental — i.e., avoid doing aggressive exercises that are totally different from what you’ve already “successfully survived”. If it seems like time to do something that’s qualitatively “new”, just do a few of them, and wait ’til the next day to try more than a few. If you’ve been doing (say) 10 2-leg heel raises, don’t jump to 20 with a big sack of potatoes in your arms. Incrementalism will usually keep you safe from injury, even when “listening to your body” won’t.
So, following the second “rule”, if you’ve already been doing some of these moves, and you haven’t been suffering from it — even the next day — then you haven’t been over-doing. In fact, once you’re “safe” and into muscle-(re)building, many experts would say that you’re UNDERdoing if you DON’T feel stiff the next day! As outlined by a few smart people here (doug53 and ryanb spring to mind), a useful muscle-building session SHOULD cause stiffness the next day, but NOT stiffness on the day after. And doing more reps with lower load is always a safer path than t’other way ’round. (Many decades ago, I was convinced that 8-10 reps to muscle fatigue is a good tradeoff.)
Delayed onset muscle soreness often peaks at around 48 hours. So, sore 2-days after is usually OK (expected). Sore 3 days after is pushing it (but not too unusual). Sore 4 days after means you’re really hammered something. I certainly wouldn’t be avoiding workouts that have me sore for 2 or 3 days. But, it’s important to recognize and differentiate “soreness” from another injury. Muscle soreness is OK - joint pain, not so much.
Norm is exactly right about incremental: always ease into things. Even for a perfectly healthy individual starting out with a strength building program, my advice would be to ease into things over a period of a few weeks to give your body a chance to adjust (and to learn what you’re capable and not capable of doing).
Ryan, I wonder how soon after an ATR I’d be willing to aim at 3 days of post-exercise soreness. At 4 or 5 months in, I’d fear that there’s still very little diff betw the workout that causes 4 days of pain and one that causes a month of it. After maybe 6 months, I’m with you…
Agreed. At 27 weeks (more than half a year), after a gentle and incremental build up period, I think most people (going through a nominal healing process) should be able to hit it pretty hard though.
My strategy:
First 12 weeks: super careful
12-16 weeks: this was my incremental transition, some easy light weights only. Did not try to induce any soreness.
4-6 months: Gradually increase the intensity. Hit calves every 3 days or so.
>6 months: hit it hard like a weightlifter. 4-5 day rest required.
When a really hard lifting session leaves me sore for 4 days or more - once I’ve fully recovered - I’ll almost always: do it again! I’ve had a workout wreck me twice, but never 3 times. Your body adjusts to the training load surprisingly fast. Getting that sore means I exposed and taxed some weakness. Usually I’ll try to identify what was unique about the session, and incorporate some part of it into my future routines.
I just started to try these (not successfully) at 19 weeks, although I obviously overdid it and ended up inflaming my peroneal tendon, which has require a week of rest and an adjustment of my rehab schedule (less weight and more reps) for now. I would say if you have reached this point incrementally, you are probably alright.
Thank you all for your opinion. =)
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