Week 25
My calf has really been loosening up this last week, in addition to seeing more power and range in SL raises (still a long, long way to go there, though). I mentioned last week I felt I had entered a new “phase” in training and recovery. I still maintain that’s the case. I’ve turned up the volume on jumping drills, in addition to my targets for height.
The other week I took a leap of faith and attempted a 36″ box jump. I am now able to do around 10 reps of these in a row before fatiguing a bit. I am also doing 24″ for about 6 sets of 15+ reps on lifting days. Overall, I say I am in this new “phase” because it feels like everything is returning to feeling NATURAL, i.e. I don’t feel tightness, lack of spring, or lack of elasticity in the tendon when it is activated (mostly while jogging or running). Basically, things have become more fluid and I don’t have to try to have a normal running gait. I am still a little “off,” but I feel like this is more downhill than uphill at this point, so to speak.
I can’t really pinpoint what has allowed for this new elasticity, stamina, strength, and added top-range flexibility (on my toes). Most likely, it has all just compounded from focusing on doing everything on the balls of my feet, more often. When I do box jumps, I focus on rolling forward and launching off my toes. When I jog, I ramp up the speed every few minutes and run on the balls of my feet in increments.
I’ve added weight on lunges, and also volume on stairmaster on my toes. I’ve also started jump roping in one-minute increments with my feet together, in addition to more focused and controlled one-legged hopping. With hopping, I will do 20 hops side to side over a line, and then 20 hops front to back. 5 sets of these, and I do them in between box jump sets. These one-legged hops REALLY activate the tendon and calf, so I plan to add more volume and intensity here as a primary focus.
In all, it’s gotten easier and much more natural feeling to be up on my toes. I still feel some compensation going on in my hips, and my knee on the injured side occasionally feels fatigued and sore (and also weak), but this has all gotten better and I’m no longer thinking about it the entire time I’m running/jogging.
Today marks 25 weeks basically, and will be adding more reps to the 36″ box jumps. I want to get this up to about 12 reps per set (for 6 sets) before I jump up to 42″ - loosen it up a bit more and get it used to the motion. Hopefully by the end of the week I will be close to that. Who knows - I will probably try it sooner rather than later, though. Box jumps aren’t anything special - they’re more gimmicky than an indicator of strength or power. Anyone in Crossfit (who is honest) can tell you that box jumps are more about technique than they are strength. But they are fun and a way for me to get my heart rate going while putting the requisite force on my tendon and calf.
I still have a lot of strength to build to feel anywhere near comfortable doing things like sprinting or cutting while running. As noted before, I still have some heel drop when I jog stairs on my toes and try to push it on speed and intensity. I’ll see what my PT says in two weeks when I have my final meeting with him.
I’ve hit mostly all of my goals throughout this recovery. By the month 7 mark I would like to be able to competitively run a 10k. I plan to work on some distance running this and next week, aiming first for 4.6 miles then a 5 miler. After that, really it’s about returning my calf to normal size and strength, and then hopefully by month 9 completely forgetting about the injury. We’ll see how it goes!
I’ll post some more “form” videos of jumping and running when I get them uploaded.
Edit:
Finished a 4.6 mile jog outside the other day - was surprisingly easy aside from a couple uphill stretches that strained my hips. My injured side hamstring is also a little sore. Going to aim for a 5 miler tomorrow. My jogging ability seems to be coming back exponentially since I hit the 6 month mark (which coincidentally was also when I started more intense box jump drills and hopping - these have definitely given me more spring). I’d say I feel probably 70-75% normal on the injured side (which is good, but it still feels “off” and I have a long way to go on strength and sprinting - not even strong enough to really try yet). Month 6 is shaping up to be a big one for progress and returning to relative normalcy.
Here’s a video at around the end of week 24 of me doing some box jumps and hopping. I’d encourage anyone who has the go-ahead from their surgeon/specialist to start on one-legged hopping/jumping drills. They really hit the tendon and calf in a good way.