Rollercoaster @ protection
Ok, so I have been bottless for a few days, and found out a few things, #1 driving long distances can really put a strain on the left foot, which is wierd as all it does is sit there unattended (in the future I wont be driving long distances without the boot for a while) #2 no matter what shoe designers tell you, the point at which a shoe, running or not, rubs the back of your leg is always going to be that point an inch or two above the heel which coincidentally is also the most common point for tearing the achilles tendon.
To offset this wonderfull finding I applied some KT Tape as in the online video for Achilles tendon support. I also doubled up on the piece that runs up the back of the leg from the heel (without tension) to double the impact protection. I have a CEP achilles brace, the one with the two gel pieces that are supposed to massage and protect the tendon, but all that does now is cause me more pain because of the constant pressure. So I have support without the pain, give me a ‘K’, give me a ‘T’, ra ra KT tape etc…good stuff! The rollercoaster part of this message is the mental unwinding as you reach post bootdom, when you take the boot off you feel like, ‘I DID IT!!’, but…… of course Im not healed, and the achilles still wouldnt appreciate a good old fashioned workout running hill repeats, especially as I now weight 270 instead of 230..hmmmm Im not fat, just big-boned 
So now the real work begins, I am deep into the Brain Training for runners book for the second time, enjoying that, and ready to start some walking, obviously I am going to have to listen carefully to my body instead of my GPS watch, but we all adapt, its slightly depressing that I cant run around still, that I still have that entry for Grandmas marathon in June, but I have set a new goal of a half at the end of August in St Paul, MN. I may make it, I may not, but I am going to have a goal, I NEED a goal right now…..thanks for all the support, I really appreciate it, its a long road, but we will make it through!
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It sounds like you’re doing really really well!
6 weeks post surgery, 2 shoes…. you’re entering a dangerous time. I would probably say, THE most dangerous time.
It’s tempting to listen to your body; but for the next little while, be very careful and conservative with the tendon. This is when re-ruptures happen, and they usually happen with no warning. It will be week 12, or even 16 (3 or 4 months) before your tendon is anywhere close to full strength; it might feel a lot stronger than it is. You’ll only know that you’ve reached it’s strength limit after the fact - after you’ve broken it. Try to stick to things that are low/zero impact (swimming, spin bike, etc.). I would - for sure - keep exercising the joint, but use low force, high-repetition exercises that avoid high stress on the tendon. Careful walking is very good too…
Good luck!
RyanB, sounds like great advice! Phil, thanks for documenting the experiment. No hill-running for me in the immediate future, either. No real cardio either expect what I get doing push-ups and the like. Wishing you the best with planned runs later this year.
I ordered the cadence sensor for my bike and should receive it today, that way I can hook up the heart monitor, bike cadence and see where I am for fitness again. Before I get out on the trails again I will get the foot cadence sensor to be sure I am consistent and not overdoing it or overstretching my steps. ryanb- I will take it easy, I like the idea of working the bike for a while longer. Janus - the lack of cardio is the hardest part of all this, there is \almost no way of keeping weight off when I have the metabolism of a sleeping winter bear other than running and if I swing weights around I could either hurt the achilles by connection to stabilizing muscles or end up looking like popeye. The weather is very good for Minnesota, once I have a week or two of basement bike then I will take it outside and see how it goes…I htink next winter I will try out some rollers to work those stabilizing muscles
What you really need, to measure fitness, is a power meter- a way to chart your heart-rate against the watts your generating. The best ones seem to be integrated into the crank; using strain gauges to sense instantaneous torque in the spider, which is integrated through the full pedal stroke to derive power. They’re not cheap: tinyurl.com/6qv8l7v
Phil,
I agree with Ryanb here, your tendon is not healed and you need to use caution to avoid the setback of re-injury. With regards to the injury contributing to weight gain, it seems some people gain, others lose (I lost a lot of muscle weight and have not been able to gain it back).
I think you could do a couple of things to keep your weight in check. The stationary bike is very safe, if you set it in front of the TV time goes by rather quickly. You can also manipulate your calorie intake, specially carb calories. If I had to pick one change, I would stop the bread/pasta/rice/bagels/pizza. And I know it’s easier said than done!
Oh how I would love a power meter, but then I also would love a ferrari and they are both unfortunately outside of my financial means right now, although I do have a lottery ticket….seriously though, I cant afford a power meter, but I look at them and drool over them often. I have always battled with weight, and running really helped me out alot with that. It seems no matter how little I eat, I just stick at a weight and never lose it, I could eat celery and gain a pound lol I want to get into the triathlon scene once fitness returns, before I had the AT issue I would ride 60 miles every other week or so, ride 13 miles most nights and run long runs of 13 miles every other weekend, with short 2 or 3 miles a night….and still got stuck at 230lbs , if there is a horse bigger than clydesdale then thats the group I belong in…I am not eating a calor-horrific running intake or anything
Sounds like you are making good progress Phil, I will continue to read with interest, I am 2 weeks post op and got my boot yesterday. I subscribe to the theory (my own theory) that everyone has a healthy ‘base’ weight. I have cycled to work for the last 4 years, 10 mile round trip, before this I weighed 200lbs. After 2 years I weighed 188lbs and have not moved below it since! I think I eat too much pasta, but I love it and won’t give it up!