rossthegolfer’s AchillesBlog

What’s the type/brand of ankle brace your wearing with shoes?

Hi Ross,

I ruptured my left achilles and had surgery, now 9 weeks post op. I was in soft cast for 2 weeks then a boot for four weeks, so by the 7th week I was in shoes. Limpy but no pain.

Anyway, my surgeon said I could resume playing golf as soon as I was in shoes. I played last weekend, used a cart, wore my golf shoes. All good (despite 10 weeks with not a practice swing, I shot as good a score as when was playing regularly - 83).

I cant do a single heel raise yet and my recovery is on par, nothing amazing, although I am a reasonably fit person and not carrying a lot of excess weight.

Your PT sounds very conservative. I suggest you ask your surgeon whether you can start playing golf rather than the PT. If its your lead leg then it is pretty stable and the achilles should be pretty much fully strong now, just the foot/leg muscles and stretching/flexibility issues. Personally I think the more normal activities you can resume without pain the better - will help mobilize muscles, movement, and strength. Golf is a goodie! Just thought I’d post this as you are a golfer and must be itching to get on the course like I was. Go

I love reading your posts Ross because I feel like I’m right behind you. Congrats on your recovery thus far, you’ll be golfing in no time!

You will be different than me, given that you started PT way sooner in your recovery. From the time I started PT and *actual* strength building (the 12 week mark- so April 27 for me), in 3 weeks I’ve come a long way. I could maybe expect being able to do a heel raise within 4-6 weeks of starting rigorous PT. in most circumstances, but people are going to differ of course. Good luck.

It’s great being in 2 shoes! One single leg heel raise, that’s your focus? Haven’t asked mine PT about golfing yet but maybe I should and compare with you. I’m very interested in how the golf trip goes. Happy golfing;)

You played in your boot, fantastic, good progress;).

Winni,
Wanted to give you an update on golf. I actually went to the range last Saturday and made it thru my 75 ball bucket with no pain. Hit every club in the bag, even a couple Drivers! What was nice was I didn’t have any pain or swelling, just a little fatigue from the increased cardio if you will haha. Because I felt fine Saturday, I also went and played 18 Sunday afternoon with some friends! My intention was to only play 9 but I was playing well and wasn’t in any pain. Shot 76 with 3 birdies! Guess I should swing slower and in a boot all the time! Anyway, I hope your recovery is coming along well and you get back out there soon too!

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That’s great! Your golf stories and practice are encouraging. I want to be able to hit the golf course soon as well, so I may start doing some chipping and putting in my back yard as well. Problem is I have to do a mow first.. did you hire someone to do that or do it yourself? Haha.

I’m happy for your good progress. I would like to be back on the golf course in June as well but don’t like to let down myself if not making it. Be sure not to walk with the boot on the greens!

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great progress rossthegolfer. indeed, you can do little steps without crutches/scooter as you see fit as long as you are not overdoing it. once the brain is free and you get the walking motion with the boot you’ll be fine, but do consider that only the doctor can tell how the tendon is healing up so take heed of their advice!

keep it up!

suerte

Good to hear you’re improving and adjusting back to a normal life. For water therapy I was told filling up my bath tub and do some exercises! I know the feeling to do more but….

I think there are things you can do at this point. Like mibbal said, you can gently try movement in all different directions (plantar, dorsi, eversion, inversion). Do these exercises while seated, not standing yet. I used a yellow theraband to start with. You can write some ABCs with your feet (try not to move your leg, focus on your heel), do some toe crunches with a towel. That’s what my therapist had me doing at 3 weeks.

I am in week 11 now. Mine has been very tight up until this week. It’s starting to feel quite a bit softer at rest now.

ROM was difficult back in those first 6 weeks because of swelling for me, but it got progressively better the more I moved it in circles and the more I iced and elevated. I’ve been very regimented about giving the tendon as much movement as possible during the day, while elevating and icing at night.

Wake up next day, wash rinse repeat.

Thanks mibball, that definitely made me feel better. It feels good to get it out of the boot like you said to do simple exercises as much as tolerable. So weird how the tendon itself feels so tight! Maybe I will hold off on the theraband until I go for PT in two weeks. I’m sure I can hold off.

Ask your doc about theraband timing. I wasn’t given mine until the 6 week mark. Can’t imagine a week would make a huge difference there but maybe it could.

As to letting your foot out of the boot at week 5 and onward when you’re just laying around, yes absolutely. Early motion is encouraged once that 2 week splint comes off. That doesn’t mean weight bearing, that just means ROM.

Definitely get that foot moving: dorsiflexion, plantarflexion, eversion, inversion. All that’s tolerable.

That’s awesome Chad! Solid 9! I’ve heard that some peoples swing actually is better after surgery bc they have more tempo and are quieter on the feet. Looks like you’re one of those people! I go in to the boot weds and should be FWB in a couple weeks. Ready to hit some shots too as I got the new M2 for Christmas! The warm weather has definitely been giving us the itch!

Thanks for the Update!

Quick golf update for your rossthegolfer - This past Friday I was 8 weeks post op. Have been FWB in boot for the past 2 weeks. The guys were heading out Friday afternoon for a round of golf. 75 and sunny here and I couldn’t bear to be in the office. My plan was to just ride along and enjoy some cold beverages and heckle bad shots. Got to the club a bit early to try to hit some shots on the range. My boot is on the right side so a little tough to turn through the shot. But it felt really good and kept me anchored. So I decided to play 9 holes. Some perspective - I’m a 7 HC and usually shoot right around 80 give or take. Well I wish I would have gotten into our usual game because I couldn’t have hit the ball better. I had 2 birdies and shot 37. I was very cautious of my right side and became more upper body but was so good to get out. I had a smile on my face the whole day. So bottom line is there is hope for golf once you get into the boot! Just have to take a cart and be smart on the hills. Good luck in your healing!

Feels good to be wanting to get up and out and about more, doesn’t it? It’ll only get better once you’re in the Aircast and can weight bear. Stay positive. It’s a must!

I didnt have an Achilles injury but last year I broke dislocated my left ankle in May. I was NWB in a cast fro 6 weeks and a walking boot for another 4 weeks. I started playing quasi golf in August. Chipping and putting first , and then hitting wedges and short irons on the range. When I stated playing real golf again, I quickly noticed how much stress the ground and uneven lies puts on your foot. I never had trouble swinging the club, but Walking up and down hills , side hills, getting in and out of bunkers really stresses your foot. It took me about 4 weeks of playing to to feel comfortable again. My advice is to phase in very slowly.

You sound so positive, maybe it’s the little one who cheer you up. My experince with the boot is good so far. The only thing is that be careful not put it on to tight. I did that first night and it’s like when you get a sore feet and put the same shoe on, painful. Not sure what state your in but in Shanghai it’s getting nice and warm and my husband is out on the golf course. It will give him some advantage to beat me, haha.
Cheers
Anette

Oh man, someone else that bleeds that they can’t golf yet. You’re younger than I so will probably heal quicker. And your a bit ahead of me. So keep us posted on your golfing progress and if you try the CAM boot. (and your experience when the marshals see you with the boot on the course. You could be the guy who writes “The Golf’s Guide for Achille’s Tendon Rupture recoverers.” lol

Chad,
Thanks for the reply! Good to see you are progressing nicely for what should be a return to our wretched passion of golf soon! I’m thinking I’ll probably be hitting in the boot too when the time comes. I’ve never done PT in my life so I’m no expert, but it seems odd to me the doctor would have you wait for PT if your strength is weak? Isn’t that the point of PT to strengthen the muscles back up? Almost wish they would start PT right after the cast came off in some capacity…oh well. Yes please keep me posted on your progress and anything you are doing that has seemed to help as far as golf exercises with the foot and what not!

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My surgeon advised me to ride the stationary as tolerated starting week 6. He was not pleased with my strength level at that time so he has held me off of official PT until 4/20, the 12 week mark.

I am riding on both toes without the boot. Works wonders to loosen it up. Regimen is to bike 20 min every day. Every third day I ride 35+ to the point of feeling like I’ve pushed it. The difference between week 7 and week 9 on the bike is immense. I’ve been careful to gradually ramp up the intensity.

The pool has been a great setting to work on flexibility, ROM, and heel raises. I informed my surgeon that I was doing some additional movements in the pool and was actually told to wait on weight-bearing exercises in the pool until the 12 week mark. These exercises entail light heel raises.

This is interesting because it is the complete opposite of the instructions I was given at the 6 week mark to work on heel raises on solid ground, as tolerated. I will continue to do light work in the pool as tolerated.

Stay positive. You’ll be worlds apart from the 6 week to 9 week marks. Keep it all gradual!

rossthegolfer -

Our stories are very similar I’m just a few weeks ahead of you, and a decade older. I had surgery on my right Achilles (full tear) 2/19. 2 weeks in splint, 4 more in walking boot NWB. After 6 week checkup, Dr said to transition to FWB in the boot which has gone really well. I’m barely walking with a limp now but has taken a week or so to get used to it and strengthen the ankle again. My ortho doesn’t want me to do any official PT until week 12 so I’ve got 4+ weeks to go. Conservative in my mind so I’ll start doing some things on my own. I’m an AVID golfer and even went and hit some balls a week ago with the boot on. Hard to get a full turn but nevertheless, was out on the range. My boot comes off early may so I will keep you posted on my progress to give you an idea of timeline. Ortho tells me I’ll be golfing in no time so we’ll see. Good luck!

I see that we did surgery almost on the same day. I’m also a keen golfer and hope to be back on the course asap! Any advise please share wih me, thanks

i think you are right, and again the CAM boot is always an option. i’ve kept my dancing to stints of 1.5 to 2 minutes and take a good 30 or 40 minutes in between (since it is rather intense), it has worked a treat in terms of building strength and stamina for the muscles down there.

my PT has been a private one, and i simply took the following to the appointment http://achillesblog.com/files/2008/03/achilles_tendon_rupture_mass_gen.pdf my surgeon simply didn’t give a shit, he said ‘i’m a surgeon and i’m not qualified to clear you for particular exercises, that is a PT matter’. don’t you love the NHS in the UK?…… so i got my own.

i’m doing all the theraband exercises three times a day, give or take 1 (depending on pool session and dancing), and whilst at work i take two breaks of 10-15 minutes to lie on the floor and do them with my leg elevated. this helps a lot for swelling reduction too. i’m still using the knee-high sock that came with the CAM as it holds the leg together nicely.

one further thing i discovered by mistake, i know small steps, is that i can walk much better with shoes than with my boots (as i th

Thanks for the reply and sharing your journey! I’m assuming if you are able to do some salsa dancing at 11 weeks and assuming everything goes to plan for me I should be able to golf in that timeframe.

What type of exercises are you doing on your own PT? I’m assuming you got clearance from your surgeon to do that at home? I feel anything I can do at home will help me feel a sense of accomplishment throughout the day. Im in the process of obtaining a stationary bike that I can use as soon as I’m allowed to.

I have heard that golfing in the CAM boot is an option too. I guess I’ll see where I’m at in recovery. I know for one thing, I won’t be climbing up hills or walking the courses just yet! I love golf but I’m not gonna sacrifice missing the ENTIRE season rather than just a part of it!

hi Ross, i havent a clue about golfing so i can’t comment on the actual mechanics of it. one thing is a fact, you will be able to be at the golf course by three months (unless there are delays due to your personal journey) but to what extent you can actually play is everybody’s guess and down to your own progress too.

i’m almost 11 weeks now, non op (funny, same as mibball 28/1), and been out of the cast for 2 weeks on tuesday coming. the last two weeks have been remarkably changing on a daily basis, from limping like there is no tomorrow to almost walking without a lift. i have been working bloody hard at PT (self given) and will start PT at hospital on wednesday too. some of my ‘achievements’ have been dancing occasionally, i dance salsa, and it is very demanding on the tendon, and this has been good for self esteem and flexibility.

thing with golf poses the question of ‘twisting’ the ankle during the shot motion, so you probably need a professional opinion about it. what i was told, and others here do, is that you can always go back to your CAM boot for any strenuous activity (you can pretty much do anything with the

Thanks for the comment and suggestions! I also have been reading and hearing that around the 8/9 week mark is when you really start to see progress. Did you do stationary bike as part of PT or just on your own? Sounds like people have good and bad experiences with PT in general. I’m lucky that my Orthopedic surgeon has a PT place right at their offices and everyone seems to have positive experiences. I’m anxious to get going on that too so I can get off the couch.

Glad to hear your recovery seems to be going well. It’s nice to read about people’s successes. Proves there is light at the end of the tunnel!

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Ross,

I tore mine 1/28, surgery 2/2. Splint weeks 0-2, no weight bearing. Was in walking boot and told to be not weight bearing until week 6, so I scootered around. Leg was very weak upon assessment by surgeon at week 6 mark. Was then given theraband and told to stationary bike. Was told to keep boot on for 2 more weeks until week 8, with walking around house without it OK.

You will notice progress as soon as you are able to bike, stand, and move it around more generally. I noticed big gains in week 9 in terms of strength, stability, flexibility, and my limp. I am slowly regaining push-off through plantarflexion. I try to really concentrate on stride/gait when walking on firm ground. In week 9 this has just now become easier.

3 months is very possible for golf. Be sure to follow instructions and keep that ankle/heel moving when you’re given the OK to do so. As long as you keep your movements non-explosive and within the parameters your provider’s given you, do as much as you can tolerate. It will mean a faster recovery.

I read a story from someone else here who I believe was given the go-ahead to golf at the 2 month/8 we