So I just completed my first half triathlon in Mid July and all felt well. Took several days off and got back to it. Got a run in of 4 miles and felt great and felt I could go farther but didn’t. Then two days later went 6 miles then three days later did a 10 miler. Kicked my butt a bit but all felt fine…or so I thought. The next day my achilles was sore, and has been hurting for a week now. I have had some soreness like this several months ago after a run but it would wear off a day or two later and then had been fine. I had been running short distance runs in Scott T2 and loved them. But after I get to 10k distances and above I went with Brooks Adrenaline GTS from my LRS. Now although they were great stability shoes for my over pronating I felt like I was running with brick shoes and switched to Newton Distance SIII which felt light but supportive. Could the switch of shoes be a part of it? I am not looking for bashing shoe brands as I know people love their certain brands of shoes but am wondering if I am having this issue and should switch to the Brooks when this tendonitis subsides? Here is some info on me. 195 lbs and 5’ 11" and run 3-4 times with a typical week when peaking for a half around 6 miles, 8 miles, 5 miles, 10-12 miles. On the long run days I average 9:30 miles. Shorter runs sub 9 minute. Any advice or recommendations for both treatment (other then what google has) and shoe type is appreciated as you guys and gals always seem to have all the right answers.
Anybody have help?
Do you stretch your Achilles tendons?
Typically I would stretch my calves/achilles while waiting for my watch to pick up satellites and also stretch my hips/flexors and then walk the first .20 miles to get warmed up
.
I don’t want to get into an argument with anyone who advises stretching. But often people stretch badly and too much and cause more damage than good. Try gently warming up without stretching and try gently warming down without stretching.
Too many injuries are caused by stretching and aggravated by stretching.
Warming up gently and warming down gently does no harm. Stretching is overrated and can do more damage than good, especially with Achilles’ tendons.
Ok noted. I actually started doing the stretching in the last few months just from what I have read. But mainly I am wondering about could it be the shoes? But stretching to much could be part of it maybe?
Short answer to your question(s):
#1 Yes, it could be the shoes (Newtons specifically)
#2 Your run training plan needs some fine tuning which is your main problem
.
This is just a case of more than your body was ready for. It is a chronic thing which if dealt with properly will be fine. You are just pushing too much based on your previous run frequency.
In your case here, keep your runs post big event small for the next week and build back up. Or at least take a day or 2 off. I wouldn’t switch shoes though.
Oh and yeah, don’t stretch before a run. Never stretch a cold muscle or tendon. Always after the run when things are nice and warm.
If this persists, consider physio to see if there is something off with your gait.
Ok no more stretching then 
and I will switch to my Brooks for now and ease into running better. Anybody have any suggestions besides staying off my feet to get this better? I.e. More icing of tendon and how often etc etc.?
Find a higher ramp shoe to ease the strain on the achilles. Also, get some massage work on your calves, as that’s the most likely culprit. Don’t stretch an injury much or too hard. Also warm up by running very slowly…the Kenyans can run 4:00+ pace, but many warm up around 9 min miles…do slow warmups, as that’s the point… Stretch muscles after the run, when they are warm. Never stretch cold muscles. Good luck.
I had the same issue pop up after switching to a pair of Newton distance S I had in my closet for a while. My shoes before that were Mizuno Elixir’s but since they cut them from their line I started trying some new shoes. I ran through one pair of Newton Energy and loved them. While I was waiting for my new pair to arrive I ran in the Distance S for one week and had that twinge in the achilles. I couldn’t figure it out, switched back to the Energy and still felt it. I did all the eccentric exercises and couldn’t heal, FF 4-5 weeks and I was feeling better so I put back on the Elixir’s and haven’t had a problem since.
I’m not saying it was the shoes because there are many factors in play but I’m certainly not going to put those on again.
Icing is for right when you are in pain to reduce inflammation. After the immediate pain is dealt with you use heat to restore blood flow to the affected area. 10 min of nice moist heat a few times a day and possibly right before your run. And yes, ease back into running with shorter easy runs to start.
- Take any medical advice on the internet with a pinch of salt. Go see a good physiotherapist now.
… that being said …
- Your achilles tendon won’t heal with icing , stretch, or rest. You need to progressively strengthen it via eccentric loading exercise (search and youtube for eccentrics achilles alfredson). Bascally go in a “calf raise” position, slow on the way down on the achilles, up via both legs. As it gets better increase weight in a smith machine
this is only valid if you actually have achilles tendonitis which a professional will confirm with in person assessment/or ultrasound.
good luck
Almost exclusively, I’ve had achilles problems caused by my shoes. Specifically, when I switched to a shoe that had a lower drop, it caused the achilles to inflame. Stretching, icing, etc. did nothing. The only thing that worked was to either switch back to the higher shoe or continue to run in the lower shoe at a slower pace at shorter distances while I adapted.
Short answer to your question(s):
#1 Yes, it could be the shoes (Newtons specifically)
#2 Your run training plan needs some fine tuning which is your main problem
^^This. Newtons are a huge problem. Period.
That said it could be a preexisting bio-mechanical problem that is being aggravated by the shoes.
And as others have said you did to much to soon.
I don’t want to get into an argument with anyone who advises stretching. But often people stretch badly and too much and cause more damage than good. Try gently warming up without stretching and try gently warming down without stretching.
Too many injuries are caused by stretching and aggravated by stretching.
Warming up gently and warming down gently does no harm. Stretching is overrated and can do more damage than good, especially with Achilles’ tendons.
+1
before you take any medical advice / advice pertaining to your body to heart you should do a few things:
- question the source
- seek statistically sound and significant data to back the source up
- ask a real medical professional
john
p.s.- my background is in exercise science and my doctorate is in physical therapy/physiotherapy
.
before you take any medical advice / advice pertaining to your body to heart you should do a few things:
- question the source
- seek statistically sound and significant data to back the source up
- ask a real medical professional
+1
p.s.- my background is in exercise science specializing in exercise physiology and biomechanics 
p.p.s.- btw, it can sometimes be difficult to find medical professionals who actually know anything about exercise science, even among sports medicine professionals
.
I can’t comment on the Newtons, but one issue might just be too much running (or too fast) too soon. I had the problem after several months of 50+ mile weeks a couple winters ago, and have been super careful when building up mileage since then, which has kept me in the clear. Also, some things others have mentioned:
-do the calf raises to build strength. It was also helpful for me to do heel drops off of steps (after running) to really stretch it out.
-I bought a rolling pin and just mashed the shit out of my calves and shins (the front muscle, tibialis something?!), and also massaged around my heel every chance I had. I think addressing the fronts of our legs is a little undervalued; extra tension there can make our hamstrings and calves do some funky stuff.
-And maybe see an ART specialist, they can help unlock things.