Achilles/Ankle/Peroneal

Triathlon Forum
1

I think I’ve read just about every achilles/peroneal post from the last two years, but I can’t resist beating this horse. I have placid next month and have been on the shelf for about 5 weeks. It first presented as what felt like pretty standard achilles tendonitis after a change of bike shoes and failure to really dial-in my cleat alignment. I rested until it felt normal, went out for a few easy miles, felt ok - no pain, though slightly weak and tight - and it came back. I’ve since repeated that cycle 3 or 4 times and started to do heel drops. Now the majority of the discomfort isnt on the tendon itself - it’s between the achilles tendon and just above the ankle - right in the area that is typically a bit concave. This area feels swollen and tight - almost like there is a bit of a knot in there. There is also still some very mild pain and weakness in the achilles tendon, some discomfort in the back and top of my heel (probably at achilles attachment point) and some very mild swelling around the front of the ankle. I’ve experienced no pain on the side of my foot. I’m resigned to being confined to the pool/eliptical (provided it doesn’t irritate things) for a while and have appts with my massage therapist and pcp (for the purpose of getting a referral) but wonder if there is anything else I should be doing outside the standard ice, self-massage and stretching regiment.

Also, for what it’s worth -

  1. I’ve seriously sprained this ankle 3 times, though zero times in the last 3 years.
  2. I have long and I’m told slightly fallen arches. I also have incredibly tight feet - think metatarsals like a guitar string.
  3. Contrary to recommendations to use heel lifts, etc., I experience less discomfort while running barefoot and/or walking around in my low profile 10k racing shoes than I do in my Nike Vomero’s or Brooks trainers.
  4. In the past I’ve felt a knot on my achilles that felt like it traveled up or down the tendon in response to whether the tendon/soleus were stretched or relaxed. It never caused any pain and it resolved itself - just creeped me out a bit.

Thanks

2

I am going through the exact same thing! I have been dealing with this since May 2nd, which was the last time I did any running. I have been able to bike over the past month as it does not cause any pain but running is another story. The same tightness and soreness that you have described is exactly what I am feeling…I also have Placid coming up in a short time and I really want to be good to go…

3

With IMLP next month and your chronic history: first, need to rule out a few things (a specialist will be needed for this). Then, you basically have 2 options: CAM boot walker for more complete immobilization and some deep tissue massage (or better yet, a good ART/Graston type beating) about 2-3 times/week. You won’t likely have a good run though.

Good luck!