Achilles tendon pain cause and treatment with 4  exercises

The Achilles tendon is the tendon that connects your calf muscles with the heel bone in your foot. It’s by far the strongest tendon in your body and almost impossible to tear.

The Achilles tendon’s function is to transfer the forces produced by your calf muscle to your foot. It doesn’t apply any power by itself. The central movement it assists is the plantar flexion of your foot. Plantar flexion is the movement where you push your foot towards the ground.

That means that every time you stand on your toes, for example, during walking, your calf muscles contract to pull on your Achilles tendon.

When everything in your lower leg and foot works correctly, this is not a problem. Your Achilles tendon is strong enough to withstand these forces. But when the power is too high, due to an accident, overuse, or any other cause, your Achilles tendon can start to get damaged and irritated. Now you’ve developed Achilles tendon pain.

Also read: Calf muscle pain cause and treatment with exercises for relief

There are several clear symptoms by which you can recognize an Achilles tendon problem:

• Achilles tendon pain when standing up
• Achilles tendon pain when walking
• Thickened Achilles tendon

Due to the irritation in your Achilles tendon, it swells. This is because some fluid builds up around and in the Achilles tendon. This causes your Achilles tendon to become thickened and look slightly swollen. It may also appear a bit red. If you press on the swelling, it may be a bit tender. The physiotherapist can see on an ultrasound how bad the swelling is and whether there is a small tear.

In addition, your Achilles tendon is painful when you get up from bed in the morning. This is because he is not stressed all night. This makes him cold and stiff. When you start exercising again, your Achilles tendon will stretch, which it cannot handle very well. After a few steps, it becomes more flexible and the pain decreases.

The same goes for pain while walking. Initially, your Achilles tendon should become warm and supple before the pain subsides.

If the Achilles tendon pain decreases when you stand up, you know that it is almost healed.

Achilles tendon complaints can also lead to heel spur problems. However, pain around the Achilles tendon is not the same as heel spurs.

So when you have confirmed that you suffer from Achilles tendonitis, it’s time to start your treatment right away. The first thing you should do is reduce your activities as much as possible.

That means no running for a few weeks and walk as little as possible. Bike riding, however, is not a problem.

Also, wearing proper shoes, like hiking shoes, can help a great deal.  The shoes you shouldn’t wear are high heels, sandals or flip-flops. They don’t provide proper support and won’t reduce the overuse of your Achilles tendon.

Along with rest, we have to cure the causes of your Achilles tendonitis, as discussed earlier.

The treatment focuses on removing the possible causes of your Achilles tendonitis.

That’s why the treatment consists of two stretching exercises, one mobility exercise, and one strength exercise. These are all exercises you can do at home without any equipment.

Also, apply some anti-inflammatory creme to reduce your pain and swelling.

You can also wear a night splint to stretch your Achilles tendon during the night. The relaxation of your Achilles tendon will make it easier to start in the morning and will help your recovery. I would recommend a night splint because it puts a significant amount of pressure while letting you sleep comfortably.

When this home treatment doesn’t work for you, I’ll also discuss all the other options you have to cure this pain.

But first, I’ll start with the stretching exercises:

The first Achilles tendon exercise is designed to stretch your Achilles tendon. By stretching your Achilles tendon, you can reduce the pressure applied to your Achilles tendon. Reducing the stress will give it rest and the possibility to recover.

Perform the exercise the following way:

• Stand with your two feed in a straight line with your painful Achilles tendon behind
• Make sure your feet are pointing forward
• Now bend the knee of your painful side and place your entire weight on it
• Now you should feel the stretch in your Achilles tendon
• Hold this for 15 seconds

Repeat this exercise several times a day.

You can find the exercise also in this YouTube video. This way you know how to perform it correctly.

The second tendon pain exercise is designed to stretch your calf muscle. As you know by now, your calf muscle influences your Achilles tendon. By increasing its size, you’ll reduce the forces it applies to your Achilles tendon.

Perform the exercise the following way:

• Stand in the same position as during the first exercise.
• Now extend the knee of your painful side and bend the other one
• Move your hips forward with your knee still extended and your heel on the ground
• You should feel the stretch in your calf muscle
• Hold this for 15 seconds

You can find the exercise also in this YouTube video. This way you know how to perform it correctly.

Repeat this exercise several times a day.

Together with stretching your Achilles tendon and calf muscles, you can reduce the pressure on your Achilles tendon even further by increasing the movement of your ankle.

That’s what we will do with this next exercise.

Perform the exercise the following way:

• Stand on the toes of your painful foot
• Now make circles with your ankle while keeping your toes on the same place
• Make the circles as big as possible
• Now do the same the other way around
• Repeat it for two minutes for each direction

You can find the exercise also in this YouTube video. This way you know how to perform it correctly.

Repeat this exercise several times a day.

When the tension on your Achilles tendon reduces through these exercises, and the pain reduces, it’s time to start training.

By training the strength of your Achilles tendon and calf muscle you will support the healing process, which will reduce your recovery time.

Perform the exercise the following way:

• Stand on two feet at shoulder-width
• Now stand on your toes
• And slowly come down
• Repeat this ten times

You can find the training also in this YouTube video. This way you know how to perform it correctly.

It’s important not to start too soon with this exercise. If the conditions are not right yet, it will increase pain rather than reduce it. It might cause a little pain during the activity, but it shouldn’t cause more pain when you’re finished. Also, you shouldn’t feel a reaction later in the day.

This way you know your Achilles tendon is healthy enough for this exercise. Now you can slowly try to increase it. You can do this by repeating it 15 or even 20 times.

Later, when it’s going well, you can also try to perform the exercise on one leg. When you’re able to do this, you know that your Achilles tendon is almost completely healed.