The foot is feeling pretty good now. I can flex it slightly in the cast and have no pain.
For the first time in 2 weeks I did some exercise. Nothing flash just some core strength work and some upper body weights.
I also did a light theraband stretch of my injured Achilles and that felt good too.
I am starting to feel confident I will make the ski trip in 12 weeks :) The only downer is I spent quite a bit of time reading up on other blogs from individuals with the same injury and most of them have taken 6 - 12 months before they have made a full recovery. I am hoping that my high level of fitness before the injury and motivation to do high levels of physical therapy will get me over the line.
Now if you have ruptured your Achilles I would not recommend the exercise below !!
Footnote: I am writing this six months after I did the above. This was stupid and dont try this at home !
David
This is me
About Me
- David
- Perth, WA, Australia
- Well I am in my late 40's and live in Perth, Western Australia. I am married and have 2 gorgeous kids. I work in the sports and recreation industry managing a coulple of large recreation centres. I have always had a love for all things sporty and it's because of this love I now find myself in this predicament !!
4 comments:
Mmm, I don't know about that one, David. Hate to say the "RR" (rerupture) word but it is a reality to be quite careful of. I don't think an Achilles, just cause of its fiberous issue make-up, can be strong enough for skiing after just 12 weeks. That's just my opinion - I remember how mine felt at 12 weeks and I could barely walk normally on it (with normal weight).
Granted I had quite a conservative doctor, but I was also in very good shape before the injury and pretty motivated. It didn't help that as a lover of snowboarding powder, I watched it dump more snow than ever after I got hurt ... but I resigned myself to no snowboarding until the next season ...
I am now 14 weeks post-op with heavy rehab which includes just trying to walk on it normally. Things are going slowly but surely and I will be on my mountain bike soon. For me, as active as I am and as much as sports mean to me, I was not willing to risk an RR (rerupture) just to squeeze in a few months more of sports. Cause if you RR, that's pretty much it (unless tendon transplants advance in technology or something).
Maybe one ski trip isn't worth it, maybe it is? Well, good luck!!
Maya in Colorado USA
Hi David!
This video was an absolute inspiration to me! (I've never been on an elliptical till I saw this video). I ruptured by Achilles tendon April 9th and had been training for Ironman France (June 27th) since october. I felt like it was all over when I first felt that tendon snap... and if not for all your encouraging words, I don't know if I would have been able to continue to keep my mind off of all the things I couldn't do and concentrate on all the little successes I was progressing through each day post-op. If anything, this video made me laugh during those first few very dark days... and then I picked myself up and kept June 27th as the GOAL!
I had the luxury of having been an OT in trauma orthopaedics and now a Doctor... so took the leap and sawed myself (with the help of my very nervous husband) out of my cast 4 days post-op, put myself into a moon boot with a 7.5 cm heel lift. The surgeons weren't happy to see me in the boot during my follow up visit but it was the risk I was willing to take given the unequivocal evidence for casting for so long (and not to mention the disuse atrophy that goes along with that)and in efforts to retain my sanity (the hardest thing of all for active athletes).
I also have an amazing friend, a naturopathic doctor, who helped with some of the scar tissue problems I experienced by doing providing some visceral manipulation treatments and asking a colleague who specialises in injection therapy to try prolotherapy to treat the pain. I was too raw at 5 weeks post op for the prolotherapy but the visceral manipulation did wonders for the problems with swelling I was having with prolonged standing.
I was super careful with all my actions right up until race day and 11 weeks post-achilles tendon rupture (and repair), I completed Ironman France with plenty of time to spare.
You're a legend David!
Thank you.
Michelle
Hi Michelle, wow that is anazing that you did an iron man after 11 weeks. And here was me thinking that skiing after 12 weeks was good !! Its been almost 2 years now since my rupture and life and sport and everything is as good as it could be. Playing tennis, squash and running regularly. Best of luck with future iron mans :)
Regards
David
holy shit. I strongly advise against anyone doing an Ironman at 11 weeks
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