Sore Achilles tendon in the morning
A common complaint we regularly hear in our clinics are patients reporting with sore Achilles Tendon in the morning.
If this is you, then This can be the early tell-tale signs that you have some changes to your Achilles Tendon and could be suffering from Achilles Tendinopathy or tendonitis.
So if you have pain or stiffness (there could also be an associated lump) in your Achilles in the morning, read on
Why do you get sore Achilles Tendon in the morning
Healthy tendons are very strong and consist of lots of collagen fibres tightly packed together all in parallel. This is what gives them their strength. A fluid like substance is also present between these fibres.
When we develop changes to our tendons (often from overloading the tendon), the fibres move slightly part from each other. This increases the fluid like substance between the fibres.
While you sleep and lying still (or still as you do when you sleep!), the fluid accumulates and the nerve endings in that area become sensitised. Therefore, when you wake up and first try to walk on it, it can feel stiff and sore.
The pressure of walking and moving about, dissipates the fluid, making the pain and stiff reduce.
The important thing to stress is walking on it is NOT damaging your tendon AND some movement is good for your tendon.
Getting rid of a sore Achilles Tendon in the morning
Seek advice from a local physio or HCP to learn how to manage the load you put through your tendon better.
Load = all the work required by your tendon in a day, which includes walking, running, jumping and any activity which requires use of your Achilles tendon.
This is why the first step to correct treatment for Achilles tendon issues is a good conversation with your HCP so they can get a full picture what your daily activities include. This doesn’t not mean stopping training.
A good HCP will just educate you on adjusting your volume or intensity of the current load, while supporting you on how to maintain your fitness.
Instead of rest, a good HCP will support advice with a progressive strength training program. Strength training has very strong evidence to support long tern tendon recovery and prevention of reoccurrence, by helping replacing the injured tendon cells with new stronger tightly packed ones.
If your local HCP offers shockwave then this can also add increased benefit to your recovery and offer sometimes a quicker more effective recovery. Shockwave is actually support by the national institute of clinical excellent as an effective treatment for achilles tendonitis alongside progressive rehabilitation exercise.
In some cases, orthotics maybe suggested to help manage and offset the load in the achilles while you are working through your strength program. Most of these can be discussed with your HCP and add options to support your success recovery back to your best.
Here to help
For more information, you can find our other blogs here, and if you are looking for help with your own injury rehabilitation you can email us at getmebetter@summitphysio.co.uk or ring us on 0800 731 2738
