Karina Teahan is a Chartered Physiotherapist and a regular participant at the races in Cork. She recently wrote an online article which outlines some of the problems with your Achilles.
Here are some of the questions asked in the article....
Q. Can you tell me about your running experience and your physiotherapy qualifications, and where you live, work and run now?
Q. As a starter for ten – what is the Achilles?
Q. Why does it cause problems for runners?
Q. What are the most common problems for the Achilles?
Q. What should you do for the above?
Q. What precautions should we take to avoid problems in the Achilles?
Q. What are your top three Achilles stretches?
You can find the article and all the answers to the questions HERE
Karina says to not stretch a sore tendon. I am in total agreement with this, but I would go further. Don't do calf stretches either. Why do I say this? I got Achilles peritendonitis is 1988 for an entire year. Everyone, including the people I went to believed in stretching. Eventually I got heavy massage with no stretching and it got better, never to recur.
ReplyDeleteI haven't stretched since. I began a no-stretching campaign and was vilified for it UNTIL the Australian Army trial showed it was of no benefit. Now, few runners stretch. There is no scientific basis for it.
So folks, don't stretch unless you need extra mobility like for ballet etc.