Exercises for Achilles Tendon Partial Rupture

The Achilles is a sensitive yet vital tendon in the back of the heel that under certain circumstances is prone to painful and severe injury. These injuries can come in the form of ruptures, both partial and total. A partial rupture or tear can be just as severe in that it will most likely require surgery to fix and specific exercises to rehabilitate. Choosing the right exercises to properly rehab the injured tendon is key in regaining strength and motion.

Initial Rehab

• As with the rehabilitation schedule of most muscle or tendon injuries, the exercises for a partially ruptured Achilles will start slow and small and gradually increase as time goes on and as the tendon heals and strengthens. These exercises will not only help regain motion in the foot but also re-strengthen the tendon to prevent future injury. To this effect, the initial focus of exercises after the injury should be on regaining some range of motion. Strengthening will occur later when weight is added, but the initial exercises should be more of the light stretching and movement variety. If the injury is severe enough to warrant surgery it's a good bet you'll be in some cast for several weeks. During this time exercise is not advised, and once the case is removed the only exercise for the next several weeks should be nothing more than a standard heel flex and very light stretches will be used. Heel stretches should be done under therapist supervision and without resistance bands. You can accomplish this by lightly pulling your toes toward your body to stretch the tendon. Towards the end of the initial rehab period you may be able to add some minor walking to help regain motion.

Future Exercises

• As the rehab process progresses you can begin adding weight and resistance to the stretching and exercises. The goal of Achilles rehab is to regain running and walking motion. This is accomplished, simply enough, by gradually ramping up the amount your run and walk as part of your stretching routine. The walking and running regimen should be done in a pool for the best results. Doing these exercises in shallow water enables you to maintain the full range of movement but keeps impact on your legs and feet minimal, which in turn minimizes your risk of re-injuring the tendon if it's not yet fully healed. Each week you can increase the amount your walk/run and the speed with which you do it. These exercises can also begin to be supplemented with more involving stretches and resistance exercises. Use a resistance band looped around your foot and held in your hands and try to move your foot forward and backwards. This will stretch the tendon similar to the heel stretch you have been doing but the added resistance will add a strengthening element to it. Additionally you can begin to do heel raise exercises. Press against a wall for balance and standing on an exercise box hang your heel off the back end and dip down and back up on the arches of your feet. This uses your body weight to stretch and strengthen the tendon and is excellent for regaining full use of the Achilles.