Blog

  1. Home
  2. Blog
  3. Achilles Tendinopathy & Rehabilitation Exercises

Achilles Tendinopathy & Rehabilitation Exercises

This article was published on: 04/6/17 6:56 AM

Last updated on January 30th, 2024 at 08:40 am

Exercises are suggestive only. A healthcare professional needs to tailor them according to specific patient’s condition.

 

 

  • 1. STEP-UP (Requires a 3 to 5 inches high block)
    • Put the affected leg on a block and the other foot flat on the floor
    • Shift your weight on to the affected leg by keeping it straight and by lifting up the other leg
    • Return to position 1
    • Do 2 sets of 15 each day
  • 2. HEEL RAISE
    • Stand straight behind a chair. & using the chair as a support, raise your body up onto your toes and hold for 5 seconds
    • Slowly lower yourself without support
    • Do 2 sets of 15 with 30 seconds, rest between each sets
  • 3. STANDING CALF STRETCH
    • Stand facing the wall by keeping your hands on it
    • Keep the affected leg back with your heel on the floor, with the foot slightly turned inward & the other leg forward with knee bent
    • Slowly lean onto the wall until you feel a stretch in the back of the calf of your affected foot
    • Hold the stretch for 30 seconds & then return to position 1
    • Repeat 10 times
  • 4. STANDING SOLEUS STRETCH
    • Stand with both knees bent, and the involved foot back
    • Gently lean onto the wall until a stretch is felt in the calf
    • Hold this position for 30 seconds & then return to position 1
    • Repeat 10 times
  • 5. ACHILLES STRETCH
    • Stand with the balls of the affected foot on a step of a stair and the portion outside the stair unsupported
    • Reach for the step below with your heel until you feel a stretch
    • Hold this position for 30 seconds
    • Repeat 10 times
  • 6. TOWEL STRETCH
    • Sit with the knees straight and a towel looped around the affected leg
    • Gently pull on the towel towards your body until a comfortable stretch is felt in that calf muscle
    • Hold this position for 30 seconds and then relax
    • Repeat 10 times
  • 7. SIDE-LYING LEG LIFT
    • Lie on the unaffected side and tighten the thigh muscles
    • Lift the affected leg 10 inches away from the other leg and keep the leg straight
    • Return to position 1
    • Do 2 sets of 15
  • 8. BALANCE AND REACH EXERCISE
    • Stand straight next to a chair with your affected leg farther from it
    • Pull back the other leg behind its arch, so as to keep the big toe only touching the floor
    • (A) With the hand that is farther away from the chair, reach forward by bending at the waist only (not the knee)
    • Repeat this 10 times. To make the exercise more challenging, reach farther in front of you. Do 2 sets of 10
    • (B) Stand in the same position as 2. Reach the hand that is farther away from the chair across your body towards the chair. The farther you reach, the more challenging is the exercise. Do 2 sets of 10