Those of you who have been following my blog know that I have been trying to rehab my left heal for the last 6 weeks after breaking three ribs two weeks earlier. The heel has been bothering me for well over two years now. The ribs are completely healed and I have started running again. Day one of running was yesterday for a slow 2 miles and day two was today for an even slower 4 miles with a dew point of 60 degrees. Very muggy run! Glad it was only two miles.
The heel was a little sore about 3 hours after my run
yesterday and today it was a little sore and tight before I ran but not enough
to cause a limp. The pain is kind of a warm burning sensation right at the
attachment of the Achilles to the heel bone. As I started running this morning
I had a little more ache, than when I was just walking, to the heel for the
first half-mile then it went away and I was fine for the rest of the run. After
the run I could feel a deep burning sensation just like before I started. It
was the same feeling I had before starting rehab only not as intense. The rehab
consisted of wearing a boot to keep the heel stationary, and twice a week
physical therapy to strengthen my foot, calf and soleus muscles.
While I am not back to where I was when I started therapy, I
can tell that the heel is basically doing the same thing as before. I will take
tomorrow off and see if that helps but I am not confident that it will do much
but calm down a little and then flare up when I run again. This is very
frustrating! I feel as though I have wasted 8 weeks that I could have been
running and would have only lost 2-3 weeks from the ribs.
I guess I will try and run 3 days a week, cycle 2-3 days and
swim one or two days. Swimming can be done on the same day as a run or bike ride.
Hopefully by cross training in this way I can still maintain my running fitness
without aggravating the heel much more.
From here I guess I need to continue to try and convince the
doctor(s) to help me find the true source of my problem. I still feel that it
is a nerve problem stemming from my lower back, my hip or the piriformis muscle
in the buttock area. This is called Piriformis Syndrome. This muscle can get inflamed and cause the
sciatic nerve to become inflamed and subsequently affect the whole leg all the
way down to the foot. The problem is getting insurance to cover doing the MRI,s
needed to see exactly where the inflammation is occurring. Ugh, it is all so
frustrating.
Either way I have decided to train for the Tucson marathon
on December 8th. I should
have plenty of time to train for it as it is about 19 weeks away. That gives me
16 weeks of training and 3 weeks to taper. Hoping to run 6-8 miles this Sunday,
even if it is really slow.
Bottom line is that the conservative treatment, with
therapy, has not worked at all. I didn’t really expect it to but I was hopeful,
and that kept me focused during the whole ordeal. Here’s to hoping for
miracles. I can run but I am held back from doing my best because of this
stupid heel. Here goes cross training. I’ll keep you posted. Thanks for letting
me vent! LOL!
Happy Trails,
Russ
PS. The interview with the Jester, AKA Ed Ettinghausen is in
the works. Hopefully I will have it all ready sometime early next week.
Did you voice your concerns to the PT about Achilles vs sciatic? What type of treatment are you getting at PT?
ReplyDeleteThey just did strengthening and stretching exorcised for the foot, calf and soleus. I was in a hard boot for 6 weeks to keep the ankle and heel from otherwise moving even in bed. I did voice my concern and they tend to agree. I will be trying to get another doctor appt. this coming Monday. It will probably be at least 4 weeks before I can see him.
DeleteJust wondering, Russell, has plantar fasciitis been discussed and/or ruled out? Some of the symptoms you describe sound very similar to what I've been going through the last few months. Just out of curiosity, what does your daily rehab regimen look like? Particularly pre- and post runs?
ReplyDeleteHi Brian, Yes, plantar fasciitis has been ruled out. I have been diagnosed with achilles insertional calcific tendinosis. Pre and post runs consist mainly of runners stretch with strait leg and bent leg 3 times for 30 seconds and also mid-day. Same thing if I don't run. I am also doing heel raises to strengthen the Soleus and calf. I do a foot exorcise where I use a stretch cord and pull my foot to the inside of my body and act as if I am pulling a towel toward my other foot. I also do one foot balancing on soft material to strengthen the foot muscles. I just started running again. 3 days ago.
DeleteI also have chronic piriformis syndrome which seems to strangle my sciatic nerve. Sitting for long periods really aggravates that. Also speed running aggravates it more as well as the heel. If I sit in a chair and cross my right foot over my left leg then bend forward I sometimes get a shock like sensation from my hip all the way to my heel and foot. That and the piriformis has been relieved a little from an epidural block in my sacroiliac two weeks ago but it is also starting to go back to the original symptoms now.
My therapist said he believes that it is nerve centered. Three weeks ago when he had me do heel raises, strait leg and bent leg, dropping my heel about 2 inches for the first time, I was almost crippled the next three days from DOMS in my left calf and soleus, I did the same routine on my right side and just had normal soreness on that side.