In the past we’ve discussed the achilles tendon and the various problems with it such as achilles tendon tear treatments. I learned something today while looking up David Ortiz’s latest injury, which is achilles tendon based. I say based since there was confusion as to what the specific injury was at the time. A second opinion agreed with the first that it wasn’t torn.
This is a good thing for Ortiz and a bad thing for the Red Sox. Ortiz won’t have a horrendous road back like Ryan Howard did after his tear, but the Red Sox lose Ortiz for 15 days.
What caught my eye in the report was this from manager, Bobby Valentine:
He has a right strained heel, Achilles’ attachment type thing. It’s something he’s had before.
Interesting.
This lead to a long chase on chronic achilles injuries and how to recover from them. Maybe I’ll go over that in the future, but I did learn that there are two no tear issues with the achilles tendon: tenonitis and tendinosis. Depending on which you have you’re in for a bumpy recovery.
Achilles tendonitis is the one you want
The easiest one to fix is achilles tendonitis, which means you’ve irritated the achilles tendon. No problem since it is usually caused by something you did or change to make it upset. Yes, I am personalizing the tendon.
Changing your workout routine, not stretching, changing gym shoes or simply over working can cause the tendonitis. You’ll know the tendon is hurt if it affects you not when you are working out, but when you’ve rested. This will be a slam dunk selection if it hurts when you wake up in the morning and take your first step.
Achilles tendinosis is the devil you want to avoid
Tendinosis can be thought of as a condition that builds over time. Repeated injuries to the tendon, usually small tears, compound over time leading to a thick, tough tendon. This doesn’t allow proper stretching or range of motion. Luckily, this isn’t what David Ortiz has since his symptoms include something that is missing from tendinosis … inflammation.
Treatment options for tendinosis include:
- Physical therapy
- Massage
- Surgery
You don’t want to have surgery if you can avoid it, which Ortiz looks like he doesn’t need.