The Best Way to Treat a Sore Achilles Tendon

The Best Way to Treat a Sore Achilles Tendon

The Achilles tendon connects your calf muscle to your heel bone. It's what you use when you jump, walk, run or stand on your toes. As you can imagine, you use it quite a lot daily and even more so if you participate in sports like running, hiking, climbing, basketball or tennis.

A sore Achilles tendon or Achilles tendinitis is a common condition that can affect anyone, from those living a sedentary life to amateur athletes.

Some of the activities that can lead to a sore Achilles tendon include:

• working out without a proper warmup
• repeated exercise or physical activity that strains the calf muscles
• playing intense sports like tennis that involve sudden stops and changes of direction
• wearing high heels daily or for long periods
• a sudden increase in training without allowing your body to adjust
• wearing poorly fitting or old shoes

If the pain is worse and does not go away, it could be a torn Achilles tendon that requires surgery.

However, if your foot specialist diagnoses a sore Achilles tendon, here are the best ways to treat it.

RICE Treatment

RICE is an acronym that stands for Rest, Ice, Compress and Elevate.

Rest

Rest the sore Achilles tendon by staying off your feet for one or two days or using a crutch. The tendon will heal faster when no additional strain is put on it.

Ice

Take an icepack and wrap it in a cloth and compress the sore area for 10-20 minutes with 10-minute breaks in between. The cold helps reduce inflammation and pain.

Compression

Wrap a bandage or any other cloth moderately tightly around the sore tendon to prevent further swelling and stabilize the joint. Don't tie too tight as this might limit blood flow.

Elevate

Raise your foot above your chest while lying down. This posture helps blood flow back to your heart, reducing pressure within your feet's blood vessels and, by extension, your sore Achilles tendon.

Other Home Remedies

Besides the RICE treatment, here are several other home remedies you can try:

• switch from a demanding sport like tennis to walking, at least until the soreness subsides.
• do gentle calf stretches and exercises to limber your calf area and tone the muscle for better support
• wear a brace or boot to reduce the pressure on the Achilles tendon
• get regular lower leg and foot massages to relieve pressure and tension in the area
• take painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs for a limited time
• wear a shoe with a raised heel to reduce the direct pressure on the Achilles tendon

Sore Achilles Tendon Complications

In most cases, the remedies above offer relief after a few weeks. However, it is essential to know of possible complications that might arise from a sore Achilles tendon, which are:

• deformed tendon or heel bone from excessive, unmitigated pressure
• chronic pain
• inability to walk due to a stiff and painful Achilles tendon
• Achilles rupture that will need surgical repair

If soreness persists past two weeks despite following the remedies above, consult a foot specialist so they can assess the area and determine if there might be a more serious underlying issue.