This guest post is from Runners’ Edge Alaska, a full-service sports physical therapy business in Anchorage. This is sponsored content; Runners’ Edge writes the posts, which I am editing for house style and little else, and has paid me for this exposure. I deeply appreciate their support of this site.
But this is also really good and helpful content, from a business that I think the world of. Runners’ Edge Alaska has kept me on track as I pursue my Masters athlete dreams, has helped my septuagenarian mother maintain bone health and overall strength and mobility as she moves into her 70s, and, by the way, has helped basically the entire U.S. Ski Team perform at their best over the past decade. Runners’ Edge Alaska has been at the last two Olympics and five World Championships as staff PT; you should listen to them when they talk about strength, mobility, nutrition, or other topics of interest to cross-country skiers of all ages.
Previously in this series: introducing the role of the physical therapist in high-level nordic ski racing, and things to keep in mind when transitioning from a winter of skiing to a spring and summer of running. Today: how to respond to tendon pain. And all the time: follow Runners’ Edge on Instagram for tips, tricks, balance and strengthening drills, and more.
— Gavin Kentch
Embed from Getty ImagesRunners’ Edge Alaska is in the far bottom right of this photo, sunglasses on orange hat, holding a plush Bing Dwen Dwen giant panda mascot draped in a garland of faux gold laurel leaves. If they’re good enough for the U.S. Ski Team at the Olympics, they’re good enough for you.
Tendon Pain DOs and DON’Ts
By Zuzana Rogers, PT, ScD, SCS, COMT
IOC Diploma in Sports Physical Therapy
Physiotherapist for the U.S. National Cross Country Ski Team
Is tendon pain keeping you from things you love to do? Is it keeping you from optimal training? Here are some do’s and dont’s to keep in mind if tendon pain is impeding your training this summer.
Don’t: Rest completely. Resting decreases the ability of the tendon to take load.
Do: Reduce loads to a level that the tendon can tolerate and then slowly increase it.
Don’t: Use only passive treatments. Ice or heat can give you temporary relief but won’t improve the ability of the tendon to take loads.
Do: Address possible inflammation and scar tissue with targeted manual therapy followed by an exercise program that gradually increases safe loads to the tendon.
Don’t: Have injection treatments that inject a substance into the tendon. Clinical trials do not support these treatments. Injections to the proximity of the tendon can be recommended if the tendon has not responded to an exercise and manual therapy base program.
Don’t: Ignore your pain.
Do: Manage the loads on your tendon accordingly; pain is a way of telling you that the load is too much. Reduce the aspects of training that are overloading your tendon. The highest loads are when you are using your tendon as a spring (jumping, sprinting).
Don’t: Stretch your painful tendon aggressively; vigorous stretching can add compressive loads that are detrimental to healing.
Do: Follow a predetermined mobility and load regimen (talk to your physical therapist about it).
Don’t: Take shortcuts with your rehabilitation. The tendon needs to build its strength and load capacity, which takes time.
Do: Set reachable goals and follow a path to full healing. Talk to your physical therapist; they can create a progressive exercise program that suits your tendon’s loading needs.
Source: Prof Jill Cook PT, PhD, Professor of Musculoskeletal Health, La Trobe Sport and Exercise Research Centre, Melbourne, Australia.
Disclaimer: Since we don’t know you and we can’t perform a detailed examination, responses are general tips only and not medical or physical therapy advice. If you need detailed answers to your questions, please contact us directly.
