Soft tissue damage to foot - recovery time?
GyatsoLa
Posts: 667
Just before New Year I unwisely went for a run on pavement wearing light trail shoes. The result was a very painful heel which I couldn't put weight on. I went to a local clinic as I was afraid of achilles damage or a fracture to the heel, but the orthopedic nurse who checked it said there was no tendon or bone damage, it was 'soft tissue damage around the heel' and advised me to keep a compression bandage on during the day for a week or so and rest it, with some massage and stretching in the morning to ease pressure on it, and get back to fitness gently. She said rather vaguely that it could take up to 6 weeks to heal, and that I should see a physio if it wasn't recovering correctly (I do have a regular physio but she is on a career break at the moment so I can't contact her).
The heel is much better now, I can walk normally, but not hop, jump or put much pressure on it. I've ridden an hour or so on my city commute bike and it felt a little sore after, but generally ok. I am very prone to foot and knee damage - ironically, the reason I was running is that I was advised to do more 'impact' exercises to strengthen bone and joints (almost all my exercise was on the bike).
I'm usually a little impatient to get back to exercise, and I've damaged myself in the past by pushing too hard when recovering, so I'm reluctant to do the same again. My winter exercise regime is usually one pilates/circuit class a week, one long 100km road ride or 2-4 hour mtb ride in a trail center, and/or long hill walk over the weekend (depending on weather), and 4 hours or so on the bike during the week commuting.
So the question is with 'soft tissue' damage to the heel area of the foot, is it better that I wait until it stops being sore before putting anything other than gentle pressure on it, or will it respond better to a reasonable level of pressure and exercise? i.e should I just get back to my usual routine now that I can walk, or am I risking further damage?
The heel is much better now, I can walk normally, but not hop, jump or put much pressure on it. I've ridden an hour or so on my city commute bike and it felt a little sore after, but generally ok. I am very prone to foot and knee damage - ironically, the reason I was running is that I was advised to do more 'impact' exercises to strengthen bone and joints (almost all my exercise was on the bike).
I'm usually a little impatient to get back to exercise, and I've damaged myself in the past by pushing too hard when recovering, so I'm reluctant to do the same again. My winter exercise regime is usually one pilates/circuit class a week, one long 100km road ride or 2-4 hour mtb ride in a trail center, and/or long hill walk over the weekend (depending on weather), and 4 hours or so on the bike during the week commuting.
So the question is with 'soft tissue' damage to the heel area of the foot, is it better that I wait until it stops being sore before putting anything other than gentle pressure on it, or will it respond better to a reasonable level of pressure and exercise? i.e should I just get back to my usual routine now that I can walk, or am I risking further damage?
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