Help reduce achilles tendon pain with this eccentric exercise

This is another exercise that was given to me by my physiotherapist when I first saw her complaining of achilles tendon pain.

First of all, what does eccentric mean?

An eccentric exercise is an exercise that stretches the muscle whilst the muscle is under strain. So, in the case of this exercise, the calf is lengthening, but at the same time it’s working against gravity to control the ankle.

How to do the achilles tendon eccentric exercise

1. Stand on a step on the tiptoes of one foot. The other foot should be in the air, and you should only support yourself lightly with your hands. This is obviously easiest if performed on a step/stair with a bannister!

2. Lower your heel of your supporting foot until it is below the level of the step.

3. Return to the starting position, but do this by placing your weight on the other foot. You should not perform a standard calf raise to get back to the starting position.

4. Repeat this 15 times on each leg. Start with one set and build up to 3 sets. Once comfortable carrying out the exercise with straight legs, perform with the leg taking the load slightly bent.

NOTE: Take care with this exercise to start with. After the first couple of days I had a feeling of too much stretching right in the base of my heel right at the bottom of the achilles tendon. Progress can be very slow with a repairing achilles tendon!