How does the eccentric heel drop help my achilles get better faster?
The strength protocol consists of two exercises: a straight-kneed and a bent-kneed eccentric heel drop.The protocol calls for three sets of fifteen heel drops, both bent-kneed and straight-kneed, twice a day for twelve weeks.
Standing on a step with your ankles plantarflexed (at the top of a “calf raise”), shift all of your weight onto the injured leg.
Slowly use your calf muscles to lower your body
down, dropping your heel beneath your forefoot. Use your uninjured leg
to return to the “up” position. Do not use the injured side to get back to the “up” position!
The exercise is designed to cause some pain, and you are
encouraged to continue doing it even with moderate discomfort. You
should stop if the pain is excruciating, however.
Once you are able to do the heel drops without any pain,
progressively add weight using a backpack. If you are unlucky enough to
have Achilles tendon problems on both sides, use a step to help you get back to the “up” position, using your quads instead of your calves to return up.
What’s the bottom line?
The eccentric exercises are thought to selectively damage
the Achilles tendon, stripping away the misaligned tendon fibers and
allowing the body to lay down new fibers that are closer in alignment to
the healthy collagen in the tendon.
This is why moderate pain during the exercises is a good thing, and why adding weight over time is necessary to progressively strengthen the tendon.
