- Recovery Roadmap
Achilles Tendonitis / Tear
“Building the Ultimate Energy Spring”
What this injury usually needs
Tendon rehab is all about load management. We must build a ‘stiff’ spring that can handle the massive forces of sprinting and jumping.
3 Common Mistakes
- ✕Only doing stretching (which can sometimes irritate the tendon further).
- ✕Avoiding load entirely, which leads to a weaker, more sensitive tendon.
- ✕Returning to sprinting before the calf can handle 30+ single-leg heel raises.
3 Priorities
- Heavy slow resistance training to build tendon stiffness.
- Restoring full calf strength and endurance.
- Progressive introduction of ‘spring’ loading (plyometrics).
Tendon Stiffness
High
Heel Raises
30+ Reps
Hopping LSI
>90%
The Performance Continuum
1
Protection
Early ROM restoration and quad 'wake-up' while protecting the graft site.
2
Functional Restoration
Achieving perfect terminal knee extension and symmetric walking mechanics.
3
Progressive Overload
Heavy isolated strength work to rebuild the quadriceps and hamstring foundation.
4
Impact
Slow-speed plyometrics and landing mechanics training.
5
Deceleration
Shift to high-velocity movements and braking capacity drills.
6
Return to Sport
Sport-specific drills where movement is dictated by external cues and chaos.
Criteria, Not
Calendars.
Standard therapy asks “How many weeks since surgery?”. We ask “What is your rate of force development?”. Our roadmap ensures you never progress to a phase your body isn’t ready to handle.
- Quantitative Strength Testing (Force Plates)
- Psychological Readiness Assessment
- Reactive Movement Screening
- Continuous Biometric Monitoring