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What is achilles tendinopathy?
Achilles tendinopathy is the irritation and inflammation of the band of tissue (tendon) that connects the muscles in your lower leg (calf muscles) to your heel bone (calcaneus bone).
The function of your Achilles Tendon is to help in bending your foot downwards at the ankle (this movement is called plantar flexion). Achilles Tendon is a very strong fibrous and robust tendon but sometimes it does get injured causing a lot of pain.
What causes achilles tendinopathy?
Achilles Tendinopathy is usually caused by overuse, which means repeated stress on your Achilles Tendon for long period of time. This can cause mechanical changes to your actual tendon and sometimes tears, making the tendon a lot weaker.
Any sports that put stress on your tendon can lead to achilles tendinopathy. This includes sports like basketball, gymnastics, squash, football and tennis.
Other causes of achilles tendinopathy could be:
Poor or wrong footwear
Poor technique in your sport that you might do
Doing too much too soon, being inactive for toon long
Overtraining
Running on sloping surfaces
Being overweight
Previous injuries in the calf muscles , ankle or achilles tendon