Hi Cathe and/or anyone else who can help with this -
Years ago when I thought I was the "step aerobics queen of the universe" (this was long before I knew that Cathe holds that title!;-) ) I used a 10" step and *pounded* the floor during repeaters etc. thinking that helped me work harderx(. These workouts were all followed by a "token" warm up with 5 second stretches to the calves.
As a result of my ignorance (and poor instruction) - I got a mean case of achilles tendinitis which I used as an excuse to stop working out for about 4 years. It really was bad though - my tendons would "crackle" they were so damaged, and I still have scar tissue nodules.
Now that I'm older and wiser, and appreciate Cathe for her excellent warm-ups and stretches and for her careful instruction on technique (no pounding the floor!), I am enjoying step aerobics again. I am careful to stretch my calves extremely well before and after each workout, I use a 6" step height (which with Cathe is plenty challenging!), and I now know that good form is essential to a safe step workout.
I've been doing step aerobics 4-5x/week for about 2 years now, but lately, in spite of being far more careful, I'm starting to notice a lot of tightness and some soreness in my achilles tendons during workouts that doesn't seem to go away with stretches.
My question is - am I risking another bad case of tendinitis if I continue step workouts in spite of my preventive measures? Or can I safely continue as long as I make sure to stretch the calves before, during, after workouts and even throughout the day?
I stretch the muscles in different ways each time too so that I'm sure to hit each muscle in the group. E.g. hanging heels off the step, extending leg behind me while leaning against the wall, holding the hamstring stretch for a long time to get all the rear leg muscles,and sitting on the floor pulling my toes toward me (usually do this one post-workout).
Any advice that will help keep me on the step without risking a repetitive stress injury to my achilles tendon will be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
Years ago when I thought I was the "step aerobics queen of the universe" (this was long before I knew that Cathe holds that title!;-) ) I used a 10" step and *pounded* the floor during repeaters etc. thinking that helped me work harderx(. These workouts were all followed by a "token" warm up with 5 second stretches to the calves.
As a result of my ignorance (and poor instruction) - I got a mean case of achilles tendinitis which I used as an excuse to stop working out for about 4 years. It really was bad though - my tendons would "crackle" they were so damaged, and I still have scar tissue nodules.
Now that I'm older and wiser, and appreciate Cathe for her excellent warm-ups and stretches and for her careful instruction on technique (no pounding the floor!), I am enjoying step aerobics again. I am careful to stretch my calves extremely well before and after each workout, I use a 6" step height (which with Cathe is plenty challenging!), and I now know that good form is essential to a safe step workout.
I've been doing step aerobics 4-5x/week for about 2 years now, but lately, in spite of being far more careful, I'm starting to notice a lot of tightness and some soreness in my achilles tendons during workouts that doesn't seem to go away with stretches.
My question is - am I risking another bad case of tendinitis if I continue step workouts in spite of my preventive measures? Or can I safely continue as long as I make sure to stretch the calves before, during, after workouts and even throughout the day?
I stretch the muscles in different ways each time too so that I'm sure to hit each muscle in the group. E.g. hanging heels off the step, extending leg behind me while leaning against the wall, holding the hamstring stretch for a long time to get all the rear leg muscles,and sitting on the floor pulling my toes toward me (usually do this one post-workout).
Any advice that will help keep me on the step without risking a repetitive stress injury to my achilles tendon will be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!