So, I started running again (finally) last week. All in all, the Achilles seems to be tolerating it reasonably well. It’s still a bit sore on the following day, but nothing that can’t be handled.
The soreness is a little disturbing to me, as I wonder what will happen as I slowly start to increase mileage. But at the same time, it’s expected. While I’ve been focusing on flexibility over the last few months, I’ve added strengthening exercises to the regimen.
Initially, I had resisted the thought that I need to strengthen my lower legs. After all, I had completed my first marathon a couple of years ago, and had been running six days a week ahead of that. But when you spend more time on the shelf than running for an extended period of time, those balancing muscles have plenty of time to atrophy, so….
So I caved, and have been focusing on both overall strength (heel drops, heel extensions) as well as doing some focused exercises aimed at the foot muscles and balance.
The Runnin' Major 