Active Ageing

Tendon injuries are one of most common injuries we see at NK Active. They are commonly called tendinitis (not technically true, we shall cover this in the facts section). The reason why we get tendon injuries is that there has been a change in activity or load and the tendon can’t tolerate that load anymore. This could be in the short term for example going from walking 10k a week to 40k a week. It could be cumulative loading over time and you just need a small event to trigger symptoms, we call this the iceberg effect, as 80% of symptoms have not been seen, however you are only aware of the last 20%. There is also underloading, so taking a period of time of your activity then returning to the same level a few months later.
Typically tendon injuries will present with stiffness in the morning, particularly the morning after some exercise, pain may reduce during exercise. The effected tendon may hurt to palpate and you may notice some thickening of the tendon if it has been going on a while.

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How we treat in clinic

Understanding why the tendon got injured in the first place, then educate you on why It happened. Education is important, because the majority of tendon injuries are related to a ‘training error’

Normally a tendon loading and rehabilitation program is the gold standard and starting point to help build up strength. This helps the tendon and it’s muscle get ready for the jobs it is needed to do.

Shockwave therapy can be helpful in reducing symptoms and helping you get back to activity quicker.

If you have a long history of tendon injuries in the lower limb then a 3D gait analysis can be useful to see if the way you are walking or running could be aggravating the problem. In some causes the use of insoles (orthoses to give them their proper name can be helpful) along with footwear advice or gait re-education.

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Our results

Here at NK Active, we audit all of our data, so we can contestantly improve our serivce and make sure we are helping you acheive your goals.

We know that 98% of people once they have finsihed treatment, 6 months later are still doing all their work and daily activites.

Tendon Injury Facts

  • We use the term tendinopathy not tendinitis, as the suffix ‘itis’ means inflammation and current research suggests It is not inflammation
  • Pain doesn’t correlate with injury, it is perfectly normal to have some pain from time to time. Research suggests up to 4/10 (10 been worst pain) is ok
  •  Do not stretch an unhappy tendon, it will not thank you for it, think strength not stretching.
  • Rest is just as bad as over doing it, tendons love to be loaded and if you rest completely you can start to decondition.
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What are people saying?

A second to none service from diagnosis to discharge. NK Active has helped me recover from an achilles injury sustained whilst playing hockey in a professional, thorough and most importantly enjoyable manner. I have also seen my strength improve significantly since completing the five session programme to a level greater than pre-injury. Huge thanks to Charlie!

Thomas Sullivan

Google Review

I was referred to Nick after another specialist was unable to resolve a long standing Achilles injury. Unlike previous physios and specialists, Nick was keen to find the cause rather than provide a short term resolution.

A detailed analysis showed actual deficiencies (with metric to back them up). This allowed me to remove the expensive and heavy orthotics previously prescribed.

A remedial plan specific to me was put in place with regular checkpoints and amendments as we progressed.

I found Nick genuinely wanted to fix me and even after our consultation is keen to hear of my progress

Mike Widdowson

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