#715 Can running on the road cause Achilles tendinitis in one leg and calf strain on the other?

Achilles tendon injury on one leg and a calf muscle strain on the other leg?

Talk about a bummer: 2-for-the-price-of-1 overtraining injuries! Yes, it is possible to get similar running injuries on opposite legs, at the same time.

Today I had a conversation with a runner who has developed both of these injuries from running. These are actually just opposite ends of the same biomechanical spectrum at work. During the call I was explaining to him how it can happen, and how he could make some simple changes to prevent it from happening again in the future.

How can running on the road cause Achilles tendinitis in one leg and calf strain on the other? Well, that’s what we’re talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast!

#381 How are tight calves related to metatarsal stress fractures?

This episode comes from a question from a runner, who wanted to know what it means when calf muscles are tight and you have metatarsal stress fractures.
He wrote in and said, “Hey doc, I meant to inquire about stress fractures in the metatarsal joints and how you can tell. I have a friend who’s experienced a stress fracture, and he says his calves seemed to tighten up when the pain developed.”
There are really two ways tight calf muscles can be related to metatarsal stress fractures. One is the cause. The other is an effect.
Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast, we’re talking about how tight calves are related to metatarsal stress fractures in runners.

#377 Does plantar plate sprain cause tight calves

A plantar plate ligament sprain can cause aching pain in the ball of the foot when you run.

Plantar plate sprains are caused by excess stress applied to the ligament at the base of the toe. 

If you want to heal it and keep running, you have to decrease the stress and strain on the plantar plate, and address the root cause of the injury.

A runner with a plantar plate sprain, and tight calf muscles, had a great question:

Does the plantar plate ligament cause tight calf muscles, or can a tight calf muscle cause a plantar plate sprain?

Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast, we’re talking about whether a plantar plate sprain causes tight calf muscles in runners, or other way around.