Concept2 Forum

Over the summer (June), I injured both of my achilles tendons while doing long ergs. I have spent the past 6+ months battling with the injury, which is very frustrating. Though the typical methods have helped (rest, ice+heat, massages, and eccentric heel drops), I simply cannot get back on the erg without reinjuring myself. Even though I've committed to 3/4 slide and not lifting my heels off the ground, one easy-moderate workout will set me back a week or more in terms of recovery.
At this point, I'm losing hope that I'll ever be able to seriously train pain-free. I'm hoping that this forum might have more biomechanical knowledge than me and might be able to help. Is there any way to take pressure off of my tendon on the erg? I'm trying to push more from my heel than the ball of my foot, but that doesn't seem to help. Can anyone weigh in on what I can do to make using the erg less disastrous on my recovery?

A small search on the forum wasn't encouraging. This topic poster got several well-meant suggestions but his doctor adviced him to switch to a stationary bike.

Possibly putting your erg on slides might help you to combine an intensive workout with low tendon stresses.

You may find more useful advice in this general survey of tendonitis. Chapter 12 seems especially relevant.

Are these the symptoms you are seeing ? https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-con ... c-20369020

If so, 6 months of nursing your Achilles tendons is a long time (assuming nothing tore). Assume these were the home care steps you took. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-con ... c-20369025 "Tendinitis usually responds well to self-care measures."

Have you seen a doctor? They may be able to discover what is hurt, and have suggestions on how to strengthen it.

I personally would not continue to row and aggravate your Achilles. Not after 6 months of trying.

Can anyone weigh in on what I can do to make using the erg less disastrous on my recovery?

Usual recommendations are low feet so that the straps are over the toes, low drag, and keep the slide well away from your heels. Muscle if used correctly as to posture should not be able to damage itself.

There's no front stop on the erg, but a rope tied round the rail at about 50cm from heels has the same effect.

If necessary, stay on the backstop, using arms and swing only. Fixed seat rowing is tough too.

My accidents to MTUs have always been due to bad posture and accidentally high external load, sometimes absolutely banal, even lifting a teapot. It always takes a long time to get rid of.

From my personal experience and also observing and talking to others, different types of tendonitis or overload syndromes are caused by - surprise - overload. Too fast too much, too fast too heavy. Tendons need much more time to adapt, so they need to get the time, even if the cv system is already capable of doing 2h+ rows or runs. Tendons are not, when performing new exercises or using new machines.
The machine itself is typically not the root cause, even if it has some flaws.

You need to stop the movement which triggers the tendons load until the tendon is healed, which takes long time. Otherwise the chronic state will not disappear.

Will, have you considered trying something like the SkiErg for a while? This won't help you on the rower, but it would give you a very good cardio alternative and therefore time to let the tendon heal 100%. Never having used one myself, I don't know how easy it is to minimize the loads on your achilles tendon - the C2 video at the link below shows varying degrees of heel lift - but they also show the worst-case scenario, where you use the SkiErg sitting down, in which case you're 100% sure to not load your lower body, but you could still get a good workout.

Good Luck

C2 SkiErg video:

https://youtu.be/B0lIgT5PHc8

jamesg wrote: ↑

January 29th, 2023, 2:41 am

There's no front stop on the erg, but a rope tied round the rail at about 50cm from heels has the same effect.

I used to overcompress, which I typically experienced by overloaded knees. I used a small piece of tape on my RowErg. This has the benefit of really sticking in one place, giving me a bump when I cross it. This allowed me to discover what the most optimal return point for my knees was (if my knees got wobbly, I moved the tape a centimeter back, let my knees recover and repeated the experiment).

Ombrax wrote: ↑

January 29th, 2023, 4:20 am

Will, have you considered trying something like the SkiErg for a while? This won't help you on the rower, but it would give you a very good cardio alternative and therefore time to let the tendon heal 100%. Never having used one myself, I don't know how easy it is to minimize the loads on your achilles tendon - the C2 video at the link below shows varying degrees of heel lift - but they also show the worst-case scenario, where you use the SkiErg sitting down, in which case you're 100% sure to not load your lower body, but you could still get a good workout.

Good Luck

C2 SkiErg video:

https://youtu.be/B0lIgT5PHc8

I'm having a flare up of morton's neuroma and am using the skierg now. It's taken the pressure off the ball of my feet (and achilles).

Sakly wrote: ↑

January 29th, 2023, 4:04 am

You need to stop the movement which triggers the tendons load until the tendon is healed, which takes long time. Otherwise the chronic state will not disappear.

I was rowing with a numb foot that kept getting worse until I finally saw a doc. Simple advice but not what I wanted to hear.

Slidewinder wrote: ↑

January 29th, 2023, 11:08 am

My advice would be to follow username STC's example (in the 2011 thread linked by Nomath) and quit the RowErg. Why continue to use this machine when there is such a risk of injury? My advice also extends to all those who suffer from chronic wrist and elbow pain. A machine that does not adapt to your natural movement but forces you to adapt to it does not have to be part of your life. Quit. You are not to blame for your injuries. The machine is.

If you dislike everything about Concept 2 ergs, why do you keep posting? Have you nothing better to do?

WillDo wrote: ↑

January 28th, 2023, 4:00 pm

At this point, I'm losing hope that I'll ever be able to seriously train pain-free. I'm hoping that this forum might have more biomechanical knowledge than me and might be able to help. Is there any way to take pressure off of my tendon on the erg? I'm trying to push more from my heel than the ball of my foot, but that doesn't seem to help. Can anyone weigh in on what I can do to make using the erg less disastrous on my recovery?

I found this thread for you: viewtopic.php?t=188184

Perhaps the solution proposed their (slides, but also fitting a rotating footplate from a boat) might help you.

Slidewinder wrote: ↑

January 29th, 2023, 11:08 am

Why continue to use this machine when there is such a risk of injury?

Why get out of bed or out of the house? Everything you do contains some risk. Life becomes much more interesting when you take it.

Slidewinder wrote: ↑

January 29th, 2023, 11:08 am

Quit.

That is your typical destructive approach found in many threads. In this forum we want to help people stay active despite their limitations, hopefully overcoming them. People like WillDo deserve respect for their perseverance and certainly deserve our help to overcome this.

Your destructive and defeatist attitude is respectless to the OP. Like my grandmother used to say: "If you have nothing positive to contribute, shut up"

Slidewinder wrote: ↑

January 29th, 2023, 3:01 pm

"From using the erg daily I riddled my body with tendonitus."
"My doctor now tells me, absolutely no more erging."

These are the important parts.
Too much too soon. This is the main reason for every issue.
And asking doctors about physical exercises is often not a good idea. Many of them don't know what they are doing.
If you have issues due to overload you have to stop until healed, true. These issues are not triggered by the machine, they are triggered from the high load or the high amount of repetitions you are doing and not used to. If you ignore the signs it's your own fault, not a flaw of the machine.

I am not convinced that the rotating foot plate will do something good. You need to control the force applied anyway, the tendon will have to work anyway, you will trigger the tendon again for 1000th of movements again, but probably with less stress.
My advice again: use other activities until your tendon is healed (this takes time!) and then go back on your rower and start gradually!

My advice would be to follow username STC's example (in the 2011 thread linked by Nomath) and quit the RowErg.

And then? Please suggest some better alternative. I've been rowing on and off, wet and dry, for seventy years with no injuries, apart from blisters, so consider it safe enough. Sweep, scull and erg.

Falling off bikes has broke me a few ribs. Should I blame the bike? Walking I've even twisted an ankle. Do I blame the path?

Capsizing a kayak I nearly drowned and it was very cold. What do I blame, the water or the boat?

Sakly wrote: ↑

January 30th, 2023, 1:32 am

I am not convinced that the rotating foot plate will do something good. You need to control the force applied anyway, the tendon will have to work anyway, you will trigger the tendon again for 1000th of movements again, but probably with less stress.

I think it will depend on what the stressor really is: if it is an overstretching of the Achilles, it might remove the trigger. But if it is the many repeated movements, I have to agree with you.

Sakly wrote: ↑

January 30th, 2023, 1:32 am

My advice again: use other activities until your tendon is healed (this takes time!) and then go back on your rower and start gradually!

I completely agree with you and I would like to add that gradually can mean a lot of restrictions at the start and a very slow loosening of them. When I tore my biceps in March, I was allowed to row again in May, but only 1000 meters at a time, once a week, at df 70, at 100w and 18SPM (yeah, my physio rowed as well, he knew how to box me in...). In essence, I could only row 5 minutes a week, at an agonizing slow pace with absolutely no resistance (for me). When I could do that for two weeks without pain, I was allowed to slowly increase one of these parameters. Its 9 months ago, and I am still getting back to my old level. But I also learned that rushing my healing process will bring me back to where I started. On the plus side, as my ego was completely out of the picture, I had lots of rows with a strong focus on technique.

Thread cleaned of Slidewinder's noise.