Hello, all. I'm 50, and am currently working to get myself back into shape before I enter a police academy. Several weeks ago I was running (dirt trail, some hills, distance of 3/4 mile). On the final stretch, I felt some pain in the left Achilles' Tendon (AT). I stopped running, figuring I had overused it, and would let time heal the injury.

A week after the initial injury, I felt (not heard) a "pop". Sonuvagun HURT. I was able to walk, albeit with a strong limp and using a cane for support. I went to an MD, who told me that I hadn't ruptured the tendon (thank God for that), but sprained it (there was some swelling, and discoloration. He told me to rest the tendon, and take an anti-inflammatory.

The swelling is gone, the discoloration is nearly gone, but there is still some pain. Any thoughts (suggestions) on how I can go about strengthening the leg, and when I can start phasing in running? I still have some months to go before I get a date to enter the academy, so I'm not worried about the time. My concern is stressing the injury again, and worse, maybe rupturing the AT.

Thanks, all.