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Phase 2 of 4
Phase 3 begins when strength and daily-load tolerance are sufficient to start storing and releasing energy through hopping.
Phase 2 Criteria
Phase 2 Criteria
Build load tolerance before adding impact
First-step pain is minimal and stable, ideally around 2/10 or less.
Approximately 45–60 minutes of brisk walking is tolerated.
Heavier strengthening does not create a meaningful next-morning flare.
The high-load toe-extended heel raise can be performed with meaningful external resistance in approximately an 8–12RM range using controlled technique.
Bent-knee soleus work can be loaded through a controlled 8–15 repetition range without a meaningful next-morning symptom increase.
Small two-leg hops are tolerated without sharp plantar heel pain or progressive symptom escalation.
We are not using 20–25 bodyweight single-leg calf raises as a required gate. That repetition range can be useful as an endurance reference, but Phase 2 is primarily about meaningful load tolerance. If bodyweight calf raises are easy, progressing external resistance is usually more useful than simply chasing a higher repetition count.