These are the guidelines I will be following to determine my readiness to return to full impact running. this is the site with the full program click This is from William and Mary College in VA. - I modified from the original - I eliminated the double/single leg side to side sets as well as the single leg broad hop - these were too aggressive for me and seemed more suited to sports other than running. Right now I am starting with 2 sets of 10 - 2 leg ankle hops in chest deep water - focus is on dorsiflexion while in the air and hip + knee flexion on landing. I won't be doing this on land until I can do all the sets in hip deep water. I love that I have a plan I can follow - I really, really hate that I already have a plan that will work for me. Note - this is just what worked for me and I followed this under the guidance of a PT the 1st time around Phase I: Walking Program Must be able to walk, pain free, aggressively (roughly 4.2 to 5.2 miles per hour), preferably on a treadmill, before beginning the plyometric and walk/jog program. Phase II: Plyometric Routine A mile run generally consist of 1500 foot contacts, 750 per foot. The program integrates 470 foot contacts per leg, which would be equivalent to two thirds the foot contacts of a mile. Successfully completing the routine is a good indicator of an athlete returning to running a half to three-quarters of a mile distance. Exercise----------------------------------- Sets--------Foot contacts---------------Total foot per set Two-leg ankle hops: in place------------------4--------------30----------------------120 Two-leg ankle hops: forward/backward-----4--------------30----------------------120 One-leg ankle hops: in place------------------4--------------30----------------------120 One-leg ankle hops: forward/backward-----4--------------30----------------------120 ---------------------------------------------------16--------------------------------------480 Rest Intervals:------------- Between Sets--------------------------90 seconds --------------------------------Between Exercises:-------------------3 minutes

Hi Claire - that's awesome news!!! I know that paranoid feeling about any pain in the lower legs - I bet you are fine - but maybe extra stretching during the day might help? I know it's going to go fast for you from here on out. I honestly feel like I'm cured - but at this point another couple of weeks of downtime are not going to make a huge difference. I'm not wearing my brace anymore, I'm working on eliminating my limp, and I am starting leg press, calf press exercises to get my R calf built up - I want to be back to at least a .5" difference before I really start running. I did an hour on the elliptical, followed by 30 min on a Body Trek machine - your foot doesn't lose ground contact, but you do shift your weight to your forefoot. It's the closest I can come to running - and I can usually get my HR close to running rate. If I can do that much, it can only be good news at my May 3rd check - unless I blow it before then!!! Thanks for asking - Cheryl