Moderate evidence

Continuing to train while keeping pain within an agreed limit produced outcomes as good as resting from activity, in Achilles tendinopathy.

In practice

The practical shape of this is a rule agreed in advance: keep pain during and after the session under a set level, and stop if it's still elevated the next morning. That's a far better tool than 'listen to your body', which means nothing.

What it doesn't say

One randomised trial, in one tendon, with clinician supervision. The principle travels better than the specifics do — the right limit for you is one to set with a clinician.

Source

• Silbernagel KG, Thomeé R, Eriksson BI, Karlsson J (2007). Continued sports activity, using a pain-monitoring model, during rehabilitation in patients with Achilles tendinopathy: a randomized controlled study. The American Journal of Sports Medicine, 35(6):897–906. doi.org/10.1177/0363546506298279