Help! Is there a way to stop Plantar Faciitis in it's tracks!?

dwygtd

bump later

ZRx4

tufel wrote: »

Um......All this advice to stop running? Plantar fasciitis does not heal in one week, or two weeks, or....(though the pain may improve dramatically in a short time). The plantar fascia is incredibly tough tissue, incredibly strong tissue. When it gets torn it does not repair itself right away.
Get a pair of Superfeet insoles, or two. Maybe a pair for each pair of your shoes. The reason that PF can seem so difficult to treat is because every time you walk or run, you depress the arch again, and the tender, healing tissue gets ripped again, and you are back where you started. The Superfeet give you adequate support and prevent that re-ripping from happening, allowing the healing process to progress.
I have put Superfeet in my shoes and continued to run. Mine got better.
The other thing you have to do is gently stretch the bottom of your foot. I do hero's pose (yoga) twice a day, with the soles of my toes flat on the floor and the sole of the rest of my foot facing the wall directly behind. Once you are on your knees, and in the position, push back slightly. You'll feel the stretch along the bottom of your foot.
That stretch is extremely effective. If you don't believe me, google: planatar fasciitis and DiGiovanni. He's a doc who realized stretching was key to recovery. He also figured out that if you bend the toes back you can get a better stretch than if you just stand on a step, for example. In a trial he did, he had 90 people, who had severe PF that they could not get better for over a year, perform a toe-bended back stretch. Something like 90 percent of those people, for whom nothing else had worked, got drastically better or completely better.
Good luck

Agree with digiovanni!! Also, golfball. Those got me walking without a limp. New shoes from a running store, they'll fit you and check your feet to be in proper shoes. For me it was new balance. Rest, is big. I stopped running and started walking. I'm a couple months in and I'm still dealing with it healing. Good luck!

caurinus

Beploveshomer wrote: »

I think I'm beating it! I didn't run for a couple days to rest it and I used some tips I got here, the best being the rolling pin!! That's a great feeling, it hits the worst spot and it kind of hurts at first but then it warms up and totally loosens up it up. Also I've become fanatic about stretching my calves on my front steps after every run, the only time I feel it now is if I'm walking barefoot on my heels too hard.
Thanks everyone!

Awesome! Glad it's working. That pain of pressure, followed by loosening up, is awesome, isn't it? Keep up with the stretching. I try to stretch every morning, and I keep a golf ball under my desk and use it to stretch out all that fascia in my foot every so often. Hurts bad at first... then hurts so good.

WordWhisperer

I'm currently in physical therapy for a recurrence of PF. It isn't resolved, but the podiatrist and physical therapist have this list on repeat:

-Get off it til it heals.
-Never go barefoot again.
-Prescribed stretches are not optional. Not today and not when you feel better.
-Prescribed stretched are not optional.
-Prescribed stretched are not optional.

We are also treating with ice, duct taping my foot (for real), foam roller self - massage, night splints, custom orthotics due to my totally flat feet, new shoes with zero flexibility in the sole, ultrasound, and ionotophoresis.

But they've basically made it clear that if I don't do the stretches, we can forget everything else on the list.

I've been out of commission since February 20. Plantar fasciitis is the devil.

ironhajee

Does anyone know if running technique (aka foot strike technique) can play a role in the developement of Plantar Fasciatis?