Plantar Fasciitis

OH IT IS VERY PAINFUL... I know this from experience.... so you do not want to have that done. I do most of my workouts at the gym indoors. Much better on my feet.

Good timing -

I posted a thread about heel spurs here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/696536-heel-spurs earlier and a bunch of folks chimed in about plantar fascitis even though it's not my particular ailment.

The only other thing I can see that you're not doing is to freeze water in a plastic bottle and roll your heels over it from time to time - sort of a ice massage?

Good luck :-/

Had this in both feet and the injections were the only thing that helped....my podiatrist said the old way of injections was more painful than how they are done today with newer doctors.....it should be inserted from the sides of the foot or inner area of foot to reduce the pain factor ALOT!!!!! ALSO GET A PAIR OF INSERTS FOR YOUR SHOES MADE CUSTOM AT THE DOCTORS OFFICE

i have this. i had custom orthodics, cushony heeled shoes, and a stretched and got the shots. i did the rolling the feet on golf balls. nothing helped.

until i started exercising, stretching regularly, and i got minimus shoes. the minimus shoes were the best thing i could've done for myself. i don't even remember what my feet felt like when i was in pain.

minimus is a term for low heel shoes, that mimic barefoot running. i have two pairs.

http://www.newbalance.com/Minimus-10-Trail/WT10,default,pd.html?dwvar_WT10_color=Turquoise_with_Black&start=9&q=minimus&cgid=201200

Thats the pair i have primarily for lifting, but i've been known to hike and do some runs in them.

word of caution: it can take some time to get used to them, more on your calves then your feet. so go slow, only running a mile or two with them at first.

I have plantar fasciitis in both feet since March. I have supportive shoes and do stretches using a hand towel to pull the ball of my foot back as directed by my doc. He also said no running on cement and they will "work themselves out." Anything else I can do? I do NOT want to have to get shots in my feet...my Dr. said it's really painful and made his toes curl just thinking about it.

iv had the shots and they are not that bad depends on your pain threshhold but i put supports in my shoe and they are now just fine . takes a few months

Look up how to tape the arch of your foot. I have been taping my right foot since march and it has helped tremendously. I don't have the patience for indoor machines so I run outside to get in my cardio.

Oh and good shoes with high arch supports helps. You want to support your arch as much as possible

until i started exercising, stretching regularly, and i got minimus shoes. the minimus shoes were the best thing i could've done for myself. i don't even remember what my feet felt like when i was in pain.

This is the opposite of what I'm being recommended elsewhere - to get RID of my vibrams because they're causing undue strain, whereas additional support would relieve it.

Diversity abounds.

Fill a 20 oz water or pepsi bottle with water and freeze it then roll it around with the soles of your feet. You can do the same thing with a tenniss ball.

^^ This! It helps so much!

Some people don't need arch support and it makes the problem worse.

I have been going to therapy for the same thing and finally got relief after trying everything myself. Make sure the stretches you are doing are done in 30 second increments and that you are doing them three times a day. I also use a golf ball and roll it under my foot for thirty seconds, that helps move the scar tissue away. Ice therapy is good as well. If you are able to go to therapy it would really help you get relief, they had also taped my feet for the weekend because I was starting to walk inward and flatten my arch. I was suprised how how much going to therapy a couple times of week helped me get back to where I needed to be, now I can keep up myself so I'm not in pain like that again.

Have a mild PF in my right foot - ibuprofen for it's anti-inflammatory effect, towel stretches and cold can/bottle massage are working well, but it is slow. I am still running, albeit on grass, and when it twinges I stop.

I had plantar fasciitis about 15 years ago, and I had it BAD. For weeks, I had to take baby steps around the house in the morning until my feet loosened up enough for me to talk normally. And even then, it still hurt.

The best advice I got was to roll my feet over tennis balls (or cans of food, or anything that's round or rolls). I'd keep a tennis ball at work, kick my shoe off and roll my foot over the tennis ball as I worked. Not all day long, but just from time to time. Not so much pressure that I tried to break the tennis ball, but enough to feel it. I'd also do this while sitting around the house at night. Just from time to time...it wasn't an all-day, every-day commitment.

Lemme tell ya, this worked like a CHARM. The pressure on the bottom of my foot really stretched things out and relieved the pain. Within days of starting this, I felt immeasurably better and my mornings weren't hell anymore. IIRC (remember, this was 15 years ago), I think I was pain-free within a week.

Give it a shot. I'd love to know if it works for you, too.

Good luck!

I've actually had foot surgery on a wart, that had really messed my foot up and the needles weren't too bad! I just got a few in my toes and it was agonizing but I'm glad I got it over with!

Get a night splint from your doc and wear it every night. Get shoe inserts and buy better running shoes. Stretch your calves as much as possible--throughout the day. And, yes, avoid running on concrete, if possible. Finally, ice it by rolling your foot over a frozen water bottle after you run whether it's hurting right then or not because it'll probably hurt later. It slowly gets better. Sometimes I forget I have it and then I'll go for run and afterwards remember: 'Oh right!' And if you're in a lot pain, quit running for a few days. You DO NOT want the cortisone shot unless it's the last resort.

good supportive shoes with a tiny bit of heel (think dankso height, not more than an inch or so. I had a pair of birkenstock tatami sandals that I literally wore anytime I was home, had em bedside in case I needed to get up at night, otherwise, I couldn't make it to the bathroom), the stretching. what about a sleeping boot? that REALLY helped me out, I got it from my doc. if you want to try it out first, and you can fit on your couch, get so that both feet are 90 degrees, like you're standing, and try to sleep or rest a bit that way. I also got my foot taped (I did it on my own too, but it was never as good as when the doc did it) to help provide a bit more support. I never had more than orthotics and advil, never had to get shots or have surgery, and I've been pain free for quite a few years (even at my heaviest weight, of course my pain started when I wasn't even hardly overweight (if that).