Losing 100+ lbs with low impact workouts; Is it possible?

Yes. "Low impact" is not the same as "low intensity." Low impact just refers to the pounding on your joints from jumping or in the case of many larger people even walking. There's lots of exercise you can do that doesn't pound your heels, and a lot of it can be really high intensity. I swim 2X a week. I also do kettlebell workouts 2x a week; they are great cardio exercise and both feet remain on the ground at all times.

PS I had plantar fasciitis 100+ pounds ago and the problems -- for me, anyway -- have diminished to practically nothing with weight loss, stretching, and just cheap-o orthotic inserts. Also, I had to learn to STOP GOING BAREFOOT around the house. Things like standing on my bare (or stocking) feet while cooking, for instance, were really causing problems for me. Going barefoot really exacerbates PF. Wear your shoes.

Your doctor was right, not everyone recovers from PF, but you're really young so my money's on a quick and full recovery for you once the weight is off.

A good buddy of mine lost (and is now maintaining said loss) 100 lbs just by walking more and eating less. No running, etc. So: yes.

Working on my weight loss with plantar fasciitis as well. Add me as a friend if you would like. Get a brace to wear at night, it is the thing that helped me the most and stretch, stretch and then stretch again. If you don't like tennis shoes find a pair of shoes that are comfortable and you do like. I ahve a pair of sketchers flip flops that work great. Good luck.

Oh yes, I've had plantar fascitis! When just starting out on this journey. Bought full sole pads for a big pair of slippers - wore them when I woke up. Bought gell heel pads for my walking boots and sneakers. And I walked!!! Almost every day. After a few months, it no longer hurt, and I could run and jog. Still wear those heel pads just because they feel good. For me, the tightening of the tendon never went away, but the hurt has been gone for 2 years. Take care of it when it hurts, stretch it as much as possible. Eventually it won't be a problem.

You can lose 100lbs without exercising at all but its not the best idea. Lose weight by what you put in your mouth. Build your body/cardio by exercising.

Thank you guys for the advise!
I have started working out 4x a week. I do the elliptical for 20 minutes, treadmill at like 5 incline for 10 minutes, weights (somedays arms and somedays legs), and the bike for 20 minutes! It has seem to help a lot but still have pain. Im sure it is for walking around the house barefoot, but I can not bring myself to weight shoes! I hate having my feet covered with socks or shoes. Im definitely a flip flop kind of girl. I may try to buy some slippers and see if that will help, but I cant wear tennis shoes around the house. Thank you guys again for the advice!

That's great, those are all great low impact options to get started moving more!!!

The pain will, frankly, not go away overnight, it will take some time ... months even.

I'll make another plug for wearing shoes though: it really does make a HUGE difference. Which do you hate more: pain or wearing shoes? I mean, I always hated wearing shoes and socks too, but that's why I had PF. It doesn't have to be tennis shoes, though it should be shoes with firm arch and heel support so slippers almost certainly won't help. You might want to look at Keens or Ahnus if you don't like tennis shoes: they're kind of like tennis shoes ON THE INSIDE but sort of like casual / workplace casual shoes on the outside, and they typically are slip ons (no lacing up!). You can wear trouser socks or knee high type nylons with them, or even those little nylon footie protectors they use in shoe stores to keep your nasty feet from touching the inside of the shoe LOL. I love them. I even worked out in them at first.

Losing weight is directly related to calorie deficit.
On any given calorie deficit, if you do more exercise you get to eat more food, which some find makes it easier to sustain that calorie deficit.

It can also have various health benefits and so on, but it's the deficit that will affect weight loss more significantly than anything else.

The bike is very good to lose the weight. I lost 200 pounds, the first 100 using diet and bike alone. I then switched to triathlon and started running and swimming too. The PF is harsh. Hurts like hell. They have socks or splints to wear to bed that help, Check your local running store. Stick with the low-impact stuff until that is taken care of. Good luck.

So glad to hear this! I have severe PF. It really hurts. Going to a foot doctor and hoping to get inserts.

From a PF sufferer...WEAR SOME SHOES AT HOME!!! If you really love being barefoot, you can find flip flops now that offer arch support. There are several brands. Right off the top of my head Vionics comes to mind, and some of theirs are actually really cute. Birkenstock makes some sandals that aren't hideous too.

I have multiple heel spurs in each foot. My first episode was years ago with my left foot. I remember waking up each morning and being filled with dread because of the pain I knew I was about to experience when my feet hit the floor. After MONTHS of stretching, ice, and anti-inflammatory medication, the pain went away. I have never had another flare up with it.

I thought I would begin running for weight loss. In less than a week, I had a flare up with my right foot. I tried stretching, ice, inserts for my shoes, prescription strength anti-inflammatory medication, a night time brace (imagine what it feels like to sleep in cowboy boots!), dry needle therapy, and cortisone shots. Ultimately, I had to have surgery. Even after surgery, it was still several months before the pain went away.

Moral of the story...1) if high impact aggravates your feet, don't do it. There are plenty of low impact/ no impact activities that will allow you to burn extra calories. 2) Until you are completely symptom free, WEAR SHOES!!!

It's possible to lose 100+ lbs without any workouts at all - you just need to maintain a kCal deficit. Not what I'd recommend, but it can be done. Dietary changes are the majority of weight loss.

Strength training is very helpful for weight loss, don't neglect that.

But my main reason for replying is that your physician's advice about eliminating impact exercises is the opposite of what worked for me. I had PF a couple of years ago; started when I was doing a run-focused training program. I tried stopping running completely, and it did not work. What wound up working for me was to continue running although at a decreased volume and intensity, while doing a lot of work with stretching. Icing and using the Rubz ball on my foot were also helpful.

But I think the single most helpful thing for me was sleeping with a Strasbourg sock - it keeps your ankle flexed and your foot extended. Without this, the tendency is to drop the ankle and curl up the foot, so the fascia heals in a shortened position - then first thing in the morning you stand up and tear out all the tissue that was trying to heal overnight.

I had a few months where the PF was pretty bad, but with the above it started gradually getting better. I've been running the whole time, sometimes in a run-focused training for a specific event, and I really haven't had any problems with PF at all for over a year.

-- PS -- saw folks above mentioning steroids and orthotics. Just my experience, but neither of these was at all helpful for me. Orthotics make your PF feel better immediately, but for me they did not promote healing and stregthening and improved function of the PF which is the whole point. The plantar fascia is like a rubber band that makes the arch of your foot bounce elastically. If you cram an orthotic under the arch to hold it up, it does take the stress off the PF but it also takes all the elasticity out of your foot.
The steroid injection worked like magic for about two-three weeks - masked the symptoms completely - but then when it wore off, the problem was just as bad as ever. Also, steroid injections increase the risk of PF rupture, which you really do not want to know about.

You might want to try a rowing machine. You have to drive with your legs, but you're not slamming down onto your feet like you are when you're running. Rowing workouts can be brutal.