planters fasciitis

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TriciaCate
TriciaCate Posts: 2 Member
in Introduce Yourself
How do you all treat planters fasciitis in the foot - in order to keep up the exercising (i.e. treadmill/elliptical)? Anyone know?
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  • cookeylady
    cookeylady Posts: 147 Member
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    wear good shoes, and there are exercises you can do to strengthen the muscles. google it online.
  • courtneylynnp
    courtneylynnp Posts: 7
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    My mom has it. You need to wear shoes with good support especially arch support because it happens mostly with people who have flatfeet. Also, look up exercises for planters fasciitis the best are ones where you're pushing off the wall with your hands. If he keeps getting bad, see if youcan go see orthopedist. Good luck :)
  • girlviernes
    girlviernes Posts: 2,402 Member
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    here is what I do:

    I wear orthotic shoes pretty much all of the time (even indoors). I like orthaheel. I stretch my feet and calves frequently. Occasionally I ice my feet.

    I've also been strongly recommended to wear night splints but I just don't.

    Be careful with your feet!
  • roanokejoe49
    roanokejoe49 Posts: 820 Member
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    If it's a recent thing, you don't treat it. You REST it. Then buy good support inserts and SLOWLY build up your endurance level.
  • VelveteenArabian
    VelveteenArabian Posts: 758 Member
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    You have to rest it. You can do some gentle stretches for it too - check YouTube. It's not something you can just 'treat' and tomorrow it's fixed. It takes time - how much time depends on the person.

    Some better insoles might help. Go to a runner's store - they will have insoles that you can use.
  • Snip8241
    Snip8241 Posts: 767 Member
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    Shoes with a good arch support.

    Rest
    Ice
    Compression
    Elevation

    Time....

    This sucks...it can sideline you for quite awhile. Take care and rest. If it hurts when you do it....don't do it. ( for now )
  • DaughterOfTheMostHighKing
    DaughterOfTheMostHighKing Posts: 1,436 Member
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    I had a sports therapist work on mine. She basically stretched the bunched up muscle (that's what plantar fasciitis is…) massaged it and taught me stretches to do… it took about a month because muscles are tight…

    it starts with your hamstrings and IT bands.. you have to stretch daily and very intensely… I don't have flat feet. in fact my arches are fairly high and high heels never fit because my arches are just different.

    hope you stretch daily and get better soon. not being able to work out is a bummer! I know!
  • sloshmog
    sloshmog Posts: 9 Member
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    What helped me the most was a night brace. It is awkward but it gave almost complete relief. This was after trying everything else a podiatrist could for years.
  • Raynna13
    Raynna13 Posts: 1 Member
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    I have been dealing with Plantar Fasciitis off and on for years. I have found that stretching my feet by flexing my big toe back towards my calf and also stretching by standing with the balls of my feet on the edge of a stair and hanging my heels down help tremendously. The other thing that helps is massaging my feet on a tennis ball first thing in the morning.

    As long as I am stretching regularly, the pain is minimal. For me the pain is never gone, just manageable. Make sure you wear good shoes with arch support makes a big difference as well.

    I hope this helps and you find relief that works for you.
  • mrprytania
    mrprytania Posts: 17 Member
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    I think there are as many solutions as there are people suffering. :( The reason is that it can have many causes and you want to treat the cause and not the effect.

    I got PF after going from 380lbs to 280lbs and trying to get some cardio in. My doctor said to rest but that brought no relief for years. Rest wasn't doing it.

    Heel cups helped for 4 to 6 weeks but then would wear out and need replacing or the pain would start again. I complained to my doctor during an annual and he said I should talk to a good running store since medical solutions had poor results.

    My running store recommended "SuperFeet" insoles. Wow! I felt relief in minutes after putting them in my shoes. This allowed me to start jogging and playing tennis. Those were activities I thought I'd never be able to do. I would need to replace the insoles every three months or so because they broke down or the shoes wore out but that was ok. I did have a slight pain once in a while but one morning a week vs daily was amazing.

    Then I discovered "minimum" shoes. Running shoes with zero heel drop and 2-4mm of cushioning. This is related to "barefoot running shoes" but those shoes have zero cushioning. Well I started wearing them as an experiment and they revealed to me changes I had to make in my movement since I was a hard heel striker. I had to change that but the change totally changed my life. I can now wear regular shoes as well as running shoes without inserts if I choose. I keep wearing my minimum shoes to keep me from reintroducing any old bad habits. I think these shoes, being so thin, allow your foot to strengthen if its weak. You can get this style of shoes from every major shoe company.

    My path might not be yours but maybe there is something that would work for you. All that pain for years seems to have been optional if only I knew. Good luck.
  • kazzsj0urney
    kazzsj0urney Posts: 57
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    I tried a lot of things ...the only thing that worked for me was orthotics fitted by a podiatrist.
  • davetheperson
    davetheperson Posts: 124 Member
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    I think there are as many solutions as there are people suffering. :( The reason is that it can have many causes and you want to treat the cause and not the effect.

    I got PF after going from 380lbs to 280lbs and trying to get some cardio in. My doctor said to rest but that brought no relief for years. Rest wasn't doing it.

    Heel cups helped for 4 to 6 weeks but then would wear out and need replacing or the pain would start again. I complained to my doctor during an annual and he said I should talk to a good running store since medical solutions had poor results.

    My running store recommended "SuperFeet" insoles. Wow! I felt relief in minutes after putting them in my shoes. This allowed me to start jogging and playing tennis. Those were activities I thought I'd never be able to do. I would need to replace the insoles every three months or so because they broke down or the shoes wore out but that was ok. I did have a slight pain once in a while but one morning a week vs daily was amazing.

    Then I discovered "minimum" shoes. Running shoes with zero heel drop and 2-4mm of cushioning. This is related to "barefoot running shoes" but those shoes have zero cushioning. Well I started wearing them as an experiment and they revealed to me changes I had to make in my movement since I was a hard heel striker. I had to change that but the change totally changed my life. I can now wear regular shoes as well as running shoes without inserts if I choose. I keep wearing my minimum shoes to keep me from reintroducing any old bad habits. I think these shoes, being so thin, allow your foot to strengthen if its weak. You can get this style of shoes from every major shoe company.

    My path might not be yours but maybe there is something that would work for you. All that pain for years seems to have been optional if only I knew. Good luck.

    I just wanted to put in another vote for Super Feet.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    If you really have it, beyond a potential self-diagnoses that is incorrect, Dr should have given several things to do.

    Rest is the main thing.

    It's a main tendon in the foot, used with every single step.

    To back off to allow it to heal - stop doing whatever you can that puts a load on it, and do all the things that will allow it to heal.

    As to still walking daily - that's where the custom orthotics comes in, to provide relief there.

    If you don't let it heal - you can drag out the repair for years and years. And end up with a jacked up tendon even if it does manage to heal. Always prone to easy injury again.

    Once I put orthotics in every shoe I wore (or swapped them around), and laid off the exercise that stressed it, it took almost a year to get over it.
    Doing it the other method like you asked about, on and off injury for 10 years with attempted exercise in there.

    Guess which would have been smarter in the long run?
  • Strongandscrappy
    Strongandscrappy Posts: 1,735 Member
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    My plantar fasciitis is ongoing. It never completely goes away for me but is mostly bearable. I have to always wear shoes. Never be barefoot! Also, change your sneakers frequently. I have to get a new pair every 3 months. My sneakers were just on sale and I bought two pair and I rotate them daily. Stretching your feet/calves are very important too. If you can't get a handle on it though go to a pediatrist and they can treat it. Good luck!
  • SeattleRaven
    SeattleRaven Posts: 40
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    I have been dealing with Plantar Fasciitis off and on for years. I have found that stretching my feet by flexing my big toe back towards my calf and also stretching by standing with the balls of my feet on the edge of a stair and hanging my heels down help tremendously. The other thing that helps is massaging my feet on a tennis ball first thing in the morning.

    As long as I am stretching regularly, the pain is minimal. For me the pain is never gone, just manageable. Make sure you wear good shoes with arch support makes a big difference as well.

    I hope this helps and you find relief that works for you.

    This is true for me too--I have had pain off and on since 2009. If I wear shoes without good support, like sandals, too much, then the pain flares up. Or if I stand on hard surfaces too much, or if I go barefoot in the house and stand too much, it comes back. Wearing orthotics helps, and avoiding flimsy shoes. The pain I feel is in both feet, in the arches. Not in the heel area.

    Stretching, massages, and icing help. When pain is bad, rolling the arches of my feet on a cold can of soda can help. If it's super bad, I freeze a bottle of water and use that.

    The advice to stop the activity isn't really applicable. When you have PF in both feet, every step hurts. And it can take months for the pain to ease up, even with PT.

    Remember, inserts wear out, and so do shoes, so consider replacing them every 3-6 mos. depending on how often you wear them.
  • drummer_lady
    drummer_lady Posts: 150 Member
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    I've been dealing with plantar fasciitis for the last few months and I have unfortunately had to completely stop high impact activities like running. I still exercise, but I stick to weight lifting and low impact cardio like the stationary bike, swimming (when i have access to a pool) and sometimes the elliptical.

    I wear shoes with good support at all times, even inside the house, and am currently getting custom orthotics made as well. My plantar fasciitis was mainly caused by my low arches and excessive pronation, so the orthotics will hopefully help correct that. I do stretches too and ice my foot when it gets really sore. It's getting a little better, but it has been a slow process and I still experience quite a bit of pain when I'm on my feet all day at work.

    Hope you are able to deal with your plantar fasciitis effectively! I think the most important things you can do right now are rest and invest in good footwear.
  • gabe_irun4coffee
    gabe_irun4coffee Posts: 232 Member
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    Good shoes like everyone says and stretching. One of the things I also do is freeze a water bottle and roll your foot over it. Good luck.
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,624 Member
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    My GP referred me to a podiatrist. He gave me off the shelf arch supports and prescribed calf stretches. The calf stretches consisted of placing a cutting board sized plank on the edge of a phonebook and standing with my toes raised for 5 minute spells a few times during the day. My PF disappeared within a few weeks.
  • BigSpoonSA
    BigSpoonSA Posts: 38 Member
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    While stretches and supports can be very helpful, I needed several cortizone shots to get mine under control. If you work a job that requires being on your feet you may want to consider that. Otherwise, stretching it and doing more swimming or exercise bike work will allow you to keep the cardio without taxing your feet.
  • PhoebeGrey
    PhoebeGrey Posts: 58
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    I can tell you right now as I am dealing with this also. K-tape, google directions for application, though expensive help it to heal faster. I have used duct tape (per doctors instructions) and it works too, just not as pretty. After applying the tape, where shoes, all day. I have always been a barefoot girl, not good! It takes about a month of doing this daily to heel. Any exercise on your feet can re-injure so I suggest icing it when painful and allow time for it to heal. I'm going on week too and the pain is almost gone. When I began it was a 10+++ and I could barely walk.

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