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

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  • fastfoodietofitcutie
    fastfoodietofitcutie Posts: 523 Member
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    Birkenstock's saved me. I wear them all the time and never go barefoot. This has prevented a recurrence of plantar fasciitis for me.
  • WaterBunnie
    WaterBunnie Posts: 1,370 Member
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    I had PF for around 6 months, it cleared but now I'm suffering with a similar pain behind my knee and sometimes further up leading to hobbling around after exercise, but it's definitely not a joint thing. Is this related?
  • thebuz
    thebuz Posts: 221 Member
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    I would like to add that you should stretch your hamstrings also. Tight hamstrings can cause tight calves that can cause PF. I really focus on stretching from hips down when I get the dreaded PF twinge and I seem to nip it in the bud. Runners are notorious for having tight hammies. This is a great link for stretching out your hip girdle also. http://www.njsportsmed.com/files/myrtl_routine.pdf

    Good luck!
  • lgoldfarb
    lgoldfarb Posts: 76 Member
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    CoachKatie814 wrote: »
    Make sure you're warming up long enough/ properly and pay special attention to stretching after. Tight calves especially can contribute to plantar fasciitis. If you have a foam roller this is a great one to try http://mobilitymastery.com/learn-the-one-stretch-that-relieves-plantar-fasciitis-shin-splints-achilles-pain-heel-pain-and-compartment-syndrome/

    Thank you for posting this. I've had it for over a year, I can't stand it anymore, nothing I've done has helped yet. Going to try this as soon as I get home.
  • ncfitbit
    ncfitbit Posts: 1,058 Member
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    +1 to superfeet and stretching the calves. Someone told me to draw the alphabet with my toes before I got out of bed each morning and that is very helpful. Also, I have stopped walking barefoot on my tile floor. That tends to do me in. I ALWAYS wear shoes!
  • Calibrate
    Calibrate Posts: 52 Member
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    I suffered from Plantar fasciitis for a couple of years when I was heavier and running on a treadmill, or just from daily walking in heels at work. I started getting acupuncture for some other health issues, like headaches. I told my acupuncturist about my Plantar fasciitis and he said he would see what he could do. After 8 weeks, my Plantar fasciitis was gone and never to return! Still had my other issues but I was thrilled to have that pain gone. Have since lost 80 lbs, sometimes will feel a little tinge after a hard workout and run, but for the most part, I am cured. Something to think about, can't tell you why or how, but it worked for me.
  • thebuz
    thebuz Posts: 221 Member
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    Calibrate wrote: »
    I suffered from Plantar fasciitis for a couple of years when I was heavier and running on a treadmill, or just from daily walking in heels at work. I started getting acupuncture for some other health issues, like headaches. I told my acupuncturist about my Plantar fasciitis and he said he would see what he could do. After 8 weeks, my Plantar fasciitis was gone and never to return! Still had my other issues but I was thrilled to have that pain gone. Have since lost 80 lbs, sometimes will feel a little tinge after a hard workout and run, but for the most part, I am cured. Something to think about, can't tell you why or how, but it worked for me.

    I second this. My first bout with PF was in both feet for well over a year and was doing physio with little improvement and the physio did 2 sessions of acupuncture and it was gone. I was a cynic and she did say that she notices it helps about 50% of her clients. Worth a shot if it's getting bad. It never returned after that and I was almost crippled with it. Now I just get a twinge and I nip it in the bud early now as I put a lot of time on my feet running/walking and never want to get sidelined with it again.
  • Beploveshomer
    Beploveshomer Posts: 284 Member
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    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!
  • JulesAtkinson1
    JulesAtkinson1 Posts: 219 Member
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    <<<<Suffered it several times myself. You have been given lots of excellent advise, and I didn't read through them all, so if I'm repeating, I apologize in advance. I found Superfeet inserts are the best other than prescription, and I've tried MANY. I always stretch my feet with a band before getting out of bed (placing it under the balls of my feet and pulling back to stretch the fascia), NEVER go barefoot, especially in the morning ( I have a pair of old crocs I putter around in indoors), never wear flats unless I have the inserts in them or wear ones with a small heel, only wear orthotic flip-flops (like vionic orthaheels) and ALWAYS stretch my calves and plantar fascia after a workout. I stretch the calves and plantar fascia at one time with the exercise where you stand close to a wall with one foot behind you and one foot toes up on the wall at an angle, while placing my hands on the wall and leaning forward. I roll my feet with a tennis ball when they are really sore and with a frozen golf ball when they are less tender. When mine flares up badly, I stop running on surfaces and use my elliptical at zero resistance and pedal slowly. It doesn't burn as many calories, but it's exercise and better than stopping altogether. If you don't have one, try walking instead of running, or walking the first few minutes of your run. I would never recommend stopping it altogether, but I do recommend cutting back or choosing a less stressful way until your heal. And if you have ankle issues (I do, I broke my right ankle several years ago and should have gotten surgery but opted for a cast), until you fix the ankle problem, plantar fasciitis will re-appear. I'm working on mine now with a friend who is a PT. I'm hoping I can strengthen my ankle ligaments/tendons enough this problem will completely disappear. Otherwise, it's ankle surgery, and I'm really trying hard to avoid it.
  • JulesAtkinson1
    JulesAtkinson1 Posts: 219 Member
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    WaterBunnie wrote: »
    I had PF for around 6 months, it cleared but now I'm suffering with a similar pain behind my knee and sometimes further up leading to hobbling around after exercise, but it's definitely not a joint thing. Is this related?

    WaterBunnie, you may have tight calves. Try stretching them after a workout with any of the exercises mentioned here. Tight calves can lead to tight hamstrings, trust me. It's all connected. Also, get checked for leg length discrepancy. This can throw off your gait and cause your type of pain as well.
  • dwygtd
    dwygtd Posts: 19 Member
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    bump later
  • ZRx4
    ZRx4 Posts: 158 Member
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    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
    caurinus Posts: 78 Member
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    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. :smile:
  • WordWhisperer
    WordWhisperer Posts: 33 Member
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    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
    ironhajee Posts: 384 Member
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    Does anyone know if running technique (aka foot strike technique) can play a role in the developement of Plantar Fasciatis?

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