Plantar fasciitis

I had it for years. Reduced my running significantly (in intensity and length) and it almost went away. Comes back when I over stress my feet. But the towel grab and drop movement as well as rolling over a can/ball really helps. That and Advil. And heel pads.

I had this for a year after walking on a reflexology pool. The pain is totally gone now, probably due to red krill oil.

I have had success with exercise that strengthens the foot, ankle, calves- without putting pressure on heels- especially if has dorsiflexion component.
Includes cycling both stationary and road, high incline elliptical, stair treadmill, rowing machine & swimming.
Then ice thoroughly & take ibuprofen so I can still walk the next day.
Also I like to sleep on my stomach with my feet hanging off the end of the bed to avoid prolonged plantar flexion at night.

I tried everything but what helped me are insoles with arch support and cortisone injections.

So to preface, I used to be an elite martial arts athlete and when I retired, I took up running to stay in shape and fell in love with it.

I have been suffering from PF for 15 months now. I was in the best shape of my life, then boom. The first podiatrist put me in a boot and scheduled physical therapy and I'm to sleep in a night splint. It seemed to help but it came back worse than before. Then we went the cortisone route with physical therapy again (still in night splint). Once the shot wore off it came back even worse than before. Orthopedic inserts are ordered.

Enter new orthopedic surgeon. I've developed tendinitis in my opposite leg knee due to the boot I was in. Put me on an oral steroid and then was told to get Active Release Therapy from a Chiropractor (still in night splint). The ART was good (painful), but my calves would be good one day and tighter than before the next and they told me it wasn't helping. In addition, I've now developed PF in my other foot and have sciatia. Back to doc #2, another round of steroid shots (one in each foot this time). He keeps saying "this will just go away on it's own."

I had a visit with my general practitioner doctor and she was not happy about the 4 steroid shots and 1 round of oral steroids. I gained 10 lbs with each steroid treatment. They have me on meloxicam for inflammation now long term.

I have started getting adjustments from a Chiropractor to my neck and spine. In just 3 weeks the sciatica is completely nonexistent. As a result I'm able to do yoga, which is helping keep my calves stretched. Usually the pain comes back 5-6 weeks after the cortisone shot, this weekend will be week 4. I'm still sensing some pain in my right leg, but my left (I pray) seems better. I'll know for sure in anther two weeks.

To be honest, it has been a horrible 15 months. I went from running 27 min 5ks (better than when I was a teen) to being told not to do any exercise. Even low impact workouts (if I'm up on my feet) seem to hurt. The stationary bike helps, but my right knee will tighten up after 20 minutes. I'd love a weight lifting routine I can do that will raise my heart rate but is very low impact (no plyo).

JanetYellen wrote: »

Many people say crocs helps them. I would love to know why exactly.

stephbaim wrote: »

I have a pair of crocs flip flops that I wear especially indoors. They have the perfect arch support built into them. Walking bare foot seems to make the issue worse, so being able to have a pair of slip on shoes with gentle arch support really seems to help.

There is just something about the way the Crocs are made, the material, shock impact, whatever. I can even wear their wedge semi-high heel sandals without pain which is IMPOSSIBLE with any other shoe. Some Crocs feel better than others - some I put them on and I hate them. But the vast majority of my shoes - flats, sandals, and and even my winter boots are Crocs. I have sneakers that are OK and a pair of hiking boots that I wear if I'm going on rocky trails, but my feet get fatigued much more quickly when I'm not wearing Crocs.

I have tried different name brands - Soft & Flexible, Naturalizer, (flats) New Balance, Asics, Nike (sneakers), a couple other name brands that I picked up but can't recall...so far the best comfort I've gotten comes from Crocs and Nike.

I recommend using the Trigger point foot roller. I also like Oofos, which are similar to Crocs, but are made for recovery after running. They're super-supportive but not restricting. I've been battling PF since October. I bought a stabilizing running shoe from a local running store. Also as mentioned before, stretching, massage, and ice. Good luck!

Trigger Point foot roller: https://www.tptherapy.com/product/NANO_foot_roller
Oofos: http://www.oofos.com/

ekfulton wrote: »

CROC flip flops were the only thing that helped. I wore them constantly - even in the shower and my feet healed within about 6 weeks. Now if I start to feel pain I go back to the crocs. I also try to never wear flat soled shoes.

If you have PF you need to wear shoes all the time, even in the shower. Great advice.

I rarely if ever go barefoot. It kills me if I am barefoot. I keep my Crocs flip flops by my bed for when I get up in either in the night or in the morning...even if it's just to go to the bathroom, I need my Crocs.

You can sometimes get great deals on http://www.Zulily.com on crocs, much better than amazon or the crocs website, but that is hit or miss. Sometimes they have them sometimes they don't. But here is the crocs website: http://www.crocs.com

I actually like these better than flip-flops, as I don't like having the thong thingee between my toes, lol: http://www.crocs.com/p/crocs-meleen/11853.html?cgid=women-footwear-sandals&cid=05M#&origin=category&srule=CatPosition-SearchPlacement-Revenue7day-PRRating-PRReviews&start=49&sz=36&prefn1=variationSize&prefv1=&prefn2=refinementColor&prefv2=&prefn3=fitGuideFit&prefv3=&prefn4=lifestyle&prefv4=

I bought these arch supports at sports authority and wore them in my tennis shoes for three weeks straight, worked great. I have flare ups now and again after too many days wearing sandals or shoes without arch support.
Rolling out my feet with Yoga Tune Up balls helps.

Here is what I had to do:
-Podiatrist. Resulting in orthotic inserts for high arches.
-physiotherapist to get me in 3x week to do mean stretches and ultraviolet (or was it ultrared!?!?) lamp.
-at home, freeze a bottle of water and roll it from arch to heal 3x day for abou10min each time. Do the stretches the physio gives you.
-stay off high impact exercise until pain goes away.
-when healed, always keep up with your stretches
-don't walk barefoot... Find the right shoe for all, croc flip flops are the only ones which don't trigger plantar for me

Google stretches for plantar fasciitis, you'll find many good things. Avoid steroid shot, it's only short term and will only exacerbate issues.

Good luck, discipline will get you out of it!