Think I figured out my Left Foot issue: Plantar fasciitis

[Mo2vation]

This weekend I was speaking with Dr. Bill on Catalina about my sore foot.

I described what was going on, when it started happening, etc.

He said it could be Plantar fascia. We talked about it a bit, and I started to think that may be it.

So I spent some time researching it, and it totally makes sense. One of the things I read:

The plantar fascia contributes to support of the arch of the foot by acting as a tie-rod, where it undergoes tension when the foot bears weight As you get older, your arches tend to flatten, a natural result of aging gravity and wear. When they flatten, this stretches the plantar fascia band, a band that runs from the ball of your foot back towards your heel. The stretching can cause pain in two ways:

1) If the band stretches and microtears occur, those tears are filled in by 'scar tissue' (the very unscientific and inaccurate description that I can provide) and this tissue can cause discomfort.

2) If the tearing is occuring near the heel, the resulting 'scar tissue' that fills in is calcified... which can lead to a heel spur, which can also be painful.

All of this falls under the catch-all phrase of plantar fasciitis.

What can you do to prevent a worsening of symptoms?

-The best, although not cheapest, method is to see a podiatrist and have him analyze your arch and gait. He may presecribe a custom orthotic if your arches are not neutral and supportive, and this alone can take care of any problems and allow you to play b-ball, etc. with no problem.

-Stretch, gently, the PF band. Using a golf ball, roll under the arch of your foot slowly for 5 minutes or so a day.

-Keep your calf muscles loose: tight calf muscles mean tight tendons and this pulls more on the PF band. I spend extra time daily stretching my calves to prevent a recurrence,

-Wear supportive shoes with good arches.

-Don't walk barefoot...especially on hard surfaces indoors. A good pair of shoes will work wonders.

-Running a lot will often exacerbate the problem. PF is most often a chronic use injury.


Several other issues contribute to me thinking PF is what's going on here:

- Proximity to my deadlift day. It started hurting the next day.

- I'm barefoot (or nearly barefoot) 23 / 7. I work at home so I'm either in uggs, flipflops or barefoot most of every day. I told Claudette last week that my foot sure feels better when I have a shoe with a strong arch (business meeting, my New Balance, etc.)

- In the mornings, its way worse than the rest of the day

- As I work it, it gets better. By the end of the next deadlift session, it felt much better

- the location - heel to arch, outside of foot. My ankle and hip issues are a result of me heel walking to avoid the pain.


What I'm doing about it:

Slow stretching

Wearing shoes (mornings for sure...)

Ice and elevation for now



Its about 90% right now after a week. I'll spend time stretching it and getting it warmed up before my next DL sets tonight.

I think my mystery foot pain has been identified.

By a Doctor (OK, a PHD) in a bar.

Gotta love that.

---
Ken

[SparticleBrane]

I LOVE shoes. Not in the "hey let's go shop for shoes" sort of way, but in the "these feel really good on my feet" sort of way. It is a rarity when I go barefoot...


Back when I ran cross country in high school I had a friend recommend me a pair of "Brooks Beast" running shoes. I went to the local store (The Athlete's Foot) and they recommended me that same pair of shoes without knowing that my friend had already recommended them. Apparently I tend to over overpronate when I walk or run and these are 'motion-control' shoes designed to give maximum support on the inside of your foot to help counteract the inward rolling of someone who overpronates.

They are, without a doubt, the most comfortable shoes I've ever worn. In fact, I haven't bought a different running/everyday shoe in the past...5-6 years. They have fantastic arch support. Every time I put these shoes on it feels like heaven, and I'm not kidding.

They're ~$120 and worth every penny.

[LG Diver]

PF can be a real pain (pun intended) if not treated early. I have friends that tried to 'run through' a mild case of PF, and ended up having to give up running for over a year, so don't ignore it. One thing that helped me was to add Superfeet insoles to EVERYTHING. Green ones go in my running shoes, black ones in my street shoes, grey ones in my cycling shoes- heck, when I had PF flare-up I even put them in my slippers.

[keri.lewis]

Make sure you really give it rest and time... my wife has battled PF for over a year. Like you she's a barefoot person.. It was triggered by accelerating training too fast - sounds like this may be linked to your schedule. I hasten to add my lack of medical qualification here.. but..

It finally seems to be improving after 4 months of

Podiatrist Sessions
No running,
Wearing support insoles in all shoes
Daily stretching
Regular foot massages..

It's no joke! Worse than the Achilles tendon I blew..

Good luck and take care!

[drbill]

Just remember, Ken... the only kind of "doctor" I am is a fish and kelp doctor!

This can be a very debilitating problem. I've suffered from it several times over the years. The last time was when I was dragging my equipment back home on the old handcart (walking in my booties, no support). It was quite painful and took several months to fully heal. That's one of the reasons I bought the Dr. Bill Mobile (golf cart)!

[scubajcf]

Where is the pain localized in your foot. I have a foot problem that has been plaquing me since 2003. The last year it has been quiet, but just curious where you are seeing the most swelling and pain.

[Mo2vation]

Where is the pain localized in your foot. I have a foot problem that has been plaquing me since 2003. The last year it has been quiet, but just curious where you are seeing the most swelling and pain.

The instep is where it starts - back towards the heel. And that sets off the chain reaction.

By gimping around the place the outside of the back of my left foot started to swell - under the protruding heel bone. The outside of my lower left leg, where the leg meets the foot - that area hurts as well. At the height of the thing a week ago my left hip was killing me from the dawn-of-the-dead walk.

Its a bit sore now as yesterday I spent the day in flip-flops and I was schlepping gear over sand four times in booties that really don't help much.

I roll it on a dumbbell - hurts like a mutha, but it soon feels better. I try to wear my New Balance in the mornings - very high arch.

Its getting better, but its not gone yet liked I hoped it would be.

---
Ken

[LCF]

Not to be a nitpicker, but the structure in the foot is the plantar fascia. The painful condition is called plantar fasciitis, or inflammation of the plantar fascia.

One of the things that can help with this is a properly configured orthotic. My husband used to sell a device, the Featherspring Foot support, which I recommended to a number of running friends with PF, and they all reported it helped a great deal. It's still available, although Peter no longer owns the company that sells the item.

[Mo2vation]

Not to be a nitpicker, but the structure in the foot is the plantar fascia. The painful condition is called plantar fasciitis, or inflammation of the plantar fascia.

In addition to being correct, its also more fun to say...



Another thing I forgot to mention - stretching my left calf muscle. Not that silly runners boing boing stretch. I mean stand near a wall, put the ball of your foot on the wall, dig in your heel and drive that calf muscle into a stretch for about a minute at a time until I wanna cry.

I do that a couple of times and the PF is noticeably, and I mean quite noticeably better.

I think its gonna take awhile for this to heal 100%, but at 90% for the next several weeks or months its manageable and won't impact my workouts or my diving.

---
Ken

[breals]

when I first started working out I gave myself runners heel that took a year to go away. Mainly it was from not having the correct form on my squants, lunges and deadlifts. I got a personal trainer after I healed and was taught the proper form of each exercise, I highly recommend it, it will correct other problems as well.

Its always worse in the mornings and then as the foot is used during the day it gets better. My doctor offered to inject a steriod into my foot but explained that the pain of the injection may not be worth it.

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[Mo2vation]

http://www.happyfeet.net/

These guys were at the SoCal Scuba Show. Claudette reminded me that Peter Guy mentioned these insole may help me with my PF.

I rolled in, tried them on and WOW.

Two days with them in the flip flops, and my left foot feels 1000% better.

Very impressed.


---
Ken

[drbill]

Yep, Lynn and Claudette have it right (no surprise there).

As one who suffered from it multiple times, this can be incredibly painful. There were days I could barely walk when I got out of bed. Once I stopped walking my hand cart loaded with my gear up my hill with only my dive booties on, and bought the Dr. Bill Mobile, I have not had a recurrence.

[LG Diver]

http://www.happyfeet.net/

These guys were at the SoCal Scuba Show. Claudette reminded me that Peter Guy mentioned these insole may help me with my PF.

I rolled in, tried them on and WOW.

Two days with them in the flip flops, and my left foot feels 1000% better.

Very impressed.


---
Ken

I'd be a little wary of these insoles for PF. Gel insoles may feel very comfortable, but from what I can see on the website they offer little in the way of arch support. Shock absorption isn't really what you need for PF- you need a rigid insert with solid arch support (at least that's what's been explained to me by my chiro and sports med Dr). The Superfeet inserts provide this, and they're relatively inexpensive. Note that they'll usually feel like you've got a golf ball in your shoes initially- it usually takes several days of progressively wearing them for longer periods of time before you can wear them continuously, but once you get used to them they feel like heaven. They work for a lot of people, but if they don't, the next step is usually a custom rigid orthotic for PF (custom carbon fiber orthotics are major $$$).

[Mo2vation]

The good news is its all gone.

I wake up, I roll. No more gimp city.

Thanks all.

---
Ken