plantar fascia

[moggy]

I know this is a common injury, but is there any cure other than taking painkillers.anti inflammatories for weeks on end, because firstly its not improving, and secondly, I dont like the though of a month of ibuprofen and paracetamol 3 times daily.

I was due for acupuncture today, but transport problems put an end to that, so its over 2 weeks til I can have another appontment.

Any ideas, has anyone use any other methods please?

[ultra_whippet]

Tennis ball. Roll it around under the sole of your foot, a lot. You can do it while watching TV, surfing VF, whatever. When the tennis ball is comfortable, switch to something harder - I use a small rubber ball.
There are ankle braces you can buy that keep your fascia in a stretched position overnight - you could probably improvise something if you wanted to. If not, just be really careful to be very gentle with it when you get up in the morning.
Make sure you have adequate flexibility in your calves and hamstrings also.

[moggy]

Thanks for thatp interesting about the calf musclep its on the side where I did tear my calf muscle several years ago, , and it doesnt quite stretch as well as the other calf (so I will make more of an effort to make it strech) thanks.

[fist of doom]

i have it and it sucks. mostly flares up in the winter.
in my experience, the tennis ball works best
shoe inserts also provided relief.
the podiatrist told me to avoid flip flops and shoes without a pronounced arc.
they also make a special sock available at running shops. its about $20US. never used it.

[Big Foot Marty]

take your shoes off and exercise your feet, entire foot, and clear up te PF

Plantar Fasciitis is analagous to Carpal tunnel pain in hand and wrist- do exercises for feet that mimic the same for hand.

1) Ice it and reduce some pain (take Turmeric/ginger to naturally deal with Inflammation)

2) Walk on carpeted floor or grass or soft gym floor barefooted

3) Run easily w/o shoes on grs or rubber surfaced track or football/soccer field- golf course

4) do a little more barefoot each day.

During the day when able- take shoes off and exercise feet

A) grab stuff with toes
B) crunch paper with toes
C) massage foot and crack you"knuckles"

[Steven-R]

I'll briefly add-
Stretching, simultaneously the plantar fascia and the calf. They both connect to the heel.

Massage to aid elongation of the tissue.

Very important to do the rubber ball rolling and stretch before getting out of bed and walking, also if you get up during the night. Have shoes with padding and support for walking around after getting out of bed, but don't rely on them all day.

[moggy]

I bought a pair of Teva trekking sandals last year at the recomendation of a shop assistant in Cotswolds shop- I wear them absolutely everywhere apart from when the muds too deep and I need wellies. They have transformed my foot completely. The exercises helped to a certain extent, but these sandals are bloody bliss! (But to be on the safe side I still do stretching before I get out of bed)

(None of the other walking boots/trekking sandals shops had even heard of plantar fascia, so I made a quick exit from them)

[beforewisdom]

I had plantar fascitus that lasted for years. This is all anecdotal, so take it for what it is worth:

1. If you are at all overweight count calories, keep a food diary, do what you have to lose weight. Many things *helped*, but once I lost a lot of excess weight my PF improved much more and stayed improved.

2. Powdered ginger is a safe ( and cheap ) anti-inflammatory. It tastes nasty, but you can get around that by using a spoon to put it on top of your tongue before you bang it back with a tall glass of water. Give it 20 min to notice results.

3. Taking a LOT of omega 3 capsules ( I used Omega Zen 3 brand ), *noticeably* decreased the inflammation for long periods of time in my foot. I took 10 a day for a while. Yes, it is expensive and no, there is no guide for therapeutic dosages.

4. Physical therapy. If you haven't gone, go. They will show you some great stretches as well as some useful concomitant exercises you would never have dreamed of as being relevant to the problem.

5. Making sure to stretch your Achilles tendon *area* every day, not just the "meat" of your calves. It helps a lot. That area also pulls on your PF. Typically you do so with the same stretch, but with your knee bending forward. BE CAREFUL, it is extremely easy to overstretch and hurt this area fast

6. Doing something like #5 but with your toes bent back ( propped against a wall, a stair ) will stretch the plantar area, the part with the the problem, and can make a huge difference. Again, BE CAREFUL it is easily overstretched. One good stretch is to sit in a chair with your ankle on your other thigh. Lace your fingers in your toes. Manipulate your toes/the ball of your foot back and forth slowly, many times. If you are patient, this will loosen up the injured area.

7. Stretch before you get out of bed. If you have PF, the moment you stand up on a cold foot, you are re-traumatizing it. An excellent stretch to do in bed is to lay on your back, flex your quads tight, push your heel out and pull your toes back. Hold it for at least 30 seconds. Repeat several times. I am *told* that these kind of stretches work very well.....having one muscle pull against another in a natural motion --it sends more feedback that something is tight and gets your body to loosen it up more.

Good Luck

[CaliforniaLinz]

This is great advice. I've started increasing my mileage in my 1/2 marathon training, and I've noticed my plantar faciitis come back a little bit I want to nip it in the bud while I can, so I'm going to try all the stuff above. Did anyone notice that this happened to them when increasing mileage? I've been following the 10% increase rule.