A Pain in the foot and how to help it– Plantar Fasciitis
The Plantar Fascia is a fibrous tissue (aponeurosis) that connects the heel and toes to each other, helping to support structure, function and movement of our feet. Its often only when you have a pain in or around the sole of your foot that you become aware of plantar fasciitis and start looking for ways to relieve the awful pain that it brings!
There are a number of ways in which the plantar fascia can become painful or irritated and some simple practices that can help to reduce the chances of ever suffering with it.
You should be able to move/roll freely through your foot from heel to toes, ideally keeping all of your toes down and spreading weight evenly as you move. Too much weight on one side of your foot, gripping with your toes or sending your toes up into the air as you move, can all cause irritation to the plantar fascia.
Going Barefoot is great for building strength through feet and legs, however you need to build up the periods of time spent barefoot to allow your body to build the required strength. Personally I save barefoot for around the house, freshly mowed grass or sand where I can see dog poo etc! If you have plantar fasciitis its best to give your feet support around the house and out and about, one you are pain free you can gradually increase the time you spend barefoot.
Shoes – Wear shoes that fit and are well structured–its amazing the number of people who are wearing shoes which are too small, too tight, too loose, too floppy.
Unstructured Flip-flops - these are great for saving your feet and shoes from sand but spending long periods of time in them can lead to painful feet. There are some brands such as Oofos and Birkentsock that provide support to your feet.
Overweight – being overweight will cause more load to your joints and the weight your feet have to bear. If you are looking to increase exercise to lose weight, its important to understand that a sensible diet is the best place to start-it surprising how long you have to exercise for to burn fuel. If you are very overweight cycling or swimming may be a better place to start than lots of walking/running. Before you reach for the calorie counter, look at the nutritional value of the foods you eat.
Training load/intensity– be careful not to change too much too soon, if you are increasing length of time then keep your pace steady, if you want to increase the pace, drop the distance a little. A simple approach is to keep to a max of 10% increase in distance per week, with a ‘rest’ week every fourth week.
Terrain – Varying the surfaces you run on can help to build foot and leg strength, Softer, uneven surfaces such as mud and grass require more effort to maintain balance & momentum, harder surfaces may be easier to balance on but can increase impact on muscles and joints. Uphill generally puts you a little more forwards onto your toes, requiring more strength in feet and legs than flat even surfaces and downhill requires an ability to relax along with the strength required to quicken leg turnover. Understanding and feeling the demands different surfaces have on your body can help you to prepare your training routes as well as understanding the requirements your race route may have.
Injury – Our brain is generally hard wired to avoid pain, so injuring ay part of our body can cause us to adapt the way we move, this new movement pattern can become ingrained and before we realise it we are causing issues in other body parts, so along with recovering from the initial injury we may need to play with the way we are moving to regain the efficiency we had before an injury.
Tools to Help Plantar Fasciitis
· The right shoes
· Supporting the foot with insoles, taping techniques or synthetic arch supports- some technical socks also offer a small amount of support to the transverse arch of the foot.
· Foot rollers / golf balls
· Massage to feet and calves
· Foot and leg strengthening exercises – see video for examples
· Foot and leg mobility exercises – see video for examples
· Steroid injections (although this should be a last resort)
· Re-introducing load and training gradually to allow strength to build and avoid a relapse into pain.
Runnersworld has a wealth of experience in getting you into the right shoes. The Therapy Room at Eastcote is able to help you with massage, movement patterns and training plans and is open for appointments from Mon to Saturday.
Sharon & Gary