Continuing the discussion of things plantar, plantar fasciitis is the most common foot condition among runners.  It is a painful irritation of the plantar fascia, a thick fibrous band of tissue originating on the bottom surface of the calcaneous (heel bone) and extending along the sole of the foot towards the five toes.  The term “fasciitis” might be considered a misnomer, as medical studies of the tissue do not necessarily demonstrate inflammation.  Plantar fasciitis reportedly occurs in two million Americans a year and 10% of the population over a lifetime.  It is commonly associated with long periods of work-related weight bearing.  The pain is usually felt on the underside of the heel, and is usually most intense with the first steps of the day.  Another symptom commonly recognized among sufferers of plantar fasciitis is knee pain, especially among runners.  One cause of the irritation to the plantar fascia is the rocking motion of the foot occuring with each foot-strike, when the foot pronates below the ankle to attenuate impact, inducing an over-use condition in the plantar fascia.  At any rate, it hurts.

Most Frequent Locations for Plantar Fasciitis

I finally got to figure out my insurance and whether it covers the $500 custom made orthotics my Podiatrist recommended – it doesn’t.  So, for now I am going to try over the counter arch supports (my Podiatrist said they might work).  I went and got some from my Podiatrist’s office yesterday.  They are Powerstep ProTech Full Length Arch Supports. So far they feel great!  They are a bit weird, but the pain isn’t there when I walk.  (Although, my arches are a bit sore/confused from being supported!)  They warned me to wear them a few hours a day and build up to full day wear, so that is the current plan.

I looked into my community gym and I am going to join it tomorrow.  I plan to keep up cardio on the elliptical until I feel ready to start running again.  I am thinking once the arch supports feel fine while walking, and hopefully I am pain free, then…(hopefully) …  I CAN RUN!  I am keeping my fingers crossed until then…  Hoping these arch supports work.  Otherwise I will have to spend 10 times as much money on custom made supports…  Again, fingers are crossed!

2. A stride and leg stretching system, comprising: a foot-engaging portion for securely engaging a foot, said foot-engaging portion having a front side, a rear side, a left side, and a right side, said foot-engaging portion being detachably attachable to a foot; and a manual-engagement strap for manual engagement by a person wearing said foot-engaging portion, said manual engagement strap attached on a first side to said left side of said foot-engaging portion and attached on a second side to said right side of said foot-engaging portion; whereby a person may attach said foot-engaging portion to his foot and subsequently stretch his stride and/or leg associated with his foot by manipulating and engaging said manual-engagement strap.

The Road Now

Are you one of the millions of Americans who will resolve to exercise more in the New Year? If so, take advice from the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) and take it slowly. Too much activity too quickly can cause a multitude of foot and ankle problems including stress fractures, ruptured tendons, or plantar fasciitis.

The best way to avoid these foot and ankle injuries is to know your limits and to follow a sensible program when exercising. Preventative measures include:

• Select the proper footwear for the specific type of exercise
• Start out slowly when beginning an exercise program following a layoff period
• Walk and stretch to warm up gradually before running or walking
• Focus on stretching and strengthening the muscles in the calf
• Increase running or walking distance and speed gradually, in increments no greater than 10% per week
• Avoid unaccustomed strenuous sprinting
• Take the time to cool down properly after exercise

Keith L. Wapner, MD, clinical professor of orthopaedic surgery at Pennsylvania Hospital and President-Elect of the AOFAS, sees many patients with overuse injuries and he offers the following advice, “Plantar fasciitis, tendonitis and stress fractures are the most common overuse injuries. These can be avoided by remembering to include a stretching protocol prior to your workout and following the “rule of tens” by not increasing your exercise amount by more than ten percent per week.”

By adhering to these simple measures you may avoid painful overuse ankle injuries and achieve success with your New Year’s resolution. For more information on overuse injuries as well as resources on foot and ankle care go to the AOFAS website www.aofas.org. The site also features a surgeon referral service that makes it easy for patients to find a local orthopaedic surgeon specializing in foot and ankle care.

Are you one of the millions of Americans who will resolve to exercise more in the New Year?  If so, take advice from the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) and take it slowly.  Too much activity too quickly can cause a multitude of foot and ankle problems including stress fractures, ruptured tendons, or plantar fasciitis.

The best way to avoid these foot and ankle injuries is to know your limits and to follow a sensible program when exercising.  Preventative measures include:

• Select the proper footwear for the specific type of exercise
• Start out slowly when beginning an exercise program following a layoff period
• Walk and stretch to warm up gradually before running or walking
• Focus on stretching and strengthening the muscles in the calf
• Increase running or walking distance and speed gradually, in increments no greater than 10% per week
• Avoid unaccustomed strenuous sprinting
• Take the time to cool down properly after exercise

Keith L. Wapner, MD, clinical professor of orthopaedic surgery at Pennsylvania Hospital and President-Elect of the AOFAS, sees many patients with overuse injuries and he offers the following advice, “Plantar fasciitis, tendonitis and stress fractures are the most common overuse injuries.  These can be avoided by remembering to include a stretching protocol prior to your workout and following the “rule of tens” by not increasing your exercise amount by more than ten percent per week.”

By adhering to these simple measures you may avoid painful overuse ankle injuries and achieve success with your New Year’s resolution.  For more information on overuse injuries as well as resources on foot and ankle care go to the AOFAS website www.aofas.org.  The site also features a surgeon referral service that makes it easy for patients to find a local orthopaedic surgeon specializing in foot and ankle care.

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As I recounted in a previous post, I apparently have cured my plantar fasciitis by going against medical advice and walking barefoot whenever possible. In this post, I would like to review the medically prescribed treatments that didn’t work. I tried quite a few approaches over several years, and I eschewed only the final, most draconian alternative. Some of these treatments border on quackery.

Tried and worked

Stretching has helped to alleviate my symptoms and perhaps has contributed to my eventual cure. However, by itself or in combination with any other medical advice or intervention, it was insufficient. Now I feel fine without stretching regularly.

Tried and didn’t work

• I underwent physical therapy, consisting mostly of ultrasound, stretching, and massages. This actually increased my pain on a day-to-day basis. Usually, it became excruciating about an hour after I left the therapy center, even if I was sitting down.
• I had a very expensive shockwave operation, under general anesthetic, as a next-to-last resort. I had developed doubts about the treatment’s efficacy after agreeing to it. The brochure explaining the procedure noted that something like 60 percent of patients experienced a successful recovery from plantar fasciitis, but in a footnote it said that a slightly lower percentage of patients recovered fully if they simply skipped the operation and followed the post-op instructions to rest for a month. That is, the main benefit of the shockwave therapy was to get patients to rest! Sadly, it didn’t work for me.
• I received cortisone injections at least twice. In neither case did I receive any perceptible, lasting benefit. Amazingly, the doctor suggested a third attempt, just in case. Perhaps equally distressing, one time he applied local anesthetic to the wrong foot and started aiming the very long needle at it. When I reminded him that my left foot was the right foot, he decided to make up for lost time by not waiting for the local anesthetic to take effect. I remember very clearly having that  long needle pushed slowly into the bottom of my foot.
• I was prescribed and fitted for expensive orthotic inserts for my shoes. These kept my feet from having to adjust to support my weight as I walked. That is, they weakened my feet while protecting them from injury. However, wearing them did not cure my condition. Several times, I became pain-free for a significant period. So I would begin to ease out of using the orthotic all the time. The pain recrudesced every time.
• A orthopedic specialist practically prescribed particular athletic shoes for me to wear.  Apparently, they were designed to structure my footfall to make it as different from walking barefoot as possible – lots of cushioning and support. My problem began to diminish only when I chose to junk the shoes and walk barefoot. I now happily wear the least-coddling shoes possible. Also, doctors told me that dress shoes, with heels, would be the best kind of shoe and would not need an orthotic insert. My experience has been that wearing them results in the most pain.
• Doctors cavalierly told me – a reasonably fit man then about 40 years old – that I might have to stop running for the rest of my life. Gullible, I took them at their word, but I believe that this inactivity only prolonged and exacerbated my problem by weakening my feet.

Not tried

Finally, the orthopedic surgeon who had helped to perform the shockwave operation told me that the only remaining treatment had the highest success rate. He would open up the bottom of my foot and indiscriminately cut half of my fasciae. He told me that he had no idea why this procedure worked, he could not even see which fasciae were damaged. I feared that this operation would permanently weaken my foot, reducing my capacity for high-intensity athletic endeavors. I suspect that much of his success rate with this operation was due to: 1) disgusted former patients refusing to continue contact with him, which is how I reacted to the shockwave operation, and 2) as with shockwave, the benefits of forced, post-operative rest.

You know how bloggers apologize for taking a break? Stuff like: “One month without a post” or “I bet you were wondering what happened to me.” The reader’s response: ‘I had no idea you were gone.’ Which is probably the same sentiment anyone who reads this is going to have. And maybe my own forthcoming explanation is an attempt to sublimate some writer’s guilt, but I thought you deserved an excuse for my absence:

I’ve been out of commission for the past month or so. Here’s how the proverbial shiz went down. I was in a hurry one morning, and I tried to squeeze in a quick run before going to work. I must have taken those first couple of miles too fast, because by mile five I was breaking down. A new kind of pain dug its teeth into my knee and wouldn’t let go. I had to do that weird looking one-stiff-leg-run walk thing. Not very cool looking.

I didn’t let it bother me at first. I just stretched a bit when I got home — probably not a good idea — and went about my day… The pain got worse at work. It radiated outward from an area just south of the back of knee like a reactor meltdown. Chernobyl was happening in my leg. Stairs were the worst.

Fast forward three days. I’d made a few more ill-fated running attempts, each one more excruciating than the previous. I decided to do the unthinkable: rest for a few days.

That didn’t work either.

After whining to my wife about it for a week or so, medical advice seemed the obvious next step. I saw a nurse practitioner. She recommended an MRI.

If you’ve never had one, let me break it down for you: big cold sterile room, intimidating beige barrel with a digital display on the front, earplugs, and positively no reading material.

It’s like lying under a train for 60 minutes. Loud arrhythmic noises for an extended period of time. And the guy operating the thing is in a different room talking to you from behind a glass partition through a Hardee’s Intercom — which makes you feel real safe.

Anyway, an hour or so after crawling into that infernal contraption, I left the hospital with a CD-ROM and no instructions from anyone on what to do next.

I took it back to the nurse practitioner’s office. She wasn’t there of course.

Long story short, the torn ligament in my leg healed after an extended period of rest, and I was able to start running again.

I’d like to think I’ve learned something from this experience, but I can’t say I have. Other than I’m not fond of MRIs. Once again, I ignored the virtues that get most people through this kind of predicament (patience being one) and wound up grumpy. Wait a minute; is that learning?

But alas, I’m happy again. Don’t let my complaining fool you. I’m thrilled to be back out there.

It’s been a little less than a week since my first acupuncture appointment and I must say… I am a believer.  I had a very positive and welcoming first experience with acupuncture and will be going back at least once a week. I was given Chinese herbs called Gui Zhi Fu Ling Wan, which help endometriosis, abdominal masses and menstrual irregularities. So far, so good. I still have minor pain but it has gone down considerably compared to what it was at. This is a HUGE step for me and I finally see a glimmer of hope. I can’t describe how wonderful it feels to know that this might be the answer I’ve been looking for.

I also spoke with my acupuncturist about some of my other concerns such as anxiety, sleep problems and the plantar fasciitis in my foot. All of the issues I discussed have been reduced dramatically. My foot has already started to heal. I went on a little walk the other night, to try to get my blood moving and get my heart rate up a little bit. Unfortunately I couldn’t keep a very fast pace since I’m *still* limping… but it was a start. I had been in the boot every day ’til I started acupuncture and for the first time I am actually able to see a difference and WALK!

I am diving into a new yoga routine, being more diligent with my diet and continuing acupuncture as treatment, per my doctor’s orders. I am pleasantly surprised that my Kaiser doctor is so supportive of alternative medicines and is actually the one that suggested them in the first place. I hope I have a wonderful report for her come February when we meet again. I feel like it’s my last option before Lupron, so I am putting all my energy into making it count.

My next task is to remain calm and focused through the next semester and I almost wonder if that won’t be the most difficult of the last few years. I am tackling a full-time school schedule while working 40+ hours a week. I am already overwhelmed about this. I am finally working on my major, Psychology.

Christmas was amazing. I feel very lucky to have three families to spend Christmas with.  I got to spend quality time with the Alliger’s, my Mom and the Righetti’s. Sadly, it was my first Christmas without my father, ever. He was in Arizona with my Step-Mother and Grandparents.  

So there’s the last week in a nut shell. I am looking forward to focusing on getting better and finishing this chapter of school.

I have to remember, above all else, to breathe!

For several years, I suffered from plantar fasciitis. A series of medical treatments and advice did nothing to ease my pain and sometimes even increased it. Nonetheless, I seem to have solved this problem, and my experience directly controverts much of the medical advice that I received. So I offer this testimonial in case others find it instructive.

What worked

In a separate post, I’ll cover what didn’t work. But here is what I have done to ‘cure’ my plantar fasciitis:

• I walk barefoot whenever possible, to strengthen my feet as they have evolved to operate. When my feet are cold, I walk around the house in socks.
• I use shoes that allow me to walk in a manner as similar to walking barefoot as possible. My first choice are highly flexible sandals from Mexico, aka huaraches, that have no heel. Otherwise, I usually wear Nike Frees. Finding this model actually took my problem from ‘manageable’ to ’solved.’ Wearing them, I could painlessly hike around a college campus carrying a heavy backpack, which I could not do while wearing, for example, trail-running shoes from New Balance. Wearing huaraches or Nike Frees, I trudged through several South American cities for a month this summer – often carrying a very heavy backpack – without plantar fasciitis recurring.
• I devotedly performed the stretches that doctors and physical therapists had shown me, even on days when I felt no pain. I have since reduced my stretching without symptoms recurring.
• I carefully eased back into exercising. I started by walking briskly (sometimes barefoot). I would walk one minute longer each time that I exercised. Then I graduated to running by mixing in running one minute at a time, up to a half hour of running. I limited the time to avoid re-injuring myself, and I would not run two days in a row. Finally, I graduated to playing tennis, which I can now do for three hours at a time without hurting my foot. (My back and ego are another story.) I can play full matches on successive days.
• I used my $200, custom-fit orthotic inserts on rare occasions, just for safety’s sake. Such occasions included moving very heavy furniture and wearing dress shoes. However, I have eschewed their use in recent months without untoward effect.

Why it worked

The medical doctors told me that I should avoid any activity that would stress my feet. Two of them told me, to paraphrase: ”You may just have to give up running for the rest of your life.” The orthotic that they had prescribed encased my foot into the ‘proper’ shape, relieving my foot of the need to adjust to my gait. It seemed to me that the doctors were telling me, in essence, to give up, to stay weak but protected. At the same time, they admitted that they didn’t really know why some treatments worked more often than others or in some patients instead of others. (I’ll detail my many unsuccessful treatments later.)

I’m not a medical doctor, but I am one of anthropology. And I just couldn’t believe that, for 200,000 years, Homo sapiens had been suffering chronically from plantar fasciitis because they lacked orthotics and expensive shoes. It seemed much more likely that the condition that had made this injury possible was weak feet and an unfortunate running motion, especially since I’m severely flatfooted and a little pigeon-toed. Moreover, I developed plantar fasciitis by running in shoes. (I probably worsened it by running through the pain.) I eventually decided to mimic the walking and running of our shoeless ancestors, since our feet are much more likely to have evolved to facilitate a shoeless stride than to have evolved in response to shoe -wearing – the latter being, in evolutionary terms, a recent innovation.

In short

So, after years of following medical medical advice to the letter, I decided to ‘go rogue.’ I simultaneously strengthened my feet and changed my gait by going shoeless. And it worked!

Sunny Waikiki, Hawaii

December 21, 2009

Registration fee now just $99

THE 10-MINUTE TRIGENICS SHOULDER ASSESSMENT AND TREATMENT SYSTEM

• Learn how to become a master diagnostician of shoulder conditions!
• Learn how to treat shoulder conditions for immediate results!
• Learn about the science of Trigenics® Functional Neurology.

Learn how to analyze and diagnose shoulder conditions within 5 minutes or less and to treat for immediate results within another 5 minutes. You will learn how to become a master diagnostician by systematically drawing a functional neurokinetic map of the shoulder using a specific series of strength and length testing procedures. Shoulder ligamentous or capsular damage and instabilities will be “ruled-in” should they exist and require further investigative procedures. A brief introduction to the science and theory of Trigenics Applied Functional Neurology will also be presented.

3 hours

• 30 minute lecture
• 2.5 hour workshop with demonstrations on audience volunteers.

Course Instructed by Founder of Trigenics

Dr. Allan Oolo Austin

DC, DO, DAc, CCSP^Ò, CCRD, PhD

CE CREDITS Sponsored by National University Health Sciences

Download registration form here

Fill it and fax back to us at 416-322-1593

To register by phone call: 416-481-1936

343 Eglinton Ave.East, Toronto

ON M4P 1L7 Canada

info@trigenicsinstitute.com

www.trigenics.com

http://twitter.com/trigenics

The heel is the largest bone in the foot and is the first to hit the ground when walking. Every time we take a step, one of our heels has to support the whole weight of our body. As we move, the load is equal to 20 times your own body weight! So it’s no surprise that heel pain is by far the most common foot problem.

What Causes Heel Pain?

Plantar Fasciitis is the most common cause of heel pain. Plantar fasciitis occurs from small tears and inflammation caused by excessive stretching in the plantar fascia – the wide band of tendons and ligaments that stretches from the heel to the ball of the foot. This band forms the arch of the foot and helps to serve as a shock absorber for the body. Most people with plantar fasciitis experience pain which is at its worst with their first steps in the morning, taking the form of a sharp, stabbing sensation in the heel. This can often lead to heel spurs and arch pain.

The excessive stretching that occurs in the plantar fascia can be caused by:

• Over-Pronation (flat feet): occurs in the walking process, when a person’s arch collapses upon weight bearing, causing the plantar fascia to be stretched away from the heel bone.
• A foot with a high arch
• An increase in physical activity, high-impact exercise & sports (plantar Fasciitis accounts for up to 9% of all running injuries!)
• Excessive weight on the foot: e.g. caused by pregnancy or obesity
• Improperly fitting footwear
• Lack of calf flexibility
• An uneven stride: can cause abnormal and stressful impact on the foot.

Treatment and Prevention

Each time your foot hits the ground the plantar fascia is stretched. We can reduce this strain and stress through fairly simple, non surgical methods. The American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) suggest orthotic inserts and stretching as a first line of therapy for heel pain. One study found that 95% of women who used an insert and did simple stretching exercises experienced improvement after just 8 weeks! The most effective treatment used to manage plantar fasciitis is wearing shoes and orthotics that support the arch. This is because:

• They can help to reduce stress at key pressure points
• They keep each foot properly aligned and supported which stabilizes the heels
• The correct orthotics can act as shock absorbers, reducing the impact of each step
• Orthotics help to prevent over-pronation and stretching of the plantar fascia.

Foot Solutions has several products that are ideal for this support including:

• Custom arch supports to support the plantar fascia
• Supportive shoes from athletic to dress
• Chung Shi – shoe with rocker sole that has been found to help with heel pain.

Think you could benefit from some help with your heel pain? Book an appointment at Foot Solutions in Kingston for a free assessment and gait analysis!

Sources:
www.aofas.org
www.epodiatry.com
www.footsolutions.com
www.healthcentral.com
www.heelspurs.co.uk
Images: www.foot.com

What Your FEET Can Tell You about Your Spinal Health

Local Chiropractor Acquires New Digital Technology

December 8, 2009 – Dr. Collin Dolan is pleased to announce the addition of the Foot Levelers Associate™ Platinum to his practice. A tool that will allow him to make a digital scan of the feet, the Associate™ Platinum helps the doctor to screen for imbalances that contribute to problems in any number of places, like your knees, hips, and low back — even if your feet don’t hurt!

Your feet are the foundation for your entire body. Like any structure, your body’s foundation must be balanced to support the weight above it. If the arches in one or both of your feet collapse, your body doesn’t get the correct postural support, causing an imbalance in your skeletal frame. The Associate™ Platinum helps chiropractors develop care plans and use postural support, like custom-made orthotics from Foot Levelers, to obtain positive results in nearly everyone — from children to seniors.

Dr. Dolan welcomes new patients to Dolan Family Chiropractic for postural exams to determine their chiropractic needs. The clinic offers a variety of therapies for total body health and provides on-site screenings with the Associate™ Platinum at health fairs and other community events.

If you’ve never had your feet scanned, you probably don’t know what they are supposed to look like. Don’t wait for aches and pains to tell you there is a problem.  Call now to schedule a FREE consultation and exam with the doctor.  Most health insurances are accepted and many of them fully cover custom made foot orthotics at no cost to you!!!  Call to see if your insurance qualifies.

Call Dr. Dolan at 630-236-3090 now to schedule an appointment or check out our website at http://Dolanchiro.com , and learn how your feet can affect your health!! Your entire body will thank you!  Dolan Family Chiropractic is located at 1137 N Eola Rd, Ste 111 in Aurora Il.  It is located at the corner of Eola Rd and Indian Trail/N Aurora Rd in the Jewel Shopping Center.

Plantar fasciitis is an extremely common problem, particularly in the summer when people walk around in flip flps all the time.  But I still see alot of it now in people where it is a chronic condition.

And chronic conditions call for the heavy artillery.

I can’t stand it when I hear about a patient getting a cortisone shot for this condition.  It just shouldn’t be done.

Let me tell you what should and can be done…

A tibial nerve block using ultrasound guidance anesthetizes the bottom of the heel.  Then using ultrasound guidance I can poke small holes in the plantar fascia and get rid of any spurs that are there at the same time.  Then I inject PRP (platelet-rich plasma), a derivative of a patient’s own blood.  The PRP is loaded with growth and healing factors which help the plantar fascia to regenerate new tissue. And- gets rid of the pain!

Just did this procedure last week in a patient.  He’s doing great!

By Sue Shekut, Licensed Massage Therapist, ACSM Personal Trainer, Certified Wellness Coach, Owner, Working Well Massage

Looking for a gift idea for someone with plantar fasciitis? Or just want to give a runner a gift that will help them avoid it?  Look to the Vibram running shoe.

Vibram shoe

Read  John Biggs post about Vibram shoes at CrunchGear.com and learn all about his experience with the shoes. Then run to the nearest running store to get your own..and a pair for the runner in your life!

And, no, Working Well Resources and Working Well Massage are not affiliated with Vibram, John Biggs nor do we get any free gear for our post. (Would you trust us if we did?) We’re just happy to pass on the latest info to you, our loyal readers!

Review: Vibram Five Fingers Classic

by John Biggs

I swore I’d never wear them. We called them the Five Fingers of Suck a few years ago and I was sure they were crazy. Friends, I’m here to tell you I was wrong. And I’m sorry.

Here’s my story: I ran a marathon a few years ago. I got plantar fasciitis and couldn’t run after the marathon. I worked through that inflammation but by the time I was ready to run again I had gained thirty pounds. Wham. Shin-splints. So I was a fat former runner with leg problems. The prognosis wasn’t good.

So I tried a few things – the elliptical, weight training, losing some freaking weight – but the thing that saved me were these shoes.

Photo Gallery by Picturesurf

First, a caveat. I’m not a doctor, I’m an amateur runner and a bad one at that. Before you use these shoes, talk to a doctor. I can attest to what they did for me but I have no idea what they will do for you.

We are born to run. Heck, there’s even a book about it. Our first weapon, before fire and spears, was running. You see, animals like gazelles can run very fast for a short amount of time. They have great sprint speeds but they get tired easily. So we, as a pack predator, would get into formation and literally run animals to death. Then we’d eat them. We are good at running.

But we’re good at running barefoot. We’re not good at running in marshmallow-based shoes with padding, support, and protection. In fact, we get injured because of these shoes. There is some data that shows, in fact, that the more expensive the running shoe the worse it is for your feet and legs. I knew something was wrong when my feet would fall asleep while I was running. Something was up.

I don’t want to get into a religious argument – this is like arguing for veganism or onanism and you eventually fall into the hippie trap of equating something to “freedom” – but it makes sense. I bought the best shoes I could find for the marathon. And the shows – and the marathon – beat me down.

So I tried the Nike Free, a thinner soled shoe with separate compartments on the bottom for increased mobility. This got rid of most of my foot pain but I still had ankle pain. I ran a little in regular shoes and then read Born to Run and decided to go naked.

The thinking is this: we can run without injuries barefoot. It’s our natural mode of transportation and by wearing shoes we are weakening our bodies.

However, running barefoot in Brooklyn is a bad idea. So I ordered the Five Fingers Classic for about $75 – I bought 44 for my size 11.5 foot and they fit very well – and waited. I ran. My knees were screaming. My ankles hurt. Then, a few minutes later, all the pain was gone. I was running normally and, thanks to the light weight and comfort I could run longer than I ever could. I could run without stopping, which was a big change for me. I could run for quite a while. The only limitations were the blisters I got during the first few runs. Even those went away.

So I’m a Five Fingers convert. The shoes give your ankles a workout rather than a coddling. I felt my ankles get stronger and my feet get more resilient. I felt some of the pounds drop. I felt good.

They say we need lots of arch support but for most of our biological history we didn’t even know what an arch was let alone how to support it. While these shoes look ridiculous I’m happy to report that they work and they’re now my go-to running shoes.

Link to John Biggs  entire article here.

Where Do I Get Those Funny Looking Toe Sock Looking Shoes?

Order your pair of Vibrams shoes from their website here.

Order from Hanigs in Chicago here.

Or stop by Running Away a running store in Wicker Park located at 1753 N Damen Ave, Chicago, IL 60647. Phone: (773) 395 – 2929. Their website here.

Info on Running Barefoot (sans Vibrams) at runningbarefoot.org here.

PM. Run 19km/1:32, steady, HR 148(156)

I had a good run after work. My heel was slightly sore, but didn’t bother me at all once I’d stepped out the door. It was cold, and my heart rates for these runs are returning to where they were before I was ill in October.

Plantar fasciitis
Did a bit of digging around in the internet at lunchtime today. I think the pain I’m getting in my heel is from my plantar fascia ligament. From information I can see (e.g. Wikipedia or plantar-fasciitis.org - my pain is right in the middle of this wiki diagram) it’s a similar tendon ache to achilles tendonitis, and I’ve fought that often enough. I shall be doing some more stretching and icing to keep it healthy. I hope I can keep it under control – running is an important part of my winter schedule.

Challenge Roth Ironman
I’ve found out that the main sponsor, Quelle, of the Ironman I’m doing next year, has gone bust. The race organisers have released a statement - looks like the Ironman will be unaffected, phew.

74.1kg

Pronation is the natural movement of the feet which uses the flexibility of the foot to help us in walking, running and all other activities which we use our feet for. Pronation brings about the contracting and relaxing of the tendons that provide the necessary uplift that helps us take long steps when running. This is the main reason why most athletes suffer from foot ailments caused by over pronation. Over pronation is a condition caused due to the flattening out of the arch which is caused due to over use in athletes while in normal people it is caused mainly due to standing for long hours, obesity and pregnancy.

Foot care products

Over pronation is a simple condition that can be easily corrected by giving our feet some much needed rest. But most often, people fail to give it the required attention and this result in the occurrence of several other foot ailments. Some of the common foot conditions caused due over pronation is flat feet, heel spurs, plantar fasciitis, etc. These are highly painful conditions that require medical attention and good foot doctors could help you reduce the stress on your feet. Foot and Ankle Associates in the California Bay area are a group of enthusiastic foot doctors with high levels of experience in treating over pronation and its effects.

Foot care products play a major role in the recovery and cure of over pronation and other foot ailments such as flat feet, heel spurs and plantar fasciitis. Some of the foot care products that could help cure such foot conditions are splints, foot insoles, and orthotics. Foot and Ankle Associates could help you make best use of these foot care products and thereby find the best solution for over pronation and other related foot ailments. So if you suffer from over pronation or any other foot ailments, you should visit your foot doctor.

Yesterday and today I ran in my old NBs. I can’t bear wiggling into the VFFs.

It’s nice and chilly, with good air for breathing.

I am carefully maintaining my chi posture to avoid re-injury. Everything still hurts a twee bit, but much less so.

7+4+5=16 mostly shod miles in November.

Heel pain is one of the biggest foot ailments that affect a lot of people around the world. All of us are well aware of the great value that our feet bring to us, assisting us in all our daily needs. But our human nature is such that we always tend to forget to take care of our most valuable possessions. Due to our negligence and the lack of proper foot care, our feet are often subjected to several high degrees of stress and pressure which in turn leads to several foot ailments one of which is heel pain.

Causes and Remedies

Heel pain can have a variety of causes attributed to it. Some of the most common causes are plantar fasciitis, skin disorders, fractures, rupturing of tendons, etc. But above all, the biggest cause is the lack of proper foot care and the use of improper foot wear. To keep up with the modernizing trends, most of us wear tight fitting shoes and high heels or even shoes that taper towards the toes. Foot wear such as these affects the internal frame work of our feet and this leads to heel pain and other related foot ailments. Plantar fasciitis is the foot condition that is caused due to the rupturing of the plantar fascia which is a tendon that runs along the base of the foot and forms the arch. Skin disorders on the other hand are caused due to the lack of proper foot care.

Like many common foot conditions, there are several home remedies that could help you find an efficient solution. The common foot care measures that could help cure heel pain are foot baths, heat treatment, etc. Resting your feet too is very important to bring your feet back to normalcy and preventing these foot conditions from recurring. Proper foot care advice from efficient foot doctors would be a good idea. Foot and Ankles Associates is one of the best foot clinics you could find in the California Bay area where you could find your solution to not only heel pain but all your common foot ailments. With many highly experienced foot doctors, Foot and Ankles Associates are committed to helping their patients find their way out of all their foot conditions with the use of good foot care measures.

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Walking Without Pain

You have been experiencing sharp pain in the heel and or arch of your foot.  Usually it’s worse when you first put your foot on the floor in the morning, but it can also be triggered when getting up from a sitting position, or standing for long periods. One in 10 people suffer from this condition, which causes significant pain, leading to the pursuit of relief from over the counter remedies and internet-only products.  Often, the discomfort can become debilitating and frustrating, causing agony and the interruption of regular activities like walking or running. You may have Plantar Fasciitis (PLAN-tur fas-e-I-tis), one of the most common causes of foot pain.

Most people think this condition only appears suddenly.  In fact, plantar fasciitis often occurs gradually over time.  Almost everyone is vulnerable, as it affects athletes, people who are obese or pregnant, couch potatoes and weekend warriors alike. In acute cases, it is caused by inflammation of a tough band of tissue, called the plantar fascia, which runs from the heel to the toes on the bottom of the foot.   In chronic cases MRI’s have shown that the condition is no longer inflammatory but degenerative with evidence of degeneration of the plantar fascia.  The irritation, swelling, and soreness of PF can be caused by a variety of things including age, sex (women are more likely to suffer then men), anatomical imperfections, biomechanical abnormalities, repetitive stressors from activity and exercise, improper shoes, and occupational or weight issues. The plantar fascia is a shock absorber and anatomical stabilizer for the foot which protects the nerves, muscles and bones of the foot as well as aids in controlling movement of the entire lower limb by supporting the foot’s arch.  Like other soft tissue in the body, it can become too tight, too loose, or torn, setting the stage for inflammation and discomfort.

Ignoring the problem can have devastating results.  It is not uncommon to suffer from this syndrome for as long as a year or more.  As plantar fasciitis develops into a chronic condition and interferes with regular activity, it can also lead to other problems affecting the foot, knee, hip or back.  These additional problems develop when severe pain causes walking motions to change over time.

In most cases, the diagnosis of plantar fasciitis is made with a simple physical exam from your doctor.  In cases involving trauma or repetitive loading (like running) it is important to rule out other pathology of the foot with an MRI or X-ray.  Treatment usually requires relatively low-tech, low-cost, and low-risk interventions like custom shoe inserts, ice, stretching exercises, night splints, and non-prescription pain relievers.  In persistent cases physicians will inject the plantar fascia with a steroid to reduce inflammation.

Get Active Again!

Dr. Benjamin White of Vital Link Physical Therapy in Doylestown, PA is a physical therapist who treats many cases of plantar fasciitis in his practice. “My patients bring me bags full of stuff they have bought to help relieve their pain, but if they have found their way to me, those remedies have failed them,” says Dr. White. “I recommend a combination of physical therapy, home exercises, taping and customized orthotics for each patient I treat with this condition.  No one treatment stands alone but rather a combination of focused manual therapy, stretching, strengthening, modalities and foot support and night splints work best.”  Dr. White and his associates at Vital Link use specific physical therapy techniques to help relieve the pain.   One key to Dr. White’s success in treating PF, he feels, are the variety of the orthotic options he uses with his patients.  ”Lots of clinicians make orthotics, however if the cast of the foot is not captured in the right position, then you end up with inadequate support for the foot.  This is the primary reason most over the counter foot inserts fail to help”, says White.  

Most of the patients Dr. White has fitted for custom orthotics have had success.   Loretta Montgomery, a long time patient of Dr. White, has been wearing the orthotics made by Dr. White of since June. Although Loretta has worn orthotics she purchased elsewhere for the past 10 years, her feet have never felt as good as they do since being fitted by Dr. White. Here’s what Loretta had to say; “Ben is such a caring person that he made sure my new orthotics fit me just right. They are so much more supportive and comfortable than the ones I have owned in the past, and for about ½ the price!” Loretta added, “I have a very flat foot, but I can wear these all day every day because they are more stable and firmer than my others. On days when I don’t have them in my shoes, my back reminds me that I really need them. Ben even made me a demi pair to wear in my sandals.”

Custom orthotics can often get very expensive for patients.   Dr. White has spent the last several years researching solutions for foot pain and brings the best orthotic technology to his patients at a fraction of the cost.   Dr. White works to perfect each orthotic for maximum fit and comfort.  Dr. Benjamin White puts the “custom” in custom orthotics!

(Custom orthotics aren’t just for plantar fasciitis. To learn more, go to our website, www.vitallinkpt.com, or call for an appointment, 215-230-8100.)

I ran three miles. It didn’t hurt. I’m stretching while I write this.

The school buses were out and every mother with all kids off to school came out to power walk in earmuffs or a hat.

Tomorrow I have a loose plan to run with Mim’s friend Jena who wears Newtons, who looks incredibly fit but says she hasn’t run for a full year and she had a baby six weeks ago. We both think we will be too slow for the other.

I am so happy to be home from Disney World. So happy. Now I shall weigh myself to see the damage done by all of that cruddy Disneyfied food.

arch support sleeves from Eckerd

I recently learned that a doctor diagnosed me with extreme flat footedness when I was about 3 or 4 years old, and suggested surgery to my parents. My parents declined, probably figuring their daughter would never aspire to succeed in any sport.

Two decades later, I’m feeling the pain of that decision. The doctor wasn’t conclusive about what’s been causing the pain – so the injury could be any number of things such as a metatarsal fracture, plantar fasciitis, or just simply metatarsal overuse.

For the last three and a half weeks, I’ve been icing my feet almost every day (I’ve missed 3 or 4 days). I’ve also been wearing a pair of arch-hugging sleeves I bought from Eckerd 24/7 (except when icing and sleeping). I’ve also stopped taking the stairs whenever possible, even to go up one floor at work. I try to avoid any extra pressure to my toes.

Here are the symptoms that I should have paid more attention to. They’ve been occurring for years, not just the last few months:

• Wear running shoes (or any shoes that have a little room inside) is painful. Feet feel “loose” and there is a constant “prickling” sensation of pain.
• Walking at any speed faster than a leisurely pace – such as speedwalking – gets painful after about half a mile! (Good that I don’t want to be a distance runner.)
• Walking barefoot can be painful. Toes to mid-portion of feet feel very fragile.

I just purchased shock-absorbing Pegasus vaulting/tumbling shoes that will hopefully diminish the pain in the gym. Till then…ICE ICE ICE!!!!
Any athletes out there suffer from flat feet? How do you lessen the pain?

Freeze water in a bottle...

...and roll your foot over for at least 20 minutes per day.