Plantar's Fasciitis and Recovery Time

Do you have access to a massage therapist?

I use a frozen water bottle and roll my foot on it. I stretch my calf with straight leg and bent knee.  Always wear supportive shoes/sneakers.

Are you taking any ibuprofen regularly until the flare calms down?

I know what it is like to miss events from it. What ever you do don't ever get a cortisone shot for it, it will weaken your tendons and ligaments.

It has taken me almost a year due to the cortisone shot, so if you can let it rest, that is best.

Edited by tritwinmom 2008-03-18 1:41 AM

Yeah what she said! I never got a cortisone shot so I can't offer an opinion either way on that one, but then again I never would get one so it's a non-issue for me. I developed mine after a long run back in September and I'm just finally feeling like I'm toward the end of it [6 mos later]. You'll need to stay off it if it's going to heal in any amount of time. A month after I got mine I started working a second job which required me to be on my feet 35+ hours a week walking, crouching, tip-toes, etc. It was horrible for my PF and I know it extended my recovery time significantly. In Runner's World this last month they recommended a guy get a heel lift to give the plantar fascia a break. Otherwise they said rest and ice is about all you can do.

I had symptoms last year after my first OLY and ordered one of those boots that are listed on EBAY to wear at night.......I swear by it. The problem with recovery is at night your foot relaxes and normally straightens, shortening the achilles, so that when you wake up and then flex the achilles, it negates any healing that has taken place. The boot keeps the tendon stretched, but allows it to repair and not tear at night/morning. I wore mine for 2 weeks and noticed a huge benefit.

good luck.

I had it last year and don't have the luxury of staying off my feet. One of the first things I read was getting orthotics which I did for my work boots only.
The next was that first thing in the morning before I set my feet down was to pull my toes back like you have a calf cramp and move your ankle back and forth to stretch the bottom of your feet. That helped the most. Then I would do calf stretches after that.
Also throughout the day I would do calf stretches.

After any running I would ice my feet and I bought one of those rollers to roll my feet on. After doing this for months it went away. I still do most of these things to keep it from coming back.

Like I said I couldn't stay off my feet like you and I didn't want to stop running so I lived with a longer recovery and these things worked for me.

According to my sports med doc, average time for a bout with PF is 6 months. It usually alleviates itself pretty spontaneously. The good news is, according to him, and as long as it is PF, you can run through it all you want without affecting recovery time or worrying about doing damage (actually--that's not true...he says you can tear it, but that's the best-case scenario, sionce then you won't have to worry about dealing with it ever again).

I'll second the boots! I don't have PF but they work wonders for my tight achilles tendons. Being a stomach sleeper didn't help my tight achilles . Until you can get the boots try sleeping with your feet hanging off of the bed if you're a stomach sleeper. Can't say the boots are sexy but they really work. My husband is beginning to get used to the look!

Before I bought the boots I tried a Strausberg sock. IMO the boots are more effective and keep your foot in a flexed position better.

I'm just getting over it after 3 months. I second the stretching exercises, ibuprofen, sleeping with a Strassburg sock or a boot, and good arch supports. But what I think REALLY helped me was taping my foot. It completely got rid of my pain almost immediately. There's a bunch of ways to do it that you can Google. Put in "plantar fasciitis taping". Here's the method I used:
http://www.nismat.org/traincor/pl_fasciitis.html

I fought it for about 18 months. Tried all kinds of stuff. Nothing seemed to help that much. I did some of the stretches, ice, tape, went to message therapist, etc.

Then I found this site: http://tpmassageball.com/

Their approach to fixing PF worked for me. The issue, as they say, is in the lower part of the back of your leg and not your foot. It is the insertion point of the tendon that connects all that.

Their gear is pricy and can be done with other tools. I do have a bunch of their gear and I love it, but you could do all this with cheaper stuff. They have some info on the site. The PF DVD is the cheapest way to really see their approach and a 20 minute routine. I could even try to explain it better in a bit, I just have to run to a meeting.

I do not work for this place. As I said, i love their approach and I think their products are very high quality. Some are horrifically overpriced, like the message ball. I use TuffBalls tennis balls from a pet store. They are like tennis balls that you cannot kill. When I use it or one of the expensive balls from this place there is no functional difference.
The DVD is 25 and is well worth it if you ask me. I made all the difference to me.

To add some - I also went from a ton of shoe and ortho's to racing flats (gradually) and I think that helps a lot too. Built up heels are terrible for you IMHO, from running shoes to work shoes.



Edited by indygreg 2008-03-18 9:58 AM

I had PF issues a couple years ago. After a couple months of not taking it seriously, I decided enough was enough, and I stopped running for 8 weeks. I still swam, biked, and walked during the whole time, but didn't run at all. After the break, I started to build back very slowly, first with a .5 mile walk/jog combo, and very gradually building on distance. It took months to get up to 5 miles or so, but it gave my feet a chance to strengthen.

Two other things that helped along the way:
I kept a tennis ball at work and rolled my arches over that a couple times a day. It can hurt like a deep massage, but it really helps. (I think the benefit is it promotes blood flow to the tendon to help it heal faster). I still do this pretty frequently, but more as a preventative measure - and because it feels good now!

Every morning before I got up, I would spend 10 minutes gently stretching my feet and then calves in bed to warm them up a little before I put any weight on then. Just don't pull on them or overextend - I would only stretch them as far as I could move them on their own. A guy at the gym swore by this, so I tried it, and I think it really did help.

It's been 1.5 years, and I haven't had any problems with PF since starting to run again.

Good luck!