stretching out plantar fasciitis?

[AllDownhillFromHere]

I've had terrible PF in the past (knocked me off the AT at Hannover in 97), and it flares from time to time. Just got back from a break-in hike with new shoes, and feeling a few twinges. Does anyone know if you can stretch out your tendons with exercises, or do foot exercises to strengthen anything, to reduce the incidence of PF?

[Cheyou]

https://www.amazon.com/Plantar-Fasci...TA3ST6PTKHRFD5

you can try this

thom

[One Half]

no you cannot. You need to stretch your calf muscle. you can start by rolling it with a street hockey ball or similar (Self myofacial release) and then stretch your calf with your foot on the floor. best to do this barefoot/sock. DO NOT stretch by using a step and dropping your heal down below step or similar.

[AllDownhillFromHere]

Thanks guys, the pain/tingling is in the front of my arch, behind the ball of the foot - do the heel/calf exercises help with that?

[One Half]

Thanks guys, the pain/tingling is in the front of my arch, behind the ball of the foot - do the heel/calf exercises help with that?

yes. the reason for the pain is that the tendon DOES NOT stretch. when the calf gets shortened (tight) from use it puts a lot of stress on the tendon and thus you have plantar fasciitis. FYI, I was a personal trainer for 20 years and had my own 3200 square foot gym until I sold to my partner about 2 years ago. I dealt with this ALL the time.

[One Half]

This is a blog post about it from the guy I learned from.

https://ericbeard.com/plantar-fascii...etting-better/

the bottom part gets into actually correcting the issue in more detail than I mentioned.

[ScareBear]

The current belief is that it is an over-tight calf muscle pulling on the heel that is the root of PF. Dunno. But, the protocol is still to stretch the plantar ligament and Achilles tendon as part of the rehab. Docs are still prescribing the night stretcher brace, as well...

I had it in the right foot last year and it was an ordeal. The only thing that turned the corner was the pneumatic isolation boot for 7 freaking weeks...

TJDingo is a physio and she now has it as well. She went straight into the boot at first symptoms. She is now utilizing frozen water bottles to reduce inflammation in the plantar ligament and surrounding tissues, ibuprofen on a schedule, combined with calf massage/trigger release. She is also wearing the night stretcher brace and utilizing yoga movements that stretch the calf, Achilles and plantar. The key is, except for stretching, to stay off your foot and not do things that cause the calf muscle to tighten up. Like walking on stairs....that's a no-no...even with the isolation boot.

We've got some pro TENS units around the house and she is trying to determine if some electrical intervention at the calf is going to be beneficial...

Good luck! It's a bitch getting old, but the alternative is not acceptable!

[bigcranky]

I got some help from a large foam roller, rolling out my calf muscles. I also felt that stretching my calves before getting out of bed helped some.

[Cheyou]

Frozen soda bottle and the sock I posted above

thom

[Maineiac64]

I have battled PF in both feet for years and eventually had to have surgery to both feet although that was 10 years apart. I have tried all types of remedies, stretches, devices, and physical therapy. The things that worked the best were getting stretched by a physical therapist who worked the entire leg muscle from the butt all the way down to the foot following by a deep tissue massage of the foot/tendon to stretch it. My PT used a hard foam roller to stretch out everything as well as pushing/stretching my leg. In between therapy sessions I would ice the foot and roll it on a frozen water bottle. This alleviated all my pain but unfortunately I had to do these sessions 2-3 times per week to stay pain free. As soon as I stepped away from physical therapy my pain returned and I had to resort to surgery (which worked both times).

My recommendation is to ice the foot for 10 minutes and roll the plantar on a frozen water bottle. When you get out of bed, you can put a towel around your foot and pull it back to stretch it. I would also stretch the leg out as much as possible and use a roller to stretch the butt, hamstring, and calf.

[MuddyWaters]

When I was lifting heavy wts in 20s I had pf so bad I could barely walk.
Used hard orthotics to put arch back in foot, my arches had collapsed
Not a pain since, even while lifting very heavy wts and hiking or running thousands of miles.

My belief..is that if you dont get rid of it permanently...your listening to wrong people.

I went to orthopedist, he prescribed ice, rest, ibuprofen.
Useless.
I found a sports foot specialist, problem gone forever.

[AllDownhillFromHere]

How does the roller work? I'm having a hard time envisioning it.

Thanks again for the tips on this, I need to come up with a strategy before Campo.

[ralph23]

Foam roller for the calves. Simply Google "foam roller for PF". You will find all the answers you need.

And notice how everyone says it is so much worse in the morning? Thats because while you sleep on your back then the weight of the blankets forces extension of the ankle all night long, causing PF flareup. If you are a stomach sleeper then the mattress causes ankle extension with the same effect. Get a Strassburg sock to maintain neutral ankle position while you sleep. It won't cure your PF but it will vastly reduce PF stress while you sleep.

[Storm]

When I was lifting heavy wts in 20s I had pf so bad I could barely walk.
Used hard orthotics to put arch back in foot, my arches had collapsed
Not a pain since, even while lifting very heavy wts and hiking or running thousands of miles.

My belief..is that if you dont get rid of it permanently...your listening to wrong people

I went to orthopedist, he prescribed ice, rest, ibuprofen.
Useless.
I found a sports foot specialist, problem gone forever.

Pretty much had the same experience. Tried all the recommended remedies, went to orthopedist, did as he said to no avail.
Friend told me he had bought special insoles from New Balance shoe store. Thought I might as well check it out. Bought new shoes and insoles for PS. Pain was gone in less than a week and has not come back. I am still wearing the insoles and they will be in my hiking shoes.
Note: I have no affiliation with New Balance.

[orthofingers]

I believe "Dixie" on her YouTube Homemade Wanderlust channel has a video of how she treated her PF while she was on her NOBO AT thru last year. I haven't seen it but, I've never been bothered by PF either.

[Trailweaver]

Interesting. Penny Pincher says "do not stretch using step . . ."

I had PF & was treated by an orthopedic MD associated with Emory. I know that he treats many Atlanta Ballet and Hawks professionals. He diagnosed the PF in my case in just minutes after I had been to three other doctors over months of pain.

He recommended that I stand on steps, facing "upward" and in sock feet, that I place the affected foot halfway off the step and slowly lower the heel downward till I felt a "tightness" or "pulling" in my calf muscle. Do this, count to 10, rest 10 seconds, & repeat maybe 10 times. Change feet, do the exercise, then stop. He said it was important to gradually "lower" the heel an do not "bounce." Just lower, hold, count, rest. He recommended that I do the exercises several times a day until it was better, and told me that if it came back, to exercise again in the same way, but that if I regularly did "stretching" exercises it probably wouldn't return.

I did as directed, & I haven't had this problem return. It's been years. I do understand that if you've had PF long enough that it's become chronic, it will take longer to "fix" but really - I think this is the best way to do it without surgery or some other drastic measure. It really is horribly painful, & you really do have to walk, so it is pain with every step. You have my sympathy. The trick is to treat the cause & get rid of the inflammation, but how to do both at the same time.

I'd be curious to know why Penny Pincher doesn't recommend this? And please know - I'm not trying to get a fuss started here - I'm genuinely interested to know.

[Ddtrey]

https://youtu.be/qEqKgVxr560

I posted this about a month ago. Shows what I am taking on my thru hike next month to stay ahead of things like PF. I have suffered with PF before due to over use during workouts. These techniques, if applied routinely WILL hello and hopefully cure.

[KDogg]

Learn how to use KT tape. It took care of plantar fasciitis like nobodies business. I don't think I would have finished the last 200 miles without it. Works great for runners knee too.

[ScareBear]

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...5897aeb21e.jpg

[fudgefoot]

As a runner, I've had several episodes of plantar fasciitis. In one case, it took 9 months to resolve. The calf stretching can help but if there is a mechanical issue with your foot that is contributing, it may tend to recur. After I got it the 2nd or 3rd time, I went to a podiatrist and he prescribed custom orthotics to provide additional arch support. After using them, the PF went away in a couple weeks. That was over 10 years ago and I have not had any more problems (I continue using the orthotics religiously). Bottom line: if you have a particularly intractable case of PF, see a podiatrist.