Plantar fasciitis

[Dave Barter]

Woke up this morning, got out of bed and can hardly walk due to real pain in my heel on base of foot on left hand side. It is not there is I walk on tiptoes.

Anyone else had similar and is this the dreaded "plantar fasciitis"? I cannot see any bruising or obvious signs of damage on the foot but the pain appears to be in my heel.

[BigdummySteve]

Yes I've had a lot of pain for a while, superfeet insoles help a lot. Mine is so bad I may even change jobs.
Boots do a good insole with arch support and heel padding for £20, ibuprofen gel also helps.

[Taylor]

Roll a golf ball between your bare foot and the floor, hurts like hell with a small amount of pressure but massages the tendon and feels better afterwards.
Podiatrist and foot beds for my shoes worked well too.
Spent months of mornings in pain but after seeing the podiatrist it was gone within a couple of weeks. Not had it back in about 5 years now.
I feel your pain.

[Dave Barter]

Thanks, hopefully I can still cycle with it?

Which insole specifically did you use?

[mountainbaker]

I had this years ago Dave. Had to cut off my foot. Luckily I grew a new one, which is pain free.

No, seriously, I had it on and off for a few years, but I was quite seriously over-weight then, and the GP said I should lose weight. I lost some weight it helped. This can't be it for you though... Not sure what other causes may be, possibly tendonitis around the foot, try some yoga and stretching.

[Justchris]

Any foot bed that only raises the heal ie not full length, yet must have arch support.

For cyclists over the age of 35, one of the first things I would ask would be about achillies problems in the last three months, knee problems Or shin splints.
Secondly have you got any new shoes recently and did I see somewhere you were away cycling in Spain, was there a fair bit of walking? I know when I hike a bike, I am in an awful position pushing my bike, and cycling shoes really affect my gait.

Thanks

[Taylor]

Cycling has always been fine with PF but the morning after 5-a-side I'd be almost crying.
New boots that only flexed at the ball of my foot and the foot beds done the trick with the golf massaging.
The only cycling shoes that made it painful were my Shimano DX's which have quite a flexible sole.
Might be your shoes causing it if there was a bit of pushing in Spain.
No idea what make what make my insoles are, whatever the podiatrist custom made for me.

[Dave Barter]

No pushing in Spain and felt fine on return. It has happened out if the blue which is weird.

[ZeroDarkBivi]

If it's in the heel, I'm not sure that would be PF. I suffered with it in my arches, and still get cramps doing things like pushing of the swimming pool wall with my forefoot. Have been using custom moulded orthotics from the podiatrist in all my cycling shoes for years now and that has kept it in check. Mostly!

[BigdummySteve]

My work physiotherapist recommended freezing a bottle of water (avoid if posh and have water in glass bottles) and rolling the arch over it, works to provide short term relief. The boots sports insoles have good arch support and heel cup yet are fairly thin so fit in my riding boots.
She also recommended stretching by standing on the stairs and dropping the heels to below horizontal to stretch and loosen the tendons.

[voodoo_simon]

Footbed wise, always used Superfeet. They're great and if I remember my days from training, they'll help with that (double check this).

Superfeet are great, they offer a 30 day money back guarantee on their products. Don't like them, providing they're used, they'll refund you

Get sized up in a shop, it's based on heel cup size AND shoe size, not just shoe size. They are also designed to be moved from one shoe to the next, so can be economical too

[Justchris]

Here is a good site to read about it. It certainly sounds like pf

http://footlogics-shop.com.au/page/9/Pl ... n)#anchor3

Cheers

[Mart]

I also get it from - not from arch but from tightness in calf, achilles and hamstring.
A good sports massage usually helps relieve the pain
walking barefoot on hard floors which makes mine worse

[rufus748]

Dave, a mate of mine had exactly the same thing.
Took months to diagnose it but turned out he had too high a cadence going up hills. He was advised to eat more, increase his body mass and use more power instead of just spinning.

[Dave Barter]

Dave, a mate of mine had exactly the same thing.
Took months to diagnose it but turned out he had too high a cadence going up hills. He was advised to eat more, increase his body mass and use more power instead of just spinning.

I know that bloke. Can't trust him as he spends too much time picking cheese and tomatoes out of his food.

[bearlymoving]

I stand on a tennis ball with great results (perhaps I should try a golf ball, though that sounds even more painful).

There are plenty of videos on youtube to give you some ideas. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_ ... +ball+foot

It's worth trying this even if you don't have pain. I feel a lot more flexible (e.g. in the hamstrings) after I've done it, so I tend do it on a regular basis and keep a tennis ball by my desk.

[Wilkyboy]

Chris McDougall's infamous semi-autobiographical documentary book "Born to Run" goes to some length to assert that plantar fasciitis is because we over-support the arches of the feet and under-work the feet as a whole. The suggested remedy is barefoot running — or at least working some way towards that — and avoids any use of injections. It's a fascinating read, even if you don't fancy strolling along with your toes in the open.

Barefoot running (so it goes) requires the whole of the musculature of the foot to work together to support the arch and many of these issues — apparently — disappear. Supporting the arch with insoles and inserts doesn't fix the problem, it just alleviates the symptoms until the arch becomes even weaker and needs even more support, etc. Reversing the musculature decline takes six months or so. But do be aware that most protagonists of barefoot running live in warmer climes with much smoother tarmac or they use concrete — all I ever get on UK pavements is two blisters, one on each foot, each about 3x2 inches

If you want to get really into it without getting your feet dirty then Vibram Five Fingers — very comfy when you've gotten used to not heel-striking, especially in hot weather. They do look a bit silly, though ... my kids tell me

That said, I don't think I've ever suffered from pf.

[Cheeky Monkey]

I saw these and thought of you:



https://phonebibi.com/products/furoshki-shoes

More seriously, Sportpursuit usually have Freet or Vibram 5Finger stuff on sale if of interest.

[Dave Barter]

I've done days of foot rolling, Ibuprofen and stretching with not a lot of improvement. Hopefully it will suddenly magically disappear.

[Wilkyboy]

I saw these and thought of you:



https://phonebibi.com/products/furoshki-shoes

More seriously, Sportpursuit usually have Freet or Vibram 5Finger stuff on sale if of interest.

Where's a Like button when you need one?!

[Richard G]

Saw this and thought of this post...

http://www.cyclingweekly.com/fitness/bi ... ain-149113

Maybe something in there to help you?

[In Reverse]

I saw these and thought of you xx

[rufus748]

Maybe something for the bedroom....?

https://www.firstaid4sport.co.uk/footca ... oC-0vw_wcB

[Moder-dye]

The thing that's worked for me is the frozen bottle, golf ball rolling under the foot and extended stretching and trigger point massaging of the calf muscles.

I've had a cortisone injection under the heel and it was hellish to have and painful for a few days afterwards before it kicked in. Helped for a while but the stretching etc were the long term solution .

[Dave Barter]

The ball massage and heel inserts sorted me completely I think I am away from it now. Thanks for all the good advice on this thread