More on Plantar Fasciitis

Due to positive feedback, it may be a good idea for me to cover a little more on this topic.

First of all, PF may happen to anyone, not just runners. Anyone who's overstretched or overused his/her foot is subject to this foot injury. It happens a lot among the overweight population due to extra burden on the foot arch. Also, PF occurs a lot to people who have to stand or walk a lot on daily basis, such as nurses, cashiers and sales associates. And in my case, I'm not really a runner. It so happened that I stepped on a loose tile and overstretched my arch on my first run on the road in years! A split-second unlucky incident, and I had to use months to get out of it. Life is unpredictable. :)

At the bottom of the foot, we have this fibrous tissue called plantar fascia. When the muscles that support the arch are overstretched or overused, the arch tends to collapse and the gravity draws it downward, which in turn stretches plantar fascia. Unlike tendon, fascia has no elasticity, hence it gets torn and damaged. In short, PF is the structure damage of the overstretched fascia.

Typical early symptoms include discomfort in the foot, especially pain at the bottom of the foot, after standing, walking or running. Most people have the pain in the middle of the foot or towards the heel. But in my case, the pain was the worst on the ball, as the ball of my foot sank into the gap as the incident happened. The pain may go away after rest. But if the arch is overused constantly, the pain grows more severe and may not go away easily. As running is an intense exercise that involves many parts of your foot and leg, a tight ankle, a sore calf, a couple of numb toes, or even a minor cramp in the foot may indicate weak foot muscle or lack of ankle mobility, which may also increase the possibility of developing PF due to overcompensation of your foot muscles. Don't ignore these signals.

When I looked back, I realized that I had weak foot muscles in all these years. I do not stand in lines unless I have to, as my foot may hurt if I stand too long. That's why I've never been to a Hermes sample sale. I had this early symptom since elementary school, but I never took it seriously. As I grew up and adopted a more active life style, this condition gradually went away. -- Maybe I should try a Hermes sample sale? --But, as most people, I always work out my big muscle groups and have totally forgotten those little ones that hold the foot arch in shape.

To prevent PF, you'd better strengthen your foot muscles and improve ankle mobility. Now that I've tasted the bitterness of PF, I always do the following stretches after each workout, being it running, cycling, or weight lifting. They are also helpful in PF recovery. (Photo credit: here.) 

Footwear is also important. I always like soft ballet flats and I've been working out in 4mm drop minimalist sneakers for over a year. Apparently they are not good for PF recovery. I need solid arch support from hard shoes and traditional sneakers. These days I run in my good old Asics Gel Cumulus. So glad that I didn't trash it last year. This video explains what kind of shoes you should wear. As I mentioned before, Superfeet insoles also offer nice arch support. 

Finally, I cannot over-emphasize the importance of rest I rested two weeks after the injury and the symptoms were gone. So I hit the road again, but after two miles, my foot hurt so much that I could barely walk. I took a cab home -- always bring $20 with you when you are on the road; you never know when and how you will need it. I didn't step on a treadmill until another four weeks later. Even now, I do not run every day. I only had one long run over the weekend. During the week, I only had cross training such as cycling, swimming and weight lifting. I plan to rest my foot for months in the second half of the year. Absolutely no speed work until after my long rest. My advice is: Rest. When you resume training, start with relatively short distance on treadmills. Run slowly. Don't run long distance or hit the road until your foot is used to the workload. Rest and stretch between long runs.  

Hope this helps. Happy running!