Plantar Fasciitis Treatment: How To Approach It After A Relapse
An open-minded approach can be the trick to pain relief!
If you take away one thing from this post, let it be this: have an open mind when treating your plantar fasciitis, whether for the first, second, or tenth time. Start with a new slate. Try it all, even your previous failures. Things change. What did not work before might work now. Try it all, even the stuff you think will not work. The trick lies in finding what works for you right now.
What Is Old Is New Again
The general rule for custom orthotics is to change them every 2 to 3 years. If customs last 2 to 3 years, it would make sense that any over-the-counter product would last the same or less. It took me about a year and a half before my system of relief (keeping the weight below 207, using Superfeet Green Insoles, and good running shoes with a 10mm heel-to-toe drop) failed. From what I can see, things change — your gait might change, your speed, and your physical strength. Some muscles get stronger, others get weaker. A running shoe, a stretch, or an insole that did not work last year might just do the trick now. Unfortunately, the same is true in reverse. That insole shoe combination that worked wonders a year ago just does not work today. So, keep an open mind to all changes, even the ones that failed in the past.
If at First, You Don’t Succeed…
My initial response was if I ignore the plantar pain, it will go away. This did not work. But more on ignoring it later. So, after ignoring the pain for months, I decided to finally address it. A replacement was the first try. I replaced the insoles and then the shoes. When those steps failed to relieve the pain, I got desperate. How could a system that worked so well for over a year just stop working? I was at an impasse. It was despair that led me to try anything, even the things I had tried before and failed.
• I tried different shoes
• I tried different heel to toe drop shoes
• I tried different shoes with and without insoles
• I tried different shoes with different insoles
Relief at Last
One set of running shoes with no insoles, Asics, finally did the trick. But that was not the end of my testing. I tried the Asics with the Superfeet Green Insoles again. No good. One last thing I had avoided that I also added was stretching my plantar.
An Open Mind Leads to Foot Comfort
Here is where my open-minded approach really paid off. Stretching was one thing I’d avoided the most. I am up at 3:45 for a 5:00 AM run. I was not interested in anything that would change that to an earlier time. I figured stretching would add 20 to 30 minutes more to my morning routine. I was looking at a 3:15 AM wake-up. Desperation and the pain led me to at least look into stretching, and I am so glad I did. My plantar stretching exercises take an average of 6 minutes. I have to hurry just a bit in the morning now, but not much. It’s well worth it to run without pain.
Whack-A-Mole
The change did not completely cure my foot issues — I now feel a pull in different areas, but not painful as before. It was more like new muscles or tendons being used. I attribute this to muscles and tendons that I did not exercise during my insole-wearing days that are finally getting a workout. Only time will tell. But I would take this pulling feeling over the old, painful running one any day of the week.
Choices and More Choices
The number of cures for plantar is limitless, and it is easy to get intimidated. A game of hot & cold worked for me. Taking off the insole was my first move in the right direction. I still felt pain, it was just less intense. I then had to go back and try all my shoes again without them. Even when I finally found the shoes and the plantar pain was over, I then felt my foot striking hard. Adding cheap padding made this better. Determine your overall choices and try one at a time. Try it all. If at first, you don’t succeed, try and try again.
Don’t Reinvent the Wheel
Talk to other runners. Join a running group, be it physically or online. Find out what others are doing. I would say 80% of the ideas that cured others’ plantar issues will not work for you. However, they might give you ideas that you did not think of. Facebook and meetups are good places to look. Some sports shops have bulletin boards where running clubs place notices.
Stretching Exercises
My research for stretching was simple. I was looking for the most common stretching exercises I could find. I settled on 3, which I do for each foot.
• Scrunchy pull (a little over a minute)
• Massage (a little over a minute)
• Towel Pull (a little over 2 minutes)
For a video, try The 5 Things Anyone With Plantar Fasciitis Should Do Every Morning. You can also find more stretching exercises in this story from Runner’s Life, Plantar Fasciitis Stretches for Runner’s Heel Pain.
The towel pull is my favorite. I get to move my toes to get a good all-around stretch. I knotted the towel, making the pull a lot easier. The lack of pain in running after stretching is wonderful and is worth every second spent stretching.
Can I Wait This Out?
Just as magically as it came back, won’t it go away? It might. It certainly did not work for me. Believe me, I tried, and I suffered for months. While it was not painful enough to stop me from running, it killed any long runs. A 2K was around my limit. It makes me wonder how many runners have given up because of this pain.
Conclusion
The process that I used originally for treating my plantar fasciitis no longer worked. Had I ruled out all that I tried the last time, I would never have found the answer. So many things change in a year’s time. What did not work before might just do the trick now. When looking for plantar-fasciitis treatments try them all.
Good painless running to you!
