Buy Walking VideosAsk Laura: Plantar Faciitis
Laura,
I know you’re not a medical authority. I know that you will begin your reply to this question with “talk to your doctor”. I also know you do a lot of running, know people who run and read a lot of articles on the subject.
So here goes…
I’m nearing a year ago when I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with plantar fasciitis. Since then, I’ve limited my walking/running to allow my feet to heal. If you’ve never had this, you can’t imagine how painful this can be.
While I looked good walking with a cane, it was no fun.
I want to start walking/running again, but whenever I do my feet hurt that night. I don’t want to reinjure myself. (The latest was actually when I fired up my Wii Fit and did the “running” minigame.)
I’ve always heard of people who just train through the pain.
Do you know of anyone who has plantar fasciitis and when they went back to training? Did it hurt? How do I know when it’s ok to go back to being active?
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Ernie
Ernie,
Actually, I DO know about the pain of plantar faciitis. I had it when I first started walking in the early nineties. I went to a doctor for it and he wrapped it. It wasn’t until months later that I found something to help it. I talked about it on Starling Fitness before:
Before and after exercise, I would do the Straight Leg Calf Stretch. After my cardio, I would also do Calf Raises after the stretch (about twenty per leg). Strengthening the calf muscle somehow protects those tendons at the bottom of my feet and I NEVER have that pain anymore.
You’re right, of course. You really should see a doctor to make sure that your foot pain isn’t something more serious. My doctor x-rayed my feet to make sure there weren’t any other issues.
I actually LOVE the running game on the Wii Fit. It is just like my walking videos and I love to pass the Miis that represent the people I know and love. Now that I’ve opened up the Free Run option in the Aerobics section, I have been running in place in front of my television every day.
Do I “train through the pain”? A little, yes. Sometimes some exercise helps me work out some of the muscle soreness. There are other times when I have really overdone it, however, and I rest. We didn’t get fat overnight, so it’s alright to get slim slowly. Don’t believe the Biggest Loser mentality. You are doing GREAT if you exercise 3-5 times a week. That gives you plenty of time to rest between workouts.
Believe me, I KNOW that it’s easy to overdo it while playing Wii Fit. I was surprised at how much muscle soreness I had after doing EVERY exercise available on the program. Learning to take it slowly is something that I have been working on as well.
Thanks for being such a loyal reader and commenter, Ernie. I hope you know how much I appreciate regular readers like you.
Best,
Laura Moncur
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June 5th, 2008 at 6:19 am
That first letter was brilliantly composed!
Thanks for the advice, by the way. I’ve been stretching before and after my jogs. So far, so good. My last jog (which was a couple of days ago) was about 3 miles – two 10-minute runs back to back.
Do you think that the distances the Wii shows on the free run option are accurate?
I ask because I can’t believe I jogged just over 3 miles after really not doing it for a while. I mean, that’s a 5k.
June 5th, 2008 at 9:20 am
Ernie,
NO, I do NOT think those distances are accurate. Sadly, the Nike+ doesn’t work when I just jog in place like that. 🙁
I tried to convince Mike to let me put the Wii on the TV that we have in front of the treadmill and try to measure it that way, but he said that was drifting into crazy territory.
I still might venture there, but it would be a huge project to move everything to the treadmill. If I do, you’ll be the first to hear about it!
Laura
June 5th, 2008 at 10:36 am
Memo to Mike
To: Mike From: Ernie
Subject: Moving the Wii Fit and World Peace
This is in regard to Laura’s request to move the teeny, tiny, easily unpluggable, not-so-heavy Wii onto the TV in front of the treadmill.
I want you to understand that this is more than the crazy, lunatic ravings of a curios blog reader – this is for the betterment of all mankind. Allow me to explain.
If Laura were to be allowed to move the teeny tiny Wii into the other room and verify the distances that the Wii measures directly from her treadmill, there would be peace in the Middle East. That’s right. Peace. Imagine the ramifications!
I won’t go into the chain of causes and effects that would allow these two, seemingly unrelated events, to be tied so closely together. This post would go too long. Just know that I’ve done the calculations.
It will also save the whales, stop global warming, solve the energy crisis, and improve the taste of those popcorn jelly beans. Not bad.
Unfortunately, I do not own a treadmill, so performing this test isn’t an option for me. Of course, Middle East peace is worth me getting a treadmil. That’s an excellent point. I wanted to provide Laura the opportunity to be a hero.
Isn’t that what YOU want too? Don’t you want Laura to be a hero? Don’t you? Mike?
Sincerely, Ernie
June 5th, 2008 at 1:41 pm
Hi, If you or any of your readers have further recommendations for plantar fascitis, I’d love to hear them. I have tried everything short of either surgery or an experimental non-invasive procedure that my insurance does not cover and is very costly. I have been suffering with this for a couple of years now. I have custom made orthotics in my shoes, I used a night splint for a while that did not help at all, I’ve tried numerous stretches including the one you mention, icing, and I’ve had cortisone injections. I am still in pain daily from any type of walking and exercise definitely increases it. I’ve found that the elliptical seems to cause less pain than other forms of exercise so I try to mostly do that. I loved your comment about how they tell you to lose weight – that is one of my biggest frustrations – I am trying to lose weight but it is hard when you cannot exercise as much as you would like. Anyway, this is just my mini-rant for the day! Thanks, Shannon