Muscle/tendon pain on bottom of foot

[Toby Barlow]

HISTORY:  I ran the Ogden Marathon 2 weeks ago.  I really wanted to be smart with my recovery knowing I would start training for SGM soon.  I took off the Sun/Mon/Tue after Ogden.  On Wed I ran .25/walked .25 for 2 miles.  Took off Thursday.  Ran SLOW/EASY 4 miles Friday.  9 miles SLOW on Saturday.  During the last .5 miles I noticed a slight tug on the bottom of my left foot.  I didn't think much of it since I was still recovering and there were lots of "niggles"

Sunday off.  Monday (Memorial Day) I ran a faster 7 miles.  During the last 2 miles, the tug on the bottom of my left foot came back in full force.  Very painful!  Then I hiked up the Y with my family...barely able to hobble up the mountain!

I couldn't even pass the "hop test".  I took off Tues, Wed and my foot felt normal.  I ran 2 miles on Thursday and immediately the tug came back. 

The tug/pop/ache is right along the arch of my foot more towards the base of my toes (not towards the heel). Not a bone issue, but definitely a muscle/tendon.  It happens only when I go to push off.  So if I hop on it, run on it - it hurts.  My heel doesn't hurt, so I don't think it is PF (I've had that and know what it feels like).  This is something I can't just run through

So my first question is:  did I come back too fast from Ogden recovery?

2nd question:  What is this ache and how can I make it go away? 

Any ideas?  I did go to the doctor, but he just gave me an anti-inflammatory and told me to rest. Just what a runner wants to hear!

Aghhhhhhh.....

[allie]

1. your recovery seems very reasonable to me. i think you were smart, conservative, and included a nice balance of rest and active recovery.
2. someone with more expertise should probably handle this one, but my two ideas are:
-flexor hallucis longus tendonitis:
http://www.physioadvisor.com.au/8033941/physioadvisor-ankle-injuries-ankle-pain-treatm.htm
(more commonly produces ankle pain, but it can irritate the arch, especially when you move your big toe. i've had this before and the "tug" you mentioned is the perfect description of how that felt for me).
-morton's neuroma:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004542/

[Toby Barlow]

Thanks Allie!  I do think it is my flexor hallucis longus!  What did you do to help it go away?

[allie]

i think i took about a week off from running and just cross-trained. i also did a few "runs" on the treadmill where i put it at a super incline and slowly jogged/power walked (didn't aggravate my foot at all).
-ice
-stretching - hang your foot over the edge of a flat surface (like a chair, tabletop, bed, etc.) and slowly move your heel up so that just your toes are touching the surface, then slowly come back the other way, bringing your toes toward you.
good luck!