Marathon Dreamer

Hi Marathon Dreamer -

Glad your long run today went better. I saw the posts on the discussion board, and agree with the general comments of varying the speed that you run at, and the importance of proper hydration and fueling. BTW, I think you are doing a great job, and have a lot of discipline!

I'm writing because of your plantar fasciitis problem. Several bloggers posted comments with suggestions for treating PF on cocarolyn's blog on Saturday, April 3, 2010. (http://cocarolyn.fastrunningblog.com/blog-week-03-28-2010.html)

I won't repeat all those suggestions here, but will tell you my experience with PF a few years ago. I don't know if the below comments will help you or not, but probably the more educated you can become regarding PF, the better.

Unfortunately I ignored my PF for way too long, then finally went to a podiatrist who told me to try taping my foot, and that if taping made the pain go away, I had a bio mechanical issue where my arch flattens out too much when I run.

Well I tried taping my foot (basically taped it so my arch wouldn't flatten when I stood on it). And I could instantly walk with ZERO pain on my heel! Nice!!!

The podiatrist said the correction for a "bio mechanical" issue would be to try a variety of inserts (superfeet, birko active supports, etc.) to see if one of them worked. If I couldn't find inserts that worked he said I would need custom orthotics. I tried about 5-6 different types of inserts ($$$) before I figured out the Birko active inserts were perfectly shaped for my foot and arch. (You might need something entirely different depending on the shape of your arch.)

The podiatrist also said I needed to wear a high quality "stability" shoe that provided good arch support.

Some other things that helped my PF tremendously were wearing Birkenstock sandals, using a Strasburg sock at night for a couple months, gentle stretching, never going barefoot first thing in the morning, and never ever running on concrete sidewalks again! (The Strasburg sock helps keep your foot at a 90 degree angle with your leg while you sleep; that way the plantar fascia does not heal in a shortened position. If it starts to heal in the "shortened position", it re-tears the fibers when you first get out of bed in the morning, which is why pain is commonly worse at that time.)

While I was healing, I needed to tape by foot whenever I did a lot of walking or running, otherwise my heel hurt too much to walk properly.

Here is a link that kind of gives the general gist of taping your foot. http://heelspurs.com/a/tap/123BIG5D.gif.

Except I used narrower tape, and had to experiment 4 or 5 times before I figured out the proper technique and how tight to make the tape. I would flex my toes upwards to create a high arch, then put on put a strip of tape on diagonally from the ball of my foot past my beel, then put tape on the other diagonal (to make an x), applied another two strips of tape (ie., another x), then a little extra tape up both sides of the heel. Whew! Sometimes it would be too tight (pulling on the skin), and I would need to loosen it slightly. But, taping my foot made the pain entirely go away!!

(I took a roll of athlete tape with me everywhere for months - just in case I needed it! Really had to wean myself off the tape!).

The good news is I haven't had a hint of PF for about 5 years now.

Anyhow, good luck with the PF, and your marathon training. (Sorry about my very long winded post! I actually "cut & paste" most of it from a letter I sent someone a couple years ago.)

Thank you Cookie legs!! I have been thinking that I do need to start addressing this problem. That heel bugged me yesterday after my run and felt better once I was off my feet for a while. Yeah... it sure hurts in the morning when I first stand on it!! I am going to get some tape and try taping the arch like you suggested. I know that my sneakers are not quite right for my feet and over-pronation. It is hard to find a proper fit. Being that I am in Mexico, it is difficult for me to find anyone that is really knowledgeable in the shoe stores. I shop on line through Runner's World and follow their suggestions, but most of the time I can't find the running shoes they suggest in the stores here. Very frustrating!! I will be heading back to the states the beginning of August... by then, I will certainly need a new pair and should be able to get exactly what I need. In the meantime, I'll be trying the tape and go from there. I'm really excited about my first marathon. I want it to be a great experience so healing this heel would make it much more pleasant as it even hurts at times when I run. Thanks again for the suggestions!!

Echo everything Adele said! I suffered through 5-6 months of PF last year. Taping was the ultimate solution for me as well-instant relief! Stretching before I got out of bed or stood up after sitting also was a great relief. I taped for runs for a very long time--even ran my first marathon taped! I tried inserts but for me they did not work--arch supports for some reason, even low ones, make my feet roll out and hurt my ankles. It took forever, but slowly but surely the PF went away and I weaned myself off the tape. Oddly enough, it was after the pounding of the first marathon that seemed to be the turning point--it's like Allie said in one of her posts--maybe the marathon just pounds everything back into place haha! Just like Adele--it took practice for me to get the taping right--I suffered a few skin tears, but after a while I was a pro and carried athletic tape everywhere as well! I still have a whole box of tape sitting up in the cabinet. Go for the tape and be patient--PF takes its time to go away.

Thank you April... it is frustrating to feel that pain and really annoying limping around when I stand up after sitting or lying down for any period of time. I hope the tape does the trick for me as well.... crossing my fingers!! Now how about runner's knee... I got that too!!! LOL!!!