I currently have another bout of Plantar fasciitis and I am getting new orthitics which are essential if the cause is over-pronation or over-suppination
It can bealso caused by worn out heels or unsutable boots as well as overuse and then orhtotics may be unnecessary.
Short term help come is several forms. Night splints, recommended in this thread. I agree Futuro Night Splints are very comortable and most others aren't. I have just had my feet taped and this seems promising.
What I would recommend is doing something about it straight away, which Covid got in the way of in my case. The longer you leave it the longer it wil take to fix.
There is a helpful series of videos on U-tube by 'Bob and Brad'. There are other people giving advice but Bob and Brad keep it simple

Don't know if this thread is still being read but anyway:-

Developed it before the Wales 100 2007 and walked it with the condition OUCH.

Been going to the physio having all sorts of treatment including acupuncture, expensive, nothing worked.

Then a chum (also a physio) told me about a stretch (warmed up of course). Lie down on your back and with both hands pull your leg towards your chest knee bent, keep your foot at right angles to your ankle and still holding your leg straighten leg as far as it will go. Those with loose hamstrings will probably stretch out and straighten easily whereas those with tight ones like me will get about 3/4s straight. Bend and straighten 10 times for each leg. Do this before and after excercise.

And finally most important wear crocs all the time (I even have sheepskin ones for the winter haha), except when doing a challege walk of course......Oh ok don't wear them in the office etc etc.

Problem solved - free physio advice and £15 for the crocs (BTW only crocs not the imitations).

I'm really pleased for you that its gone.

It can be very distressing, especially if you want to get out more.

Fingers cross that it doesn't return!

I am reflecting on this strange condition which disappeared as suddenly as it came. About 3 months of pain, tried all the stretching, resting, pedirollers, then it went. Not a scientific approach at all as I tried random measures, but as I saw in one medical reference, "no matter what approach you take, it will go eventually". But I have loads of shoe inserts, gels, stockings (don't ask!) going cheap. But many thanks for all the kind advice.

i had PF for approx 12 months i found the following ideas of some help ,however the condition just seemed to go away after as i say 12 months


a frozen plastic or aluminium water bottle rolled continually under the foot
a cricket ball rolled under the foot or feet
Crocs not everybodys cup of tea but i found these comfortable to wear when i had condition.
stretching helped
foot wear
i didnt rest it i found this made it worse
i had a cortizone which had no impact at all

I started suffering with PF after the Games 100, i think walking on pavements and tarmac for a good 40 odd miles, at a fast pace, was probably a large part of it.

I am glad to say after 3 months of trying numerous things i have found a system that works for me:

Stretch!!! As often as you can, but also especially before and after every event or practice session, it is difficult to stretch those tendons, best way i have found is to find some steps/stairs, and put your toes on the edge and drop your heels down, while either trying to remain 100% upright or leaning forward to stretch even further.

Shoes with orthotics, wear them ALL the time, put them on BEFORE you take your first step in the morning and take them off before you go to bed. I can recommend Superfeet Green Orthotics. I have also started to wear barefoot running shoes (Vibram 5 Fingers), which have the support and flexibility, not cheap, but i now wear them round the house as slippers.

I-C-E, Ice pack, Compression, Elevation, i do this after every event and every practice session.

Night Splints, there are a number of different products on the market, I have tried several, again at huge expense, they all work, but some work but because they are so bulky I couldn't get any sleep, the ones i found that i could actually sleep with were Futuro Night Splints, they weren't too expensive either

In the last month, i completed a 40 and 50 mile event with next to no pain :)

I still wake up some mornings with a little pain in that first step, but nowhere near what i had 3 months ago, it apparently takes anything from 6-12 months to totally get rid of it, it is truly a horrible affliction, you have my sympathies.

I can only speak from personal experience of this debilitating condition. I've had PF in both heels as a result of overuse - backpacking, running to keep fit inbetween walks, etc. It was while completing the 2,000's that it first revealed itself in both heels simultanously. The last 5 miles walking back to the car from Plynlimon were agony to the point that I wondered if I would make it back on my feet at all!

I had cortizone (steroid) injections and podiatry over a period of nearly 3 years with limited and temporary success. Eventually I had surgery on one heel and then the other. Although not perfect, the PF has been virtually eliminated. Surgery was obviously a last resort but was necessary in my view to maintain a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle.

Quote:

"Leaving the pub was agony"

I think you can get help with this also... ;)

Hi John. I'm back to walking LDWA distances without pain, including this year's Woldsman. I'd reached a stage when the heels were hurting after 5 or 6 miles and were even worse after sitting down for a while. Leaving the pub was agony! This was happening even when I hadn't had a walk.

The ice treatment (5 mins on ice then 5 mins in a cosy slipper to warm it up again) plus the arch supports started working within a couple of days. It might not work for everyone but it did for me.

Geoff.

Thanks everyone for your kind advice. On some, advising ice and inserts in slippers for example, did this help manage day to day pain or did it get you back to walking 20miles with LDWA? Am I looking at coping with "normal" activity and do I have to forget 20ml + Challenges - oh woe and twice woe!

I've had the same problem in both feet but two things have helped. One is sitting with the feet on a bag of ice while watching TV and the other is buying some arch supports from Boots and putting them in my slippers to walk around in the house.

Hi John

A few thoughts if I may.

It sounds as though you had a lay off with the knee scare, and it could be possible that when you re-started, you may have done too much too soon? I know when I have a lay off, my heart thinks I can take off where I stopped, but in reality I usually get injured unless I really plan my return to activity.

PF can be a devil to heal. My daughter had it, and she tried all sorts of things to get it to settle down.

She was trying to play football when it started, and I think explosive sports like five a side are risky for people with a tendency to PF.

Her GP tried NSAID's, then a steroid injection, then physiotherapy, rolling the tin of peas (even after keeping it in the freezer to introduce some cold) none of which worked for her. It went on for months. I'm not saying these techniques don't work for some people, but they didn't help her.

I have a colleague who is a Podiatrist, and her suggestion for chronic PF was old fashioned strapping. She had some success with chronic PF by using non-stretch tape to hold the foot and to arrest some of the elongation which stretches the tight, inflamed PF. I was sceptical, (and I am a retired Podiatrist myself) but after several weeks of daily strapping, the darned thing has gone.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Z2XlqsuQSY

If you Google PF there are several links to YouTube, which may help...?

So you may have returned after a break from walking, too much too soon, and possibly strapping may assist.

As an afterthought, a tennis ball may assist in relieving some of the adhesions that may have built up in the tissues, used in stead of, or as well as the tin can.

A final, unscientific thought. If you bend down on your haunches (If you get down on your haunches, you lower yourself towards the ground so that your legs are bent under you and you are balancing on your feet.) if you feel under the stretched planter surface of your affected foot, and carefully work your finger around the heel area (the insertion of the PF) and along its length, you may feel the sore spot(s). It is possible to kneed carefully with your fingers and release some of the adhesions, and to get blood flow into the area.

Good luck with the quest!

Peter

I've developed this after a (failed) attempt at the Long Mynd Hike in 2010 (43miles).

I was wearing cheap shoes, and it came on a couple of weeks later, and took around 5 months to settle down.

However, it's one of those injuries (for me) that will never heal properly and I will just have to 'live' with it.

Good luck.

Sorry, it was John who thought I sounded 97yrs, when actually I'd just got in from Iron Man

Yes, particularly painful when I get out of bed but doesn't seem to ease as I walk. Went to Vindolanda today, but walking around the Roman Fort was trying after only a couple of miles. Think I will walk alone for a while and see what happens. Rolling a can under my foot, as Simon suggests, or better both feet, seems promising, particularly if it's 2 cans of Special Brew and I empty both beforehand. That way I will be numb and oblivious to trivial foot pains.

Elton - no can't claim to 97yrs but has felt that way this year at times!

Evening john, my wife suffers with it and we haven't found any quick fix I'm afraid but she rolls a can under her arch/heel and that helps, rest didn't seem to help her. The tell tale sign of pf is if it's sore in the morning or when you first stand up then eases, its a very common running injury and can be stubborn one to shift good luck with it.

John, 60 miles a week is pretty athletic! At least at far as your feet are concerned. And I bet you're 97 years old ;-)

I developed plantar fasciitis about three or four years ago. At its worst, it would start at any point in a walk, but usually within the first mile, be very painful for a quarter mile or so, then gradually die down (presumably once the tendons had warmed up and stretched a bit.) Then it would give me little or no pain for the rest of the walk.

My doctor also recommended rest, but I don’t recall that I changed my walking habits significantly. It occurs less frequently now, but still happens if I walk fast.

John - certainly not high body mass nor highly athletic! Guess I just need to rest - typically do 2 or 3 x 20 mile walks each week.

John

John, has this actually been diagnosed by a doctor or are you self-diagnosing? Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantar_fasciitis) suggests that rest is needed, amongst other things. There doesn't seem to be any sort of 'quick fix'.
Are you one of the 'non-athletic, high body mass' people or an over-use athlete?
John

After having osteoarthritis diagnosed in my right knee early this year and deciding to put up with it for a while, turning down partial knee replacement, I now seem to have developed or acquired plantar fasciitis in my left foot. It's far worse than the knee and I can't walk far - certainly not even 2 never mind 20 miles. There must be lots of you out there who have suffered - 1 in 10 apparently get it. Any suggestions for quick remedies? Physio or podiatrists any use?

John