Exercising with Plantar Fasciitis

[Lurdes]

Here's a fourth very enthusiastic recommendation for Jill Miller's tune-up for feet. What a miracle worker. There's a five-minute segment I did 2-3 times a day when I had plantar fasciitis, and it really worked. I also now never go barefoot - I have supportive slippers for wearing inside the house, and I never wear things like flip-flops, which are supposed to be really bad for your feet. For workouts, I relied heavily on Cathe's Low Impact series. It also was a lifesaver - allowed me to exercise even with PF, and I didn't lose any conditioning. In fact, I probably was stronger after that rotation because it's so intense!

Lurdes

[raeven]

Just going to repeat what some others have said. The two most important things to it healing is stretching the feet and calves, and lots of it. Also never ever walking without arch support until it is *fully* healed. I got birkenstocks and wore them with every step I took for months...probably longer than was ultimately necessary just because I was terrified of bringing the PF back, hah! But, they were what saved me. They were on my feet *all* day long and beside me at night for any trips to the potty.

My podiatrist had me get these for inside my shoes:
https://www.superfeet.com/en-us/inso...delux-mens-3-4
I hate wearing shoes, I'm an all barefeet and sandals kind of girl...but I got these for the times I couldn't wear my birks while healing.

I got a minor flare up in my opposite foot some time later after my initial foot healed, and I found these and used them and it went away right away.

http://www.amazon.com/Futuro-Therape...t&sr=8-2-spell

So whenever I feel any bit of it coming on..I whip out these little baddies and it goes away quickly.

As far as your workouts, I would get arch support on your feet at all times. My pain went from extreme to tolerable within like 2-3 days of wearing my birks full time. So once you get to that point, you'll find your level of walking and standing workouts and what you can and can't do. The key is to never walk barefooted while it's healing and stretching a lot. Good luck!

[bayportsmom]

https://gmb.io/feet/

I can't even tell you how much this has helped me. I'm on my feet all day at work and I was really struggling with BOTH feet, but especially my left heel and Achilles area. I never went to the doctor to be diagnosed but I was starting to get worried about my job. I've only done these stretches a handful of times but my feet didn't hurt AT ALL my last 2 days at work.

[meg39]

When you experience PF, do you feel it in your arches or in your heel? I've been having heel pain since around Thanksgiving. It helps if I wear shoes all the time around the house - no more barefoot because that aggravates it. I thought it was getting better and went jogging last week and have been in agony since then. I've been wearing Birkenstocks at home, and even bought the inserts to wear with other shoes.

Sounds like Jill Miller tune up really helps a lot of you?

[Leonana]

Echoing all the comments about stretching. Especially after you first get up in the morning, and before you start walking. I googled stretching exercises for PF, and did those.

I switched to Birkenstocks. They really helped a lot with everyday walking.

I also bought an orthotic insert from Walmart and put it in my tennis shoes for my workouts. You can get Dr. Scholl's, but I bought the generic brand and it worked just as well.

[BunnyHop]

in terms of recovery, wearing half length arch supports (Birkenstock) in my shoes for a while seemed to help with healing.

Once the injuries were healed, making sure I was flexible and strong all over seems to have helped prevent a recurrence.

[yogapam]

I have battled PF off and on, sometimes quite severe. I have tried many things! I did try to limit my weight bearing exercise when it was really bad. I like to swim so that was helpful. I have orthotics & they help, wear them when I am on my feet for long periods. In the summer I wear Vionic Orthaheel sandals almost exclusively. I wore a night splint for a while and I used these pods in bare feet every morning as soon as I got up, they were great! I think someone else mentioned Yamuna foot wakers and the ones I used are a less expensive alternative:
http://www.amazon.com/fit-Balance-Po...ords=Jfit+pods
My feet are good right now and a balance between wearing supportive footwear and exercising in bare feet to stretch & strengthen my feet is, IMO, what is keeping the PF at bay. I don't do high impact exercise and I do a lot of barre, CS, yoga, & barefoot cardio. But when I go for long walks, I always wear my running shoes with orthotics or good supportive insoles like the ones mentioned by others.

[Stephanie_B]

I also use the Superfeet insoles in most shoes. My Altra running (I don't run) shoes are what I wear most and with their insoles. In the house I wear shoes on the first floor period as it is slab with porcelain tile. So while I'm not barefoot all the time, as I think is kinda what my post might infer, it's really only when o work out or watch TV. The other insoles I've had luck with are Spenco. I didn't with the Scholl ones that you stand on that thing for so $50 wasted and not only didn't they help, they hurt!

My stepmom and I also had good luck with the boots for sleeping but neither of us could sleep! So while it helped our feet, we then were tired. I can do a strassburg sock and usually during flares I do for 2 hours or so a day.

I can't think of anything else offhand, but the insoles reminded me of the boot and socks.

[Just_Jo]

I had plantar fasciitis from 2012 until this year. After a year or two, tendons tore in both feet. I have chronic tendonitis in both feet and neuropathy (I'm not diabetic.) However, when I had PF, I could not do kettlebell work because kettlebells are very leg intensive and it was too much pressure on my feet. We now believe the problems with my feet were due to Levaquin and Cipro and are here to stay.

Anyway, what has made me truly mobile again was Miranda's Classical Stretch. I got a subscription to her website for one month, and the 15-minute foot stretch that's at the very beginning is what helped take away so much of my pain. It is what finally cured the PF for me. I did that every day for a couple weeks and had amazing results. The results were far better than both physical therapists I saw.

I will always have problems with my feet, which was a tough pill to swallow. However, Miranda has helped considerably. Whenever I have bad pain due to tendonitis or new shoes or whatever, I immediately do a Miranda foot workout (she has several) and the pain is reduced instantly.

Sending fast-healing vibes your way.

[Avila]

Thank you all for taking the time to reply!

I am already wearing Birkenstocks as much as I can. I knew I had high arches, and I really am already careful about the shoes that I wear, so I am a little stumped about the luck of getting PF.

I will definitely be looking at the yoga tune up balls and Classical Stretch, as well as the other things people mentioned. The worst part is that I have been working as a substitute teacher, so just as school is letting out and I have a lot more time to exercise and take care of myself, I don't feel like doing any of it! Aargh.