You head out regularly to hit the track, trails, or streets for a run. It is important for your overall mental and physical wellness. But when plantar fasciitis strikes, you don’t want to give up your routine.
To help you stay quick on your feet, the team of foot health experts here at Neuhaus Foot and Ankle, with 10 locations across Tennessee, want to provide you with a few tips that can make running with plantar fasciitis easier and safer.
To understand how to avoid plantar fasciitis and maintain your active lifestyle, it’s essential to figure out why the problem first began.
With plantar fasciitis, the issue stems from inflammation in your plantar fascia — a band of taut tissue that runs from your heels to the balls of your feet, providing support for the arches in your feet.
About two million people develop plantar fasciitis each year in the United States, and it is safe to say that many lead active lifestyles.
In many cases, the inflammation stems from overstressing your plantar fascia, and runners often encounter this problem when they:
Now that we understand the many ways in which you can develop plantar fasciitis, let’s take a look at how you can avoid the problem down the road.
There are a few great rules for runners who routinely struggle with plantar fasciitis.
First, address your immediate pain and discomfort. We recommend taking it easy for a few days and icing and massaging your feet by rolling your soles over a tennis ball or foam roller.
Stretches that release the tension in your plantar fascia are essential. To get started, click here for some ideas.
These stretches can also be incorporated into your regular before-and-after stretching routine when you run, which will help prevent plantar fasciitis from recurring.
When you feel ready to run again, ease back in and go slowly. If you want to increase your running distances or change your terrain, do so gradually so that you’re not suddenly subjecting your feet to new and added stresses.
Pay close attention to your footwear. Wear running shoes that provide ample support for your arches, which means avoiding using old and worn-out sneakers.
A great tip for support is to request custom orthotics. We design these shoe inserts for your feet and their unique structural characteristics. Better still, you can place the inserts in different shoes so that each pair is supporting your feet correctly.
We recommend that you come to see us so that we can review your running style and perform a physical examination of your feet, ankles, and calves. That way, we can help prevent plantar fasciitis.
If you’d like more tips on how to run with plantar fasciitis or to schedule an appointment, please contact one of our offices in Hermitage, Brentwood, Nashville, Mount Juliet, Waverly, Smyrna, Gallatin, Columbia, Pulaski, or Lebanon.
