What is plantar fasciitis and why does it hurt so much?
“-itis” means inflammation, so it is inflammation of the fascia (connective tissue) on the plantar surface (bottom, think “I step on plants with it) of your foot.
How did I get Plantar Fasciitis? Were you..
Running around in flip-flops or shoes with no support?
Pounding the pavement, running for miles on hard surfaces?
Backpacking, adding a whole lot more weight onto your back and loading your feet?
A quick and entertaining video to explain what plantar fasciitis is and what to do about it so that you don’t have to read anymore.
What can I do to treat or prevent plantar fasciitis?
Foam roll your calves! Two big calf muscles (gastroc and soleus) insert into the achilles tendon, which in turn inserts into your plantar fascia. If you can get some of the knots and tension out of these muscles, it can drastically improve your symptoms.
Get shoes with pronation control and add insoles with better arch supports if need be. If your arch is collapsing or you have flat feet, then the fascia is constantly getting overstretched, and no wonder it gets irritated.
Work on foot mobilization. There are all kinds of tiny joints in your foot. Give your foot a firm massage to make sure those joints are moving. We put our feet through a lot of abuse and don’t give enough attention.
Try out some arch strengthening exercises such as short foot.
Happy hiking and running!
