To Your Health
December, 2010 (Vol. 04, Issue 12) |
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Heel and Foot Pain
Why It Hurts: You love to run. The feel of the open road invigorates your body and your mind. Then out of nowhere, you start to feel pain in your heel and the bottom of your foot.
Every step is painful and the very thought of running makes you grimace. You may be suffering from a condition known as plantar fasciitis, inflammation in the soft tissue of the sole of the foot. This can be a very difficult injury to recover from and may take several months for a full recovery.
What You Can Do: Here is an exercise that may help you get back to the road even faster. Massage the bottom of each foot on a daily basis for 5 minutes with a golf ball. Yes, a golf ball. Remove your shoes and start in a seated position with the golf ball under your foot. Press your foot into the golf ball and begin circular, side-to-side, and up-and -down motions from the heel to the ball of the foot. This may be uncomfortable and tender, but it is necessary in order to break up scar tissue in the soft tissue of the foot. Progressions include doing the exercise in a standing position and applying more body-weight to the golf ball. You can also massage the back of your calf to help release tightness in the muscle that attaches to your heel.
The most important point to remember is that no exercise should make your pain worse. Soreness and discomfort are acceptable and expected; however, increased pain and dysfunction is not. It takes time for an injury to properly heal. Do not try to rush your body beyond what it is capable of handling. The great thing about these exercises is that they can be done even after you feel better to help reduce the chances of experiencing recurring pain.
There is no real cure for aches, pains and injuries; only management. So be proactive and take back control of your body and your pain by doing these simple movements on a regular basis. Talk to your doctor for more information about these and other exercises to help keep your pain in check.
Perry Nickelston, DC, is clinical director of the Pain Laser Center in Ramsey, N.J., where he focuses on performance enhancement, corrective exercise and metabolic fitness nutrition To learn more about Dr. Nickelston, visit www.painlasercenter.com/Our_Practice.html.
