How You Can Heal from Plantar Fasciitis Without Orthotics
That debilitating pain you get first thing in the morning when you put your feet down on the floor. It feels like your heel is filled with little bits of glass. This is obviously not the greatest start to your day.
This doesn’t just happen in the morning but all throughout the day if you happen to sit down for an extended amount of time and get back up again, there it is all over again. For most people the intensity of the heel jabbing decreases after the initial pain in the morning but the repetitive stretching and tearing can cause the fascia to become irritated and inflamed which makes this condition more likely to become chronic.
Sounds like fun huh? Well many folks go to the foot doctor and get orthotics but I see this solution as merely a crutch that is useful on a temporary basis but isn’t a long term solution. Just like when you break your leg and have to limp around on crutches for 6-8 weeks, you end up ditching the crutches when your leg is all healed up.
My goal for my clients is to have them work towards functioning well without orthotics because orthotics are another work around mechanically and can cause your body to compensate and pick up the stress in other areas.
Here is a simple explanation of foot mechanics to set the stage for understanding why we get plantar fasciitis.
You have a forefoot and a rearfoot and those are like the front of your car and the back of your car only they work in opposition. These two parts of the foot must lock one on the other during the push off phase of gait/walk cycle in order to create a rigid lever. If they don’t lock then you’re pushing off phase of gait/walking occurs on a foot that is a “loose bag of bones” which creates a lot of tension on the plantar fascia and micro tears.
Q: What causes plantar fasciitis/heel pain?
A: As mentioned above, your foot is in the unlocked position during the push off phase of gait. This creates a problem because your plantar fascia gets fully and completely stretched creating micro tears which results in injury, inflammation and pain.
Q: Why do I have more heel pain in the morning?
A: During rest your body begins healing these micro tears in your plantar fascia and when you get up in the morning or after sitting for a while, you literally re-injure the plantar fascia. This is why this is so irritating and painful. The body keeps trying to heal it and by walking with poor foot mechanics, the injury re-occurs.
Q: How can I heal from Plantar Fasciitis with Muscle Activation Techniques?
A: There are several ways MAT can help
- We correct your faulty mechanics that lead to the plantar fasciitis in the first place
- Decrease Pain and inflammation : As muscles get back online , the inflammation naturally decreases and so does the pain as a result
- Corrective exercises: We give you specific corrective exercises to reinforce proper foot mechanics so you don’t slip back into the mechanics that created the problem.
- Slowly transition from orthotics/more supportive shoes to relying less and less on external support and more on the support created by the muscles in the foot and ankle
Q: Do shoes with poor support cause plantar fasciitis?
A: No is the short answer. However, if you’re muscles aren’t doing their job then your foot could be placed in a bad position during push off, thereby putting a great deal of strain on the plantar fascia making you dependent on the support of an orthotic or shoe. The ultimate goal is to rely on your muscles to create proper foot mechanics in order to take the stress off the foot and allow it to heal and move away from being dependent on the support of an orthotic or shoe.
During treatment, your tolerance to stress will be assessed and only when you are ready to start to transition from orthotics or high support shoes will you be instructed to do so. Most of my clients move away from orthotics because they don’t need them anymore.
In short, once you have plantar fasciitis your foot is good and irritated and I would recommend doing anything to decrease inflammation whether that be applying a natural or over the counter anti-inflammatory cream, soaking in Epsom salts, taking advil, taking a homeopathic orally like Arnica a few times a day, elevating with ice for 10 minutes. Anything that makes you feel better for the time being to get your inflammation down will help you heal. In addition to that I would recommend learning how MAT can help you correct your foot mechanics so that this doesn’t become a chronic problem. Muscle Activation Techniques is a service we provide at Apana Bodywork, Contact us here to receive a free 30 minute phone consultation to see if MAT is right for you.
