Plantar fasciitis is the most common cause of heel pain, resulting from the inflammation of the ligament that attaches your heel bone to your toes, the band of tissue right in the arch of your foot. This injury can come on unexpectedly, but unlike a sprain can be very difficult to fully heal. Because you’re on your feet every day, it’s hard to rest this ligament, and because it’s always strung (like a bowstring) across the bottom of your foot, it can be getting stressed even when you’re at rest, shrinking and tightening up in a way that will cause pain as soon as you go to use it again. This article will provide tips for pain relief, but more importantly some targeted plantar fasciitis stretches meant to help work the right muscles and tendons from head to toe, so that you can get realigned and back on your feet.
The reason plantar fasciitis is harder to heal than a standard sprain is because the underlying cause is hard to pin down. Inflammation of the plantar fascia can be caused by anything from improper footwear, to a misalignment in your back, to tightness in your calf muscle or Achilles tendon. If you don’t know the exact cause, it’s harder to find the right solution.
The stretches discussed here may actually help pinpoint the source of the problem—for example, if stretching your calf muscles immediately relieves your pain, you may have found the culprit. Outside of that, review your footwear choices to see if you may need more support, which you can get by either buying better-suited shoes or putting some inserts into the soles you have now. Another possibility is to purchase some support socks or night splints to wear to bed, to help lessen the signature plantar fasciitis symptom, which is shooting heel pain the moment you wake up and try to limp out of bed.
The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons suggests buying new shoes regularly, and advises that proper support and fit are important to avoid foot pain. If you have other concerns such as flat feet, high arches, or a tendency towards overpronation or supination in the way you walk, you may want to consult with a specialist for advice on proper footwear.
These plantar fasciitis exercises are simple, short, and can sometimes provide immediate relief from pain. Get into the habit of doing these leg and foot stretches as part of a regular stretching routine, and you might not just see your pain lessen, you may also speed up a full recovery from the injury that’s causing you so much trouble.
These stretches can be done with no extra items or objects. Just take off your shoes and find a wall to use for stability.
In your bare feet, find a clear section of wall at least as wide as your shoulders.
This is a full-leg stretch. To focus it to the calf and Achilles tendon, simply modify step #3 and bend the knee of the leg in the stepped-back position towards the floor. You should then feel the stretch along the back of your ankle specifically.
If you have the balance for it, or can use a wall or countertop to hold onto for support, try this one-legged stretch.
This stretch may also help your hips and lower back, stretching them, and sometimes popping your hip pleasantly back into place.
This plantar fascia stretch, unlike the others which stretch the entire leg, directly focuses on the area that’s causing you pain.
If this stretch causes too much pain, there is another version of it in the next section that may be gentler, as it’s from a sitting position.
These are stretches that can be done sitting on a chair, bed, couch, or floor, with some items that can either be easily bought or found in your home.
No extra items needed here, just a seat you can cross your legs on.
Even if you don’t have plantar fasciitis pain in your other foot or leg, it is better to stretch both sides of the body evenly. Sometimes plantar fasciitis comes from being misaligned, for example the danger of limping is that you’re favoring one side of your body more than the other, which may then lead to back pain. Limbering up one leg or foot and ignoring the other might work against you in the long run.
You can do this next exercise with a scarf, bath towel, dish towel, or other sort of strap, like a belt.
This stretch like many of the others on this list will also improve your overall flexibility.
Here is where some props come into play. Using a tennis ball, golf ball, rolling pin, or foam roller, you can complete these stretches while sitting at your desk or dining room table.
Keep a tennis ball handy and you can do this absent-mindedly during long periods of prolonged rest like working at a desk all day, and drastically cut down on painful plantar fasciitis flare-ups.
Here are some other miscellaneous tips and suggestions for building up strength in your foot and ankle, as well as ways to reduce inflammation without relying on pain relievers like the anti-inflammatory medications ibuprofen or naproxen.
Do a marble pickup exercise to strengthen your foot.
Use this towel scrunching exercise for increased strength as well (or if you don’t have any marbles).
On days when the pain from plantar fasciitis is particularly bad, you may want to ice the area with an ice pack, and that is definitely advisable. However, you can also ice your foot while stretching.
It’s beneficial to stretch both before and after your workout, but with plantar fasciitis, it’s also a good idea to stretch before and after you go to bed. Not only will stretching before sleep lessen your morning stiffness, stretching when you first wake up is a great way to get your blood flowing and your energy going for the rest of your day.
Also, since the first steps of the morning are often the worst with plantar fasciitis, you can also do some stretching before you even get out of bed. The towel stretch is one that can be done immediately after sitting up, and the toe stretch is another. You can even buy a little handheld foot massager just to give your plantar fascia a wake-up call, or you can make sure your house shoes, sandals, or slippers have inserts or proper arch support, so you can start stretching as soon as your feet touch down.
The stretches, the icing, and the inserts ultimately add up to less pain and hopefully a speedy recovery from this stress injury to the tissue of your foot. With the right preparation and support, you can literally walk it off!
Anyway possible that this Plantar Fasciitis information could be sent to my e-mail? If so great it’s
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Hi Nadena! We already sent the information in your email address. 🙂