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Plantar Fasciitis: Tips & Advice

There’s nothing worse than waking up with that pesky pain under your foot. Many of us Bears have had it, which isn’t surprising considering Plantar Fasciitis is one of the most common causes of pain for runners. The Bear Team know themselves how frustrating and painful this injury can be, so we’ve put together a little guide of things you can do to help PF!

Tip 1: See a physio!

To get the best specialist advice, we cannot recommend enough getting specific advice for your problem from a physio. Not only will they make sure the pain you’re feeling is definitely Plantar Fasciitis, but they will be able to give you personal exercises depending on how severe your Plantar Fasciitis is. There are fabulous Physios out there, such as our partners PhysioFit. Often a lot of GPs will have a Physio attached to them, too, so don’t be afraid to make use of them.

Tip 2: Plantar Roller

A great way to stretch out underneath your foot is to get rolling! You can get specific rollers or use things such as a cold water/beer bottle or tennis ball. This basically helps to loosen the plantar fascia, making it less likely to become irritated. It can be a great activity to help, and you can do it any time of day – while watching telly or even under the desk at work. Don’t forget to make time in your day for self-care such as this. Here is a youtube guide showing you how:

Tip 3: Plantar Socks

Plantar socks are great at providing the correct targeted compression and support for underneath your foot. It’s great to wear these not only for running but also for your day to day activities -especially if you spend long periods on your feet for work!

Tip 4: Consider your Shoes!

Having the right shoes can go a very long way to helping reduce plantar pain. Realistically, you want something with a high heel to toe drop to help relieve pressure off your heel. We find shoes such as the Brooks Ghost (neutral option) and Brooks Adrenaline GTS (stability option) are fantastic at helping reduce the pressure on the heel and also super comfortable.

Tip 5: Stretching and Exercises

Again, your physio would be able to give you exercise to help specifically with your individual plantar, depending on how severe you have it. There are plenty of great videos on Youtube showing how to stretch your Plantar Fascia. It’s important to keep all the elements around your Plantar Fascia in good condition, such as your calves and your Achilles tendon. Building strong muscles around that will all aid in your recovery.

Tip 6: Listen to your Body

This is the most important part! You know you best, so when recovering/rehabbing with PF, be very careful to take your time and look after yourself. We know how irritating it is not able to run, as we are running addicts ourselves! But by pushing yourself too much, you’ll only be prolonging the length of time it will take to recover.

Tip 7: Don’t Lose Hope!

You will get back to it! Don’t let not being able to run get you down – enjoy the time to rest and recover and maybe try some new things (gym and strength work never goes amiss when it comes to running and injury prevention). Don’t forget we’re only ever a call away if you’re feeling a bit low, need some encouragement or just want any running advice!

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