What is Plantar Fasciitis and How Can You Manage It?

If you're a runner, walker, or new to exercising, you may have experienced pain in your heel or on the bottom of your foot. This pain can make it difficult to stand, walk, or even take that first step out of bed in the morning. Plantar fasciitis is a common condition that affects up to 10% of adults. While it can be painful, there are ways to manage plantar fasciitis and keep enjoying your favourite activities. Keep reading to learn more about plantar fasciitis and how you can treat it with just 2 exercises!

What causes plantar fasciitis and how can you prevent it from happening in the first place?

Plantar fasciitis is a common type of heel/foot pain that can affect anyone and unfortunately, it causes a significant amount of discomfort. This foot or heel pain is usually caused by repetitive activities or adding too much load too soon ie you’ve gone from running 5km a week to 20km the next, for example.

Other factors may include:

• Aged between 40-60yrs old (and affects women more than men)

• Being overweight

• Wearing shoes that do not offer the correct support or cushioning

• Exercising on a hard surfaces

• Having high foot arches

It is important for those of you who might be at risk of plantar fasciitis to identify what triggers your pain. Plantar fasciitis presents its usually first thing in the morning when you step onto the floor while getting out of bed or after a prolonged period of rest, it eases during exercise but comes back when you’ve stopped and/or you find it hard to lift your toes off the floor.

How can you treat plantar fasciitis at home with some simple exercises and stretches?

Plantar fasciitis can be a difficult condition to treat and is not caused by inflammation (even though anything with an “itis” at the end of the word ie appendicitis, suggests there’s an inflammation) but by increased load on the fascia and it hasn’t been able to adapt to the changes.

There are some strategies you can try at home which might be able to reduce your symptoms and ease the pain. Common self management techniques can be rolling your foot on a water bottle that has been frozen overnight, you might try wearing more supportive shoes or trainers, some people have found wearing orthotics or a cushioned heel cup helps. Current evidence-based research suggests that they are not adjuncts that a physio should be providing. BUT if they work for you then I will also recommend you to carry on doing them.

While these home exercises can't replace expert physio treatment, they can offer some relief and should definitely be considered as tools to help self manage yourself. If these have helped you, great! If you’re still struggling with pain, keep reading.

Exercises like a fascia stretch can be helpful in reducing pain. The plantar fascia stretch is particularly effective as it focuses on stretching the connective tissue that runs from the toes to the heel bone and connects to your soleus/gastrocs (calf muscles). In Pilates, slow heel raises in matwork classes or “tendon stretch” on the reformer can effective for increasing foot strength and flexibility. While these home exercises can't replace professional physical therapy treatment for persistent heel pain, they can offer some relief and should definitely be considered as tools to help manage your condition.

Other factors to consider with plantar fasciitis/heel pain?

When dealing with plantar fasciitis or heel pain, it’s important to remember that lifestyle factors such as sleep, stress and nutrition can play a part in your recovery. Being overweight can also lead to plantar fasciitis or general heel pain, as the increased body weight puts extra force onto the fascia. By making changes to your nutrition not only helps to reduce your plantar fasciitis or heel pain but also improves your overall health. Regularly exercising and getting enough sleep are also crucial for overall wellbeing and helps to manage plantar fasciitis symptoms.

Two exercises to reduce your plantar fasciitis/heel pain

Plantar Fasciitis  is a painful condition that runners and the sedentary older population are at increased risk of developing. The goal of any rehab plan is to increase the capacity of the tissue load and improve pain-free function. The best way to prevent plantar fasciitis from occurring is by reducing the frequency, volume, and intensity of how often you load the fascia which, in turn, will reduce your symptoms, improve your function and prevent it from happening again.

Looking to reduce symptoms related to plantar fasciitis? Try these 2 foot exercises today

• Plantar fasciitis is caused by increased load on the fascia and not inflammation.

• Self-management techniques for relief include rolling a frozen water bottle on the affected foot, wearing supportive shoes/trainers, orthotics or heel cups.

• Physio exercises like plantar fascia stretch and slow heel raises can help increase foot strength and flexibility, offering some relief in managing this condition.