A story of going from being a non-runner to planning for a marathon in three years...

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

A Pain in my Heel

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I had an easy 4 miles schedule for last night. But I didn't do them. I think this will be the first run I've skipped due to injury since I started running 2 years ago.

For the past few months, many a morning I would wake up with an incredibly tight arch of my left foot. I went to the doctor who poked and prodded and who declared it was not the plantar fasciitis which I had feared. I didn't have any heel pain and the tightness would always go away after a few steps.

But yesterday morning I woke up and my first step out of bed was excruciating. My heel hurt so bad. I hobbled to the shower and even after walking around for a bit it still ached.

So, at work yesterday I froze a water bottle and used it to massage the bottom of my foot. I did calf stretches while I checked my email. When I got home I used a rolling pin to massage the bottom of my foot for almost half an hour and I used an ice pack to ice my foot for about 30 minutes before bed.

And I skipped my run. Trust me when I say I was not happy about it.

This morning I don't have any heel pain, but I can tell that it could easily develop if I'm not careful. I'm wearing my most supportive non-sneaker shoes. I'll ice my foot some more at my desk. And I'm debating whether or not to skip even the elliptical at the gym this evening.

I'm so bummed that this has happened. I've been able to go for years without any injuries slowing me down. I guess I was just due, huh?

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Perfect picture! But sucky that you had to skip one. I'm POSITIVE it was the right choice. Sounds like this is your tender spot and something you need to be very vigilant about icing and massaging, even if it's not really hurting! If it does develop into full-fledged Plantar fasciitis, it can be really hard to fully heal and you have to take a LOT of time off. We don't want that!

Unknown said...

That does not sound fun. I seriously hate when I have to stop workouts because Im sick or injured. I hope your heel feels better soon!

kilax said...

Oh no! I hate to hear this. It's so hard to be a runner and have an injury because ALL YOU WANT TO DO IS RUN!!!

I hope it's a fluke that heals right away :)

Michael D. Wong said...

I feel your pain - literally - I've got the same pain, but undiagnosed by a Doctor, for the past few months. I've gotten a lot of advice, mainly support and to roll a tennis ball with the arch of your foot, then work down to a golf ball. I have switched up my training from mainly running to now swimming to try and get off it more - plus my buddy Kris that I ran the half with is pushing me to do a Tri, still trying to figure out whether I want to, but guess now that I really should take a break from running, swimming fits well.

Check out this article - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/02/health/02well.html?emc=eta1

kristen said...

What is the cause? Shoes?

Bayjb said...

OH my gosh I'm sorry to hear this! that's awful that you were a) in pain and b) had to skip your run. Does ibuprofen help with the pain, or massaging it?

RunningLaur said...

I hear Napa to Sonoma is very very very hot too. Make sure you hydrate a lot during your travels there!

I got a travel mug (I think generally used for coffee) that I put my smoothies in - then it hangs in the fridge at work for an hour or two. I find that the very top layer sometimes gets a little funky (kinda like head on a beer) but I can scoop that bit off and the rest is just fine once it's stirred up. I use frozen fruit instead of ice, because I'm afraid that the ice will melt and be too watery - the fruit just thaws a little more.

Janice {Run Far} said...

I have never suffered from Plantar to extremly bad, but most mornings when I get out of bed, I do hobble... not sure if it is a touch of plantar or if I am just getting old... ha ha... 32 is not old... Hope you get to feeling better soon.

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