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What
is plantar fasciitis?
How can I prevent plantar fasciitis?
Improving sports performance
Plantar fasciitis rehabilitation
for athletes
How can I prevent
plantar fasciitis?
Recurrences of plantar fasciitis may best be avoided by delaying a return
to activity until the activity can be performed with no pain. Cross-training
techniques offer a solution to interruption of training.
Using a personalized,
fitted orthotic device may prevent recurrence of plantar fasciitis. Well-fitting
shoes designed for the activity and with appropriate arch support may
serve the same purpose. Orthotic devices and shoes must be replaced from
time to time as wear dictates. Worn-out arch supports and orthotic devices
are of no use and may even be counterproductive.
Tightness of the muscles
of the back of the lower leg (calf muscles) exerts tension through the
heel cord (Achilles tendon) to the plantar fascia.
Exercises to stretch the calf muscles are preventive as well as therapeutic.
Here are six steps to reduce your risk of plantar fasciitis:
- Choose your running
shoes carefully. They should provide sufficient cushion for the heel
strike. Using a prescribed orthotic to change the position of a poorly
aligned heel bone may also help. Perhaps the best precaution is to know
your limits and to follow a sensible program when you exercise.
- In addition to
custom-fitted orthotics, all runners should be encouraged to wear well-designed
shoes that provide good heel stability with a small amount of additional
heel lift. This helps to prevent plantar fasciitis and is especially
important in athletes running more than a few miles at a time.
- Walk and stretch
to warm up gradually before running. It's better to spend a few minutes
warming up than to spend months on the sidelines.
- Focus on stretching
and strengthening the muscles in the foot and calf
.
- Increase your running
distance and your speed gradually, in increments no greater than 10
percent a week.
- Avoid unaccustomed
strenuous sprinting, such as hill running.
- Cool down properly
by stretching after exercise.
Improving Sports
Performance
The key to improving sports performance after a diagnosis of plantar fasciitis
is a proper rehabilitation
program, and adhering to some of those same principles after the injury
is gone.
The single most important
aspect of improving performance is stretching before and after you step
onto the field, court, ice, or golf course.
Benefits derived from stretching include:
- increased physical
efficiency and performance
- decreased risk
of injury
- increased blood
supply and nutrients to joint structures
- increased coordination
- improved muscular
balance and postural awareness
- reduced stress
- enhanced enjoyment
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