Plantar fasciitus and running are a painful combination. Runners place extra strain and wear on their feet compared to non-runners and can damage the plantar fascia resulting in plantar fasciitus. Runners and joggers account for around a million cases of plantar fasciitus each year in the United States. Somewhere between five and ten percent of all running injuries and complications are from plantar fasciitus and tearing or damage and the resulting imflammation of the plantar fascia. Athletes that run a lot and place more strain on their feet can be susceptable to plantar fasciitus such as Basketball players, Aerobics trainers, Tennis players, Dancers, and Volleyball players. Being athletic and running does not directly cause plantars fasciitus, but these activities can result in connective tissue damage. In fact, just spending a large amount of time on your feet with bad footwear or if you are overweight can instigate the sharp pain of plantar fasciitus.
Plantar Fasciitus and Running
This connective tissue, known as the plantar fascia runs from the heel bone to the base of the toes. The plantar fascia ligament is actually very strong and resilient but can be damaged from over-use or strain. This connective tissue gives stability to the metatarsal joints while you walk or run. It works as a shock absorber for the body, legs, and feet. We use this ligament with every step we take but often forget it’s there until there is a problem.
If you experience heel pain when you step out of bed in the morning or during the first part of your daily run, chances are you have plantars fasciitus. The pain may slowly go away as you continue running, but the cause is still there. Speaking of causes, what causes plantar fasciitus in runners? The short answer is pulling, stress and excessive tension placed on the plantar fascia. Running amplifies the pounding that the feet take with each step and is often done for long periods of time over many months or years. Some specific running related causes of plantar fasciitus such as overtraining can be remedied with a proper and sensible training program. It’s easy to overtrain and strain a ligament such as the plantar fascia especially over a period of many months. Inflexible calf muscles can transfer more pressure to the plantar fascia. Tight, inflexible Achilles tendons can also over stress this important connective tissue. If your feet rotate inward when you impact the the ground, this overpronation can cause plantar fasciitis. High arches,flat feet, and rigid unflexible feet can cause complications. Many of these are directly caused by worn shoes or using shoes that are not designed for running and jogging. The other major factor is a proper warm up, it is very important to warm you muscles and then stretch them as they get loosened up before doing any hard core running or other training.
To review the causes of plantar fasciitus related to running:
- Overtraining
- Tight achilles tendons lacking flexibility
- Calf muscles too tight lacking flexibility
- Inward rotation – overpronation
- High Arches
- Flat feet
- Inflexible feet
- Worn shoes or incorrect footwear
- Improper or no warm up routine
Through understanding the causes of plantar fasciitus related to running, we can make basic structural changes in our gate, footwear, and training program to avoid and slowly recover from connective tissue damage. Once a runner or jogger has tearing and inflammation of the plantar fascia, it’s all too easy to keep injuring it through ignorance of the physiology and biomechanics involved. A runner with plantar fasciitus needs to take action sooner rather than later so his or her training can continue while slowly repairing and strengthening this important ligament.
