arguchik | not running log

poop! i have plantar fasciitis (PF). it's not a bad case, but my arches ache every morning when i get up. it goes away, but it is always back the next morning. classic PF symptoms. i had this once before, but it has been a long time. usually when i start feeling pain in my feet or my knees, it just means that my shoes are worn out, and the problem clears up immediately when i switch shoes. that hasn't happened this time, so i'm going to have to actually do something. this is exacerbated, of course, by the fact that my job requires me to walk and stand a lot. i'm on my feet all day. that means my arches are always under stress, and they never get a chance to mend. it's also exacerbated by the fact that i'm getting old. injure easier, heal slower. i didn't really notice that much in my early 30's, but now that i'm in my late 30's it's impossible to ignore. the body changes...but i'm not dead yet. this is rehab-able, and in the grand scheme will be more of an annoyance than anything else.

i'm not sure if i have to stop running altogether for a week or two while doing the PF rehab stuff (ice, ibuprofin, massaging under arches with a tennis ball, and picking up marbles with my toes to strengthen my arches, among other things), or if i can just reduce my mileage down to like a mile per day. the literature is unclear. i think i'm going to try that, and if it doesn't start getting better i'll stop running altogether. the good news is that my body responds really well to tendon rehab techniques, so i know this will be a temporary setback. better to mend it now, before it turns into something more serious like heel spurs, than to try to soldier through it.