Feet!

[Shauna]

We are walking from Leon to Santiago - started on 17th and now in portomarin. I am suffering with plantar fasciitis and need advice. Am restricting self to 20km per day now which helps but still painful. Hope to hit Santiago Monday morning.

 

[Peter Fransiscus]

We are walking from Leon to Santiago - started on 17th and now in portomarin. I am suffering with plantar fasciitis and need advice. Am restricting self to 20km per day now which helps but still painful. Hope to hit Santiago Monday morning.

Hy Shauna , hope that you arrive on monday in Santiago . Take care , with best regards Peter .

 

[Olivares]

Shauna-- WATCH THIS VIDEOS!! Do what it tells you RELIGIOUSLY.

STRETCH, STRETCH, STRETCH.

Go to the pharmacy/supermarket and get Magnesium tablets. 2 bananas/day minimum.

 

[Diane Kinney]

We are walking from Leon to Santiago - started on 17th and now in portomarin. I am suffering with plantar fasciitis and need advice. Am restricting self to 20km per day now which helps but still painful. Hope to hit Santiago Monday morning.

I have tried these exercises and they seem to help a bit. Before you walk stand on a low step and facing forward hang you heel over the step to stretch your foot. Do again when you finish walking. When relaxing try "rolling" a towel by moving your toes. Also a cold glass bottle rolled under your feet like a rolling pin may help both stretch and reduce inflammation. And finally, pain reliever like Tylenol. Enjoy Portomarin.

 

[november_moon]

Since this is an issue with inflammation, ibuprofen (Advil) may be a better choice than acetaminophen (Tylenol) - ibuprofen has anti-inflammatory properties as well as pain relieving properties, so you can manage both symptoms together.

 

[3walkingtoSantiago]

Ibuprofen, stretches (make sure you stretch in the morning before getting out of bed), rolling (I freeze a water bottle and roll my foot on that most days). My plantar fasciitis turned into heel spurs (yes, plural). I've been in pain almost every day for the last year - oddly, it didn't start to hurt until about a week after I finished my Camino. I recently heard about a way of using kinesiotape (sp) to help. I haven't tried this, but who know? http://www.kttape.com/instructions/plantar-fasciitis/

Good luck, take care, and buen camino.

 

[Kanga]

While preparing for my first Camino (14 years ago) I became crippled with plantar fasciitis. Had to be practically carried into the podiatrist. For me the solution was orthotics. They were custom made, but I've since found that the off-the-shelf ones work just as well - the ones that work for me are blue, (Orthoheel?). I know everyone's feet are different but if stretching etc does not work it might be worth a try. They are sold in farmacias.

 

[CaminoCruiser]

While preparing for my first Camino (14 years ago) I became crippled with plantar fasciitis. Had to be practically carried into the podiatrist. For me the solution was orthotics. They were custom made, but I've since found that the off-the-shelf ones work just as well - the ones that work for me are blue, (Orthoheel?). I know everyone's feet are different but if stretching etc does not work it might be worth a try. They are sold in farmacias.

Oh I love Orthoheel, they are the best for me. I used them after getting plantar faciitis a few years ago and was so grateful for the relief of pain. Good to know they are sold in farmacias.

 

[Caminobd]

I have plantar faciitis but walked the Camino Frances this year. Rolling your foot helps, I use a Lacrosse ball. Also, I have an orthotic which helps. On the walk this summer, when I had a few bad days, I taped my foot with physio tape bought at a farmacia. This in fact helps a great deal. You can look up taping for pf on the internet. All the advice above is good advice and well worth trying. If you are in Portomarin, you are almost there, way to go. I hope you are able to get some relief.

 

[Caribbean girl]

I have plantar faciitis but walked the Camino Frances this year. Rolling your foot helps, I use a Lacrosse ball. Also, I have an orthotic which helps. On the walk this summer, when I had a few bad days, I taped my foot with physio tape bought at a farmacia. This in fact helps a great deal. You can look up taping for pf on the internet. All the advice above is good advice and well worth trying. If you are in Portomarin, you are almost there, way to go. I hope you are able to get some relief.

Is KT tape easily purchased at pharmacies in Spaim?

 

[Caminobd]

I only saw a few farmacias that carried the KT tape and it was expensive. I used just a white physio bandage and only while I was walking.

 

[Shauna]

I only saw a few farmacias that carried the KT tape and it was expensive. I used just a white physio bandage and only while I was walking.

Thanks to everyone. Made it to santiago on Sunday afternoon in a fair bit of pain but hey I did it! Now we are relaxing in Finisterre in a lovely hotel for couple of days. When I get home will go see podiatrist.

 

[Wanderer64]

I also had PF issues prior to my Camino, and my physiotherapist showed me some key stretches, similar to the YouTube ones posted above. Those stretches really work, but it requires a bit of discipline. I made sure I didn't wait for the pain to get bad before stretching. Every water break/ rest break along my Camino (about every one of two hours) I'd take my shoes off and do the stretches, and massage my arches. This really worked for me. At night after showering I'd roll my foot arches over a tennis ball I'd carried with me; this helps break up the scar tissue and gets blood circulation flowing.

As others have noted, PF is an inflammation issue, and so I rubbed Diclofenac (a prescription strength anti-inflammatory gel) into the bottom of my feet before going to bed. I used it during the day as needed. Worked wonders. By about the 500km, my PF had vanished, and has not been a problem for me ever since.

Hope this helps.

 

[Caminobd]

Thanks to everyone. Made it to santiago on Sunday afternoon in a fair bit of pain but hey I did it! Now we are relaxing in Finisterre in a lovely hotel for couple of days. When I get home will go see podiatrist.

Congratulations! I am very pleased for you.