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You don't walk 750 km without discomfort. Sorry, but that is simply the way it is.
I'm wondering if anyone has any experience of this please?
A few weeks ago, when walking with my 2nd pair of new boots, I realises they were too big and called my husband to come and get me, rather than keep walking and risk blisters. To stop my feet moving around in the shoe I tied the laces really tight (big mistake).
I noticed when I got home a mild little ache at the top of the arch of my right foot and a little on the top of my foot.
Over the last few weeks I've felt this again... very mild, nothing serious, but a persitant mild ache after walking... but nothing that casued me any concern. I thought it was just aching feet. My new boots feel great, no rubbing, no loseness and I am really enjoying walking with them.
Yesterday and now again today the ache is really quite painful. It is focused on the top of the arch of the foot. I've applied Volteral ibroprofen cream and I can seek a podiatrist on monday but I'm now getting really concerned that I've put my walk in jeopardy? I've only been walking for an hour so and not been really pushing myself.
From searching the location of the pain it could be the posterior tibial tendon? but I have no ankle pain? If this is the case have I put my walk at risk? I am leaving in 7 weeks?
A competent podiatrist - just get good refererences.Not asking for a diagnosis here, just advice on what kind of 'professional' to see.
Having trained in my Camino gear for over a year, I've now started getting Achilles tendon pain. As I have stepped up my training I suspect. It's OK (pain reduces) once I get warmed up, just a bit of pain before and after walking.
Nothing too painful, but worth getting checked I suspect.
I guess a GP (General Practitioner) would not have much experience in diagnosing or treating Achilles Tendonitis?
A physio?
A podiatrist?
I have a very good chiropractor.
So who would you suggest is the right 'go to' Health Care professional? I'm not one that runs off to the Doctor much, so just not sure who to see.
Thanks. Never been to one but will ask around.A competent podiatrist - just get good refererences.
Ask your local running club who they recommend. Or running shop.Thanks. Never been to one but will ask around.
Hi, Robo,
Sorry to hear about this.
I agree with the podiatrist recommendation, but I would also make sure to try some preventive measures. I think tendonitis comes from lots of walking on pavement. I have heard from lots of long distance hikers that tendonitis is just not a problem on the Appalachian Trail or routes like that because the surface is softer and uneven. Repetive pounding puts the stress on the same part of the skeletal system. Have you been walking oto the English!n pavement? (The Camino has a LOT of pavement, so it's a good heads up).
When I walk, I make sure to ice my shins every day. I always have a small plastic bag in my fanny pack and when I stop walking, I have a drink in and ask for ice in my bag. I walk in summer so I can sit outside. Having the bag just makes it much easier for bar owners. Then I use the ice on my shins, not for too long, about 10-15 minutes each side at least once a day. I also happily seize every opportunity to soak feet in cold streams, etc., again for 10-15 mins. Elevation is also a good idea, and bunk beds in albergues frequently are very good places for elevating the feet while lying down.
Good luck with your feet! Buen camino, Laurie
Great tips, many thanks.
Laurie, I tried to Google silicone orthotics but came out empty - do you have a site to suggest? Mine have a hard shell but a soft bump under the arch. I wonder what type they are.And just in case you haven't seen the commentary on another current thread, if the medical professional does prescribe a customized orthotic, I would strongly recommend that you get one that is made of silicone and not the hard plastic type that is more commonly prescribed, at least in the US. Thousands or millions of foot strikes with a piece of hard plastic between your foot and the ground is a recipe for disaster. Buen camino, Laurie
Laurie, I tried to Google silicone orthotics but came out empty - do you have a site to suggest? Mine have a hard shell but a soft bump under the arch. I wonder what type they are.
Thank you all for tips on getting along to see a Podiatrist. Found one who belongs to the local running Club.
Hopefully a couple of weeks of stretching exercises and a heel support will fix things up. I'm to train without a backpack for a week.
I feel like my Camino has started already
This is so sad. You've worked so hard to get this right and then this happens.
This is so sad. You've worked so hard to get this right and then this happens.
Why on earth "train"? You will train when you get there, walking what you are able to walk each day. This is not a distance you need to cover in a set time. And while you 'train" all you will do is aggravate your injury. As for the injection, my podiatrist does not like them unless they are done under "live" xray so that the cortisone is left near the injured tendon, not through it, which would damage it further.
Edit: just read that you will be having the injection under US, good!
Why on earth "train"? You will train when you get there, walking what you are able to walk each day.
This is my approach, but it might not work for anyone on a strict schedule.
Robo, I have been following you since the early "rice cooker days" so I know how much you have put your heart and soul into this journey. My advice would be to be sure to give yourself a little time to get over jet lag once you arrive in SJPdP and to keep drinking plenty of water so your muscles and tendons stay hydrated.
The Saga continues. I only mention this as it may assist others who have the condition or 'plan to have it'Maybe help avoid it too.... I suspect that the condition was caused not by too much walking, but too mush pre and post exercise stretching. I was doing a lot of heel dips. i.e. standing on a step, with my heels hanging off the step. raising up on the toes, and slowly down on the heels with the heels dipping below horizontal....
Anyway, no Cortisone injections. Seems it's considered not worth doing into the Achilles, given the lack of blood flow to the area. Something like that. Though my GP is ringing around to see if she can find another specialist to do it.
Medicine is quite strange in Australia. It's a bit like law, in that to see a Barrister you have to be referred by a Solicitor. In this case I can't just walk in to see someone and ask for a Cortisone injection. (Even as a private patient) It has to be 'authorised' as it were.
So for now it seems like anti inflammatory meds and physio will be the treatment. Also wearing heel 'lifts' in my shoes/boots to ease the strain on the Achilles. (4-6 mm high)
Though the good news is, that I am unlikely to cause any further damage, or affect other parts of the body by going on my Camino. Just a question of pain killers etc. According to my GP that is.
So tomorrow I start walking again
My Camino has certainly started already.
After note: The plot thickens. My GP just rang to say she has found an imaging centre that will do the injections. It's done under Ultrasound guidance. No promises it will work apparently but worth a try.
and p.s. you can buy an anti-inflammatory cream in any farmacia in Spain, the most common is Voltaren. Though it says it is only sold under prescription on the box, I have never had a problem buying it.
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