Foot Problems in Runners

Millions of runners take to the streets, tracks and trails everyday. People run for health, for fitness, for stress relief and for fun. There are casual joggers, the trail runners, sprinters, marathon runners and elite competitors. Despite these differences, all runners are susceptible to foot problems. Common foot and ankle conditions in runners include blisters, foot fungus, ankle sprains, stress fractures, tendonitis and plantar fasciitis. Fortunately, most of these conditions can be prevented and many are easily treated. When foot and ankle conditions are ignored they can become difficult to treat and sometimes resistant to therapy.

Heel pain

One million runners will develop heel pain every year. The most common cause of heel pain is plantar fasciitis, which is the result of excess stress through a long ligament type structure (the plantar fascia) in the bottom of the foot. The excess stress causes tearing and results in inflammation and pain. The classic symptoms are pain in the heel at the first step in the morning, or upon rising after long periods of rest. Runners may only experience the pain at the beginning of a run and many state that the pain will work itself out after about 1 mile, but then return by the end of a long run or at the end of the day.

Achilles Tendonitis

Achilles tendonitis and related calf problems are the most common injuries in runners. Pain develops at the back of the heel or in the calf and can be sharp with activity and feel deep and dull with rest. The pain may be apparent at the first step in the morning or rising after long periods of rest. Runners may experience sharp pain in the heel area at the beginning of a run, which then becomes a dull annoyance during the run. In severe cases, it may be so painful that it will bring running to a halt. Calf injuries and Achilles tendonitis are both aggravated by hills and stairs.

Runners develop plantar fasciitis and tendonitis for a variety of reasons. One of the most common reasons for the development of plantar fasciitis is wearing poor quality or worn out shoes. It is common to grab old “mud” shoes to run in bad weather, or to start Spring training in shoes that were used the entire previous season. The older shoes may have a worn out midsole and may have lost all aspects of support and stability. Improper fit of a new running shoe can also cause fasciitis. Overtraining is another cause of plantar fasciitis. Adding too many miles too quickly, or adding too many hills too quickly can overstress the foot. Abnormal mechanics in the foot is another contributing factor to the development of plantar fasciitis in runners. If the foot overpronates (rolls in) this places a tremendous amount of stress on the tendons in the arch and on the plantar fascia, many times resulting in small microtears and hence plantar fasciitis.  

The keys to treating plantar fasciitis and tendonitis are rest, ice, stretching and support. Give your foot a break! Cross train with swimming or biking and avoid impact activity on your foot. If you must run, cut back on mileage, avoid hills and speed work and gently stretch before your run, but after a 10 minute warm-up. Ice the area for 20 minutes, after the run. Try to ice for 20 minutes, twice a day. Stretch the calf and/or the arch multiple times throughout the day. Make sure you start with gentle stretching, and avoid overstretching. For plantar fasciitis, night splints are very helpful. Buy supportive shoes and use an over the counter orthotic for support. If you have flatfeet you may need custom made orthotics. If this is a chronic problem, see your podiatrist.

Stress fractures

Stress fractures most commonly occur in the metatarsal bones. The metatarsal bones are the long bones in the middle of the foot. A stress fracture is an incomplete break of the bone. The pain is usually sharp and develops suddenly, but it is not the result of a specific injury or trauma. Stress fractures are more commonly the result of overuse. If you develop a sudden swelling and bruising on the top of your foot, but can’t remember any specific injury, it is time to see your podiatrist. The typical treatment is a surgical shoe (fully rigid shoe) for 4-6 weeks.

Ankle Sprains

Ankle sprains are another common injury in runners, especially in trail runners. The most common ankle sprain is called an inversion ankle sprain. The ligaments on the outside of the ankle tear when the foot turns in and the ankle turns out. There are three ligaments that hold the ankle joint in place on the outside of the ankle. When the ankle is twisted, one or more of these ligaments may be torn. Most ankle sprains involve partial tearing of one or more ligaments. Severe ankle sprains involve partial to complete tears of two or three ligaments.

Very mild ankle sprains may only need an ace bandage and high top shoes for support for a week or two. For more moderate sprains, a lace-up ankle brace and sometimes an aircast are necessary. If there is a considerable amount of swelling, bruising and pain, a visit to the doctor is recommended. An evaluation will be done to assess the stability of the joint and X-rays will be taken to rule out a broken bone. Mild ankle sprains may only take a week or two for full recovery, but most ankle sprains will take about 6 weeks. More severe ankle sprains typically take 3 months and may not feel 90-100% for almost a year. If you experience a severe ankle sprain, consider a visit to a podiatrist. If you have not healed from an ankle sprain after 6 weeks, see a podiatrist.

Blisters

Friction blisters are one of the more common foot injuries in runners. Blisters most commonly develop on the back of the heel, the side of the big toe or in between the toes. A blister is a result of friction, of shearing forces on the skin. The blister is actually a defense mechanism of the body, which occurs when the shearing forces separate the outer layer of skin, the epidermis, from the deeper dermal layer of the skin. Fluid collects between these layers, providing a cushion against the aggravating force while a new layer of skin re-grows underneath.

The best treatment is prevention. Blisters can be prevented with the appropriate socks and proper shoe fit. Sometimes, blisters are unavoidable. Small blisters that are not painful and not infected should be left alone. There is no need to pop and drain these blisters. The most important treatment is to reduce friction and look for the cause. Was the sock folded or crumpled at the toes or heel? Is there stitching in the shoe that is prominent or defective? Is the shoe not fitting properly? You can place moleskin directly on top of small blisters to help reduce friction. Drain larger blisters with a sterilized needle (unless you are diabetic) by punctured the side of the blister and placing gentle pressure with gauze to absorb the fluid. Don’t remove the top layer of skin. This layer is the body’s best protection. Dry the area, but don’t use antibiotic ointment over the area. If you plan to continue running, place moleskin directly over the blister. Pat dry with a towel after each shower and the moleskin should stay on for a number of days. Cut the edges of the moleskin if the corners peel up, but don’t pull off for at least 3 days. This will tear the top layer of skin off and create an open wound. Any blister that has redness, streaking or pus may be infected. You should see your doctor immediately.

Foot & Toenail Fungus

Foot fungus is characterized by peeling, redness and itching on the bottom of the foot and in between the toes. Toenail fungus is characterized by white, splotchy areas on the nail or thickness and yellow discoloration of part of the entire nail. Fungus grows in moist, warm environments, which places runners, in particular, at risk. Foot fungus rarely causes any pain or considerable problems, but is mostly an annoyance. Toenail fungus can cause ingrown nails and thickened nails, both of which can cause pain.

Foot
fungus can be treated with over the counter anti-fungal medications in combination with anti-fungal powder and spray in the shoes and eliminating the moist, warm environment. Toenail fungus is much more difficult to treat. The treatments range from simple home remedies to expensive oral medications. Prevention is the best treatment. Decrease the amount of moisture by using wicking socks and make sure to have proper sock and shoe fit.

Sock and Shoe Fit

Avoid cotton socks and use socks with synthetic blends, small fiber wool blends or acrylic. Cotton socks absorb moisture and don’t allow for evaporation. It is important for your sock and shoe combination to allow for wicking. The shoes should have some areas of breathable fabric, like nylon mesh. When picking out shoes, make sure to measure your feet with your socks on. Pick a shoe with a rigid midsole, but has flexibility at the toes. Your toes should have some wiggle room. The general rule is one finger’s width between the longest toe and the tip of the shoe. The heel counter (back of the shoe) should be supportive and not too rigid. It should have some flexibility, but should not collapse when pressed towards the front of the shoe. Above all, the shoe should feel comfortable.

As in many cases, prevention is your best treatment. Proper shoe and sock fit, gentle stretching after warming up and recognizing a problem before it become serious are your keys to staying active and avoiding foot problems.

How To Prepare To Train For A 5K

This page is all about how to prepare to train for a 5k run. So what I’ll cover is the bits you need to think about before you actually start your training.

If you’ve made a decision that you’d like to run a 5k, there a few things you need to consider first…

Is running going to be right for you?

We ‘re only talking about a 3 mile run here, so training for it isn’t going to take over your life, but you are going to have to commit some time to it.

As a beginner you’re going to need to do a mixture of exercise which all help to improve your stamina and fitness levels. So if you’re inactive at the moment, you’ll probably need to do a bit more, but let me stress this again…IT WON’T NEED TO TAKE OVER YOUR LIFE.

Before you get started and actually begin running, you need to have a think about different times you could allocate to your training. Could you get up a little earlier a couple of mornings a week?, would it be possible to run during your lunch break or could you combine it with other tasks such as dropping kids at after school clubs or sports classes etc?

You’ll need to be able to spare 20 – 30 minutes at least 3 times a week to begin with.

If after having a think about what I’ve just mentioned, you can’t realistically spare the time, then it’s unlikely that you’re ever going to be able to commit enough to the challenge of running a 5k and you could do with finding another avenue to follow.

If this does sound feasible, you need to next think about how and where you’re going to run. If you live in a rural area with loads of open space to run, will you be able to do it after dark?

If the thought of running outdoors and maybe seeing friends and family causes you a great deal of embarrassment then is it possible for you to buy or borrow a treadmill, use one owned by a friend or join a gym?

It may be that you need to drive to an area that’s suitable for beginners to run on, for example a long flat road with a good running surface.

Another good option is to join a running club. If you do a Google search for their details, you can ring to find out if they have a beginners group and if so how far they typically run. By speaking to someone first, you’ll also be able to get a feel for the club.

No matter which route to running a 5k you choose to pursue, you are going to need 2 things.

Firstly, a pair of good quality running shoes that fit properly, you can find out how to choose the best running shoes here – How to choose the best running shoes for 5k training.

Secondly a training schedule and running manual. Whilst you may think that running is simply a case of putting one foot in front of the other, a little faster than walking, and the more you do the better you’ll get, this is a very simplistic view point.

There is much, much more to your training than this. Ideally…

• you’ll want to avoid injuries

• you’d prefer to enjoy the whole experience

• you want to know that the things you’re doing are right

• you’ll want to improve your fitness fast

• you want to be able to run a 5k in just a few weeks instead of months

Unfortunately without the knowledge you need to build up your fitness levels, the chances are you might never make it your first 5k race.

Boredom, injuries, frustration and lack of progress are all factors that usually stop a beginner from getting any better.

If you’d like to find out more about a running system that I guarantee will get you to your first 5k race within the next 6 – 8 weeks depending on your current level of fitness then click here – couch to 5k.

How Do You Determine Your Own Fitness Level?

You pick up the magazines each day, and you are bombarded with health and fitness information. Advertisements and articles that are designed to impart much needed information to the reader about the state of fitness and health in America today, and what we as responsible citizens should do. I want you to stop, and think for just one moment. How do you determine your current fitness and wellness levels? Does your regular doctor each time you go ask if you believe yourself to be fit and well? Probably not. Nor does he give you any method for determining the status on your own. Fitness centers abound in this country, and most are staffed with counselors who can test your fitness level. What about your wellness level? Are they one and the same? They are not one and the same, yet they rely heavily on each other to keep you healthy.

Being fit and being well are totally different conditions. Your wellness rating is dependent upon your immune system, and what vitamins, supplements, and nutrition you provide for your immune system. Fit people can sometimes be unwell. And well people can sometimes be unfit. However, when you do combine the two, and use sound principles based on clean living, exercise, and healthy eating, you attain a state of equilibrium where you are both fit and well.

Most individuals do not take the time to completely understand the advantages of being both fit and well. We read and absorb the information we are given through the media and health organizations, without ever pondering if we are receiving all the information we need, or simply the part that is profitable to be seen or heard. Fitness gyms need your monthly fees in order to remain operational. They have no real concern about the condition of your immune system. Physical fitness is a condition of the body alone. Hospitals and doctors need you as a patient in order to remain operational; they want you to know you need to be fit and well, but often leave out important pieces that affect your wellness and, therefore, your ability to be fit.

What about eating habits? What about vitamins? What role does our daily intake play in our health, our wellness, and our fitness? More than you have been lead to believe or understand. The bodys ability to remain well under anything other than ideal conditions is a direct result of the nutrition received on a daily basis. The minds ability to remain well is, again, a direct result of our nutrition intake. For instance, the human brain does not develop well without the necessary input of protein in our daily diet. No protein, no intelligence. No intelligence, then none of the other states is attainable.

Our spiritual input is a determining factor when establishing our fitness level. We all need the benefit of spiritual reflection, as a way of cleansing ourselves of the stress of our daily life. Spirituality is a way of assuring ourselves of a renewing, and rebirth of ourselves as humans. Fitness encompasses our bodys health, as a whole and in this

The Importance of the Spine Angle

A common golf swing fault is a change in the spine angle during the phases of the golf swing. This single movement causes a chain reaction of compensations that alter the mechanics of your golf swing immensely. The result is usually inconsistency and a myriad of poor golf shots. Leading to frustration on the golf course and high scores.

The question that arises in my mind about this swing fault is; how can the amateur golfer improve their spine angle in the golf swing? The result would be an end to changes that oh so often hamper golfers of every level. Speaking with PGA Teaching professional Christopher Smith on this subject allowed me to get to one of the roots of this common swing fault.

According to Christopher Smith the changing of the spine angle is a common fault of the 1000’s of golfers he works with every year. A common spine angle change Christopher indicated to me was immediately at the beginning of the back swing. Often he views golfers who stand up during their back swing. This obviously changes their spine angle and not to mention posture. Resulting in a chain reaction of compensations in the golf swing.

Once Christopher demonstrated this common spine angle changed I immediately knew one of the “fixes” for it. Observation of Christopher performing this specific spine angle change of standing up during the back swing told me one important thing. This so-called swing fault of standing up may be better categorized as a flexibility fault.

Yes, a flexibility fault as I like to call it is when a golfer’s lack of flexibility impedes them from performing the mechanics of the golf swing correctly. Flexibility faults are often misdiagnosed as swing faults. As a result, the golfer dubiously works on fixing their golf swing with no avail. They continue to struggle with standing up during their back swing and never fix it or understand why it is happening. The reason is they are trying “fix” the problem with the incorrect medicine.

The correct medicine would be the implementation of golf flexibility exercises. This type of fix would allow the golfer in such a situation to perform the mechanics of the swing correctly without limitations in their body getting in the way. Sounds pretty simple when you map out in such a way.

Now getting back to the spine angle problem Christopher Smith was discussing. The standing up during the backswing can partly be described as a flexibility fault. In such a situation this is telling me the golfer has some flexibility issues limiting their ability to maintain the correct posture during the back swing. In such a situation (i.e. standing up during the backswing) we can pinpoint the flexibility fault to hip region of the body.

The hips need to be flexible and mobile to allow the golfer to maintain a fixed spine angle and rotate around it during the golf swing. If the hips are tight and inflexible the ability to do this will be compromised as in the example of standing up during the back swing.

Now looking specifically at the spine angle change of standing up we can even pin point to a greater extent the exact muscles in the hips causing this “flexibility fault”. Usually with a golfer that stands up during the backswing I find they have tight hip flexors. Hip flexors are muscles that run across the front part of the hip on both legs. These muscles when tight (i.e. inflexible) “pull” the hips underneath your spine. Making it almost impossible to maintain the spine angle set in the address position. Once you begin the back swing and suffer from “tight” hip flexors. These muscles will “pull your hips” underneath your spine, causing you to stand up. The end result is a change in your spine angle and a series of compensations in the golf swing to follow.

How do we fix this flexibility fault, get those tight hip flexors mobile, and improve your golf swing? Simply by adding a series of golf fitness flexibility exercises to your golf swing improvement program. These types of exercises take just a few minutes a day to perform. They will alleviate the tightness in your hips and in the long run improve your golf swing.

Simple yet very effective golf fitness flexibility exercises I like to use for tight hip flexors are the kneeling hip flexor stretch, standing quadriceps, and spider. All three of these golf fitness flexibility exercise focus on the hip flexors. Over time these flexibility exercises will lengthen (i.e. stretch) those tight hip flexors. Allowing you greater mobility in the hips and eliminate one of the reasons for standing up in the back swing.

So remember, it is necessary to maintain a fixed spine angle during the golf swing. If you do not a whole series of compensations will occur. The end result will be an inconsistent golf swing. One such reason for a change in your spine angle may be standing up during the back swing. This swing fault is often a flexibility fault resulting from tight hips. The implementation of golf fitness flexibility exercises in a short amount of time can fix this flexibility fault and stop you from standing up during the back swing. Resulting in a more consistent golf swing. Keep in mind the connection between your body and the golf swing, and realize it is the body swinging the golf club.

Sean Cochran

Fitness Machines for your own Home Gym

Those who are fitness freaks understand the necessity to work out 6 days in a week so that they can maintain the rhythm and avoid inertia from setting in. However, the fact is that there at least a couple of days in a week where we are not able to make time to go to the gym and use the various fitness machines that have been provided. Getting a couple of fitness machines and then using them on days when you cannot leave home to go to the gym is a great idea.

Before you buy any of the fitness machines that you have seen on display the first thing that you just have to consider is whether you are committed enough. There are many fitness machines that are lying in the basement or lofts in various home across the country. So unless you are completely dedicated to the fitness cause and are sure that you will be using the fitness machines that you purchase, do not just go ahead and spend on fitness machines.

You should only buy the fitness machines that you really want. It might be judicious and first think about the fitness machines that you want before venturing to look at the budget or research options. You can always cut down some fitness machines from the list based on a value price equation. Make sure that among the fitness machines that you finally choose, you must have a cardio fitness machine and another fitness machine that is related to weight training.

For the fitness machines that help you do cardio exercises, you could choose from among an exercise bike, a treadmill or an elliptical. Try and check out fitness machines that allow you to train each body part.

Irrespective of the number of fitness machines that you choose for your home gym, make sure that you exercise regimentally.