Monthly Blog

One of the most common sources of foot and heel pain is a condition many of us are familiar with called Plantar Fasciitis. There are three main factors that predispose someone to getting plantar fasciitis. The first risk factor is overuse- too much, too soon with too little training which creates inflammation and pain, especially that first step out of bed in the morning. The second risk factor is limitations in dorsiflexion, which is the ability to translate your tibia (shin bone) over your foot. The third risk factor is weight gain therefore this can be very common in pregnancy. Typically, plantar fasciitis starts as an inflammatory condition which progresses to a fasciopathy and can persist, on average, for 9-12 months.

Treatment should including having your dorsiflexion assessed- both with and without taking the gastrocnemius muscle into consideration. Is the muscle restricted, or is the joint restricted. Is it talus on tibia or tibia on talus, or another bone at fault. Orthotics can be used in some instances, however if you take an ankle that already doesn’t move and slap an orthotic on, you create a greater loss of movement which can transfer up the chain and create compensation at the knee joint. The quickest way to treat plantar fasciopathy is to use shockwave treatments to expedite healing and improve blood flow if the condition has persisted more than 6-8 weeks. This should be accompanied by stretching usually of the heel cord, dorsiflexion mobilization and foot strengthening exercises. If your condition was from overuse, another great remedy is to decrease the amount of weight bearing activity you are doing. So if you’re a runner, try cycling instead for a while to allow the structures to heal. Follow along in the next blog for videos of exercises given to support the plantar fascia.

Pickleball & Injury Prevention

Pickleball has taken the world by storm. In the United States, Pickleball is the fastest growing sport for the third year in a row. The only problem is, pickleball is described as a less aggressive form of tennis therefore it attracts people who may have never played a racquet sport, whether newly retired or just out having fun. It is critical to perform a dynamic warm up prior to playing to reduce injury risk. My best advice is to arrive at the court 30 minutes prior to playing. Walk or jog two laps around the courts and do a series of dynamic movements (as in the video below) prior to playing.

Top 5 injuries from Pickleball:

1: Ankle sprain. Make sure you are wearing court shoes and not shoes have tall soles. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some Hokas, however these may substantially increase your likelihood of sustaining an inversion type injury.

2. Achilles tendonitis and/or rupture. There is where a dynamic warm up is particularly helpful. Statistically speaking, men in their 40s who make a sudden movement without properly warming up are at higher risk for an achilles rupture.

3. Hamstring or quadriceps strain. Often happens from lunging to make a shot. Again, take a few laps around the court and do a dynamic warm up to avoid straining your muscles through quick movements.

4. Shoulder impingement/ rotator cuff tear. Some people may have never played the sport and being playing without proper scapular control/ shoulder stability. This can lead to creating excessive strain to the shoulder as well as lateral elbow pain. For the sake of this article we’ll call it pickleball elbow, though not sure that’s actually a thing.

5. Wrist fractures from a LOB, or as well call it in therapy land, loss of balance. Warming up and performing quick motions will prepare you to avoiding losing your balance for those shots that are high and may require quick backward movements.