LondonSkaters Speed Team - Speed Skating & Rollerblading Club in London

Rick · Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Posts: 5914

I have been experiencing this in both heels for a while when doing things like running. Usually after running or playing sports which have high impact levels on the heels such as badminton. Normally a bit of stretching and warming up each morning is enough to make it subside for the day and so long as i don't stay on my feet for more than 3 or four hours at a time then it stays quite mild.

Yesterday things took a turn for the worse in my left heel to the point that I could barely put any weight on my left foot for an hour withough fairly acute pain. I can't walk on it properly now without major discomfort after having been up for 5 hours. I can't think of a cause in the last two days as I have barely done anything but rest for 2 days so I am a little perplexed.

Done some research and one of the main causes is over rotation of the heel (hyperpronation - not pronation) so I am not going to be using my new 110s any time soon in case they exacerbate the problem. Will probably visit my doctor when they reopen next week only to be told that I need to rest it. I can't rest it. I need to walk, I am also going snowboarding second week Jan so I will be keeping it well strapped up and taking all my stocks of Ibuprofen with me to reduce and prevent swelling. Might have to take care of it properly when I get back as there is really no time in advance of the trip to get a doctor's referral.

Anyway this seems to be something of a sports type of injury as it is activity related. Has anyone had anything similar and seen a sports injury specialist who was able to help?

Fred_Paris · Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 4:50 pm Subject:

This is a pain Confused

I had (and still have to some degree) issues with my achilles tendon for the last 3-4 years. and the only advice I can give is to get yourself refered to a physio so that you can have it sorted out.

Rest is important but you can never really rest this tendon, so you need to find out the root cause or if not get your tendon back in a shape where it can take the strain you put on it.

Exercises to get the tendon in shape exist (stanish protocole) which consist in applying ice (reduce the inflamation), doing streching (to avoid the tendon being too short), and exercises to reinforce the tendon.

But I wouldn't start anything before you have it checked first, painkiller intake won't make it go away, so if your GP gives you some ibuprofen and 3 weeks of rest, I recommend you ask to be refered to a physio as it usually takes a 3 months of daily exercises to get back in shape.

If you are looking for a good physio, I can recommend West london Physio as I only had good results with them.

good luck Smile

ps : strangely enough even when I could barely walk because of the pain, I never had problem with skating

Pamela · Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 5:34 pm Subject:

I can't tell from what you've said what part of your heel hurts so this may be totally irrelevant.

I developed a pain on the outside side of my left heel, brought on by running. Physio narrowed it down to my peroneus tendon. Although it was running that brought it to my attention, the underlying cause is overly tight calf muscles. The treatment - acupuncture and massage on the calves to relax them and a deeper massage on the tendon. Plus lots of stretching exercises for me to do and of course the usual ice, rest, etc instructions.

Hope it gets better soon

Rick · Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Posts: 5914

Cheers for those. It's the back of the heel and just around the inside. There is a bit of inflammation. That's the reason for the ibuprofen, not the pain killer, just the anti-inflammatory aspect. Also gently rubbing in ibuprofen gel directly to the affect area. Need to track down my walking stick for the next couple of days while I give it complete rest. I'm missing a party and two nights of NY clubbing as a result but got to get this sorted.

Not sure if it's an obvious an obvious trigger but I suspect Pam may be on the money. I had to warm up every morning for most of the past 10 months since I started badminton at work again to stretch my achilles to be able to walk comfortably. Court has been closed for 3 months due to various reasons for I have hardly played and the problem persists but to a lesser extent but gets worse when I spend a long time on my feet. I spent a few hours standing around in shopping queues on Sunday and that may have resulted in me putting weight on it incorrectly. I have poor static posture especially when holding awkward objects. It also means my calves get used in a different way to normal and they feel a little tight which may have put that extra bit of strain on. I am going to concentrate on massaging them a bit too over the next couple of days. Might start yoga lessons in the new year to regain some of the lost flexibility. Fingers crossed I'll be fine for snowboarding.

Rick · Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Posts: 5914

3 days of rest and I seem to be on the mend. Must make sure to not use it much in the next 3 as I start to do gentle, non-load bearing exercises to help the tendon to stretch a bit. Colour is no longer red and the inflammation is much reduced.