soles of my feet hurt!

H

hkbecky

Active Member
Hi Cathe,

I'm not sure if it's my feet or my shoes, but each time I do high impact moves like jumping jacks on the step, ski jumps or airborne jacks / jumps the soles and sides of my feet get very sore.

Although I could continue physically, the pain makes it so that I have to stop and march in place. I then either loosen my shoes which makes me feel a little unstable, or I try to substitute it for something lower impact.

Is this common? Any advice as to what I should do? I love the high impact workouts and would prefer to continue them.

many thanks & can't wait for your new DVDs!

Becky
 
Not Cathe, but I have this problem, too. If I use shoes designed more for running, the soles of my feet don't hurt, but then I feel like I'm not getting quite the stability I need for some of the intricate footwork. I've found a good "middle-of-the-road" shoe in New Balance. I don't know the model number or anything, but I remember the New Balance website called it the "pink" shoe. I still get a little sole pain, but it's not nearly as bad as I used to get with other aerobic shoes...and I get the stability I need for the intricate footwork.

I'm going to keep searching for the ideal shoe, and I have a feeling that someday I'll find a "running" shoe that will work for step aerobics, as well.
 
Hey Becky,

I have the same problem & a good arche in your shoes helps. Also, I found that stretching my feet after my workout helps as well. To do that stand facing a wall & put your toes on the wall with your heel on the floor & lean into it, then swithch feet. I do this 2-3 times on each side & hold for 30 seconds. Hope this helps.
 
I have plantar fasciatis, which is an inflammation of the fascia in my foot. It hurts on the side and the bottom of my foot. I got this from running a lot. People get it from varied amounts of use. Some people get it after dancing barefoot over a weekend or others get it after intense marathon training. I'm not saying you have this, that would be for a podiatrist to determine. I just want to let you know about it. I've been struggling with it for over two years now. I find that as long as I mix up high and low --not back to back high impact-- it works okay. And, I've had to cut running down to not more than once a week on dirt only. There are many people out there with success stories of recovery. Oh, the major advice is wear supportive shoes all the time. I wear the Dansko clog shoes, and they help a lot. Big no-nos are flip flops.
Good luck,
Heather
 
I had a mild case of PF and ever since I pay extra attention to signs of a flare up. I make sure to wear shoes that have arch support as much as I can. My mom has it too and can't wear flats. Ice the sore area and mix high and low impact days so your feet have adequate "recovery" time.
If the pain persists, I suggest you seeing a podiatrist to be sure it's not PF.
 
Hmmm, I may have PF myself. That sounds very similar to the pain I am having in my feet. I did buy a Dr. Scholl's orthotic insole and tried that today while I was working out. I don't think I got the right version- I bought one that was for heel, arch, ball of foot and low back pain and is only 3/4 length- as my feet still hurt. I think my pain is farther up into my arch than that in-sole is for; I noticed I had pain in the upper part of my foot more so than the ball of my foot. I am going to look for one that is full length and see how that goes. I think I will still use this 3/4 length one at work and see if it helps my pain there.
 
I ended up seeing my doctor about my foot pain. She said I have a very high arch and my feet aren't made for standing on them all day, like I do when I work at the hospital 2-3 days per week. She said I should ultimately see a podiatrist, and recommended Seneco arch supports. I went out and bought these expensive insoles, but can't seem to get them to fit into any of my work shoes. I did buy an extra pair for my aerobic shoes and they fit fine in them. And my feet feel better when I am working out now. But it doesn't help much in the long run if I still stand on my feet at work. I think I may have to go on a shoe shopping spree (yay!) and buy all new shoes that my arch support will fit in. Oh, woe is me! ;)

I think I will go ahead and schedule an appointment with a podiatrist, as the pain really bothers me. For instance, on Sunday, after working all day, my feet throbbed and ached the rest of the day and into the next. I think whatever is wrong is pretty serious, and I don't like it impacting my workouts. So I have to get it fixed asap. I am cutting back on cardio, and doing more weights, which I don't like to do. I will never lose these last 7-8 pounds of pregnancy weight (from 4 years ago!) if I only do weights. So frustrating, these silly feet of mine! I can't figure out why my feet never bothered me before now. Has anyone else here had similar problems?
 
My mother has had terrible problems with PF for a few years now. She developed heel spurs and could barely walk for a while. She has these shoes made by Z-coil (they have a website at zcoil.com) and they are really the only things that have helped. If you are on your feet for a significant time, they are super (she is an elementary school teacher, so she does not get the chance to sit much during the day). They look pretty funny, but they have helped when the cortisone shots, custom orthotics, night braces, and ultrasound treatments did not.

Stephanie
 
Thanks for the Zcoil website, Stephanie. I will check it out. I am sorry your mom had such serious problems with her feet. I sure hope that isn't what is wrong with me. I made a podiatrist appointment for next week, so I guess I will find out then.

BTW, I misspelled the type of insole my doctor recommended. It's Spenco, for those who may be interested or need something similar.
 
Danskos are fabulous for PF. They are not the most attractive shoes, but they make your feet feel great. I would recommend that you go and see a podiatrist and see about having custom orthodics made for your workout shoes ( this is what I did and it made a huge difference along with wearing the Danskos).

HTH,
Becky
 
I, too, am a long-time PF sufferer. Well, it's definitely controlled at the moment,but I've really learned my limits with.

With flip-flop season ending (well, at least in OH - it snowed today, blech), at least I don't have that temptation although TEVA mush flip flops served me well with my PF.

I've also heard from many others that Dansko is a good brand. I also swear by my Doc Martens - they are wonderful. However, I do have custom orthotics made that go inside, so I'm sure that helps.

Wear good, supportive shoes. Get orthotics made - they are the significant change that I felt helped. Never go barefoot in the house. Do calf stretches (runner's stretch) daily. I don't think the ultrasound therapy really helped me. For me it's the shoes and the stretches.

Of course, see a podiatrist and get it figured out for sure. Foot pain is truly hard to live with. Especially if it limits your Cathe - we just can't have that! :)

Heidi
 
To those of you who wear Danskos and have had feet problem, which shoes do you like the best? I checked out the website and the variety available is overwhelming. I need good, comfortable, supportive shoes to wear to work. Also, what is the price range on these shoes? I couldn't find costs on the site.
 
Hi erinw,

All the Danskos are great, but I think that the clogs offer the most support. They come in all different colors (I have black, brown, blue and a fun plaid). The cost is high...over $100 per pair, but worth it! Sometimes you can get them on sale (do a search online; I got a pair from Amazon last year for $55) and if you can find a local shop that sells them, sometimes they offer discounts or savings at trunk shows.

HTH,

Becky
 
I had pain in the sole and side of my left foot, so I saw a physical therapist. She said that I was flexing my foot wrong, compensating with my foot for undertrained muscles in my shin. You know, we train our calves so much with our workouts but not so much the front of the lower leg. Because my foot was compensating for the shin muscles, it meant I was landing on my foot in an artifically flexed way. (Hard to describe all this without being able to demonstrate.) The PT gave me 3 exercises to do before every cardio workout to wake up my shin so that it would do the work instead of my foot.

In Cathe's GS Legs, the exercises she does with the ball for the shin area are similar to one of the exercises my PT gave me. But I do it with a band instead of a ball. The three exercises I do with the band are:

1. put the band around my foot and flex up (you have to loop the band around something out in front of you to do this one; you can't hold the band yourself because you have to pull up toward your body)
2. put the band around my foot and point down (just loop the band around your foot and hold it with your hands)
3. put the band around my foot and flex out to the side (I loop the band around my right foot and pull with the left foot)

You have to experiment with different ways of anchoring the band in order to work these different angles. I find that a circular band works better than a straight one.

If I ever forget to do these exercise before I work out, then my foot hurts, but when I do these, I'm fine.

I've also discovered that shoes geared toward running with lighter, more flexible uppers help, too, like someone else said.

Hope this helps.

Laura
 
Thanks for all the tips, suggestions and advice, ladies. This is quite a nice group of people. I am glad to be a part of this forum. So, I went to the podiatrist today and got the anticipated diagnosis- plantar fasciitis. He told me I need to wear nursing shoes or tennis shoes to work, which should look great with my dress clothes. ;) And I need to wear some Spenco insoles, which I already have, but won't fit into my work shoes without making my feet feel as if they are being squished. I guess I need to go to the shoe store!
 
One more thing about Dansko shoes:

I bought a pair of the clogs first, and they did not work well for me at all. I have wide feet, and I found that my feet were not stable and my ankles always rolled to the side when I walked. This could easily have sprained my ankle if I wasn't careful. I didn't wear these for long, and I would never have bought another pair until I found the styles with a wide foot base. Those work really well for me, and they are really comfortable.
 
I will jump in on this one because I have the same problem.

My doctor said I have plantar fasciatis (sp).

She gave me exercises to do, but most are the same as what Cathe uses as stretch moves.

Some days are better than others for me.
 
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