Arch Pain

northdubgal

I have been going regularly to fitness classes every week for the past 6 months but I'm having a really hard time with my feet.

Every week I get severe cramps under my arches in both my feet and up my shins. I thought it was just my runners so I changed them and I still have them.

The instructor had a look at my feet and said that I have slightly fallen arches and that sports insoles might help. I remember years ago a doc telling me that I had fallen arches so I think it's time to get it sorted.

Just wondering where is the best place to go to get these insoles that hopefully won't cost too much? (I'm based in north Dublin)

Any advice would be great as it is very frustrating having to leave the class early which is beginning to happen quite often now

Glowing

I bought some gel sports insoles in Champion Sports yesterday. They also have a good selection in Elvery's - I'd recommend you go in there cos they could do a gait analysis for you and recommend something suitable!

northdubgal

How much would the professional ones cost? And where would the best place to get them?

My feet and shins feel really bruised after yesterday

mirwillbeback

northdubgal wrote: »

How much would the professional ones cost? And where would the best place to get them?

My feet and shins feel really bruised after yesterday

Hi mate,

I hear ya, I've suffered for years to the point that I just don't really run anymore. You can get orthotics made for about 300 euro that are totally personalised to your feet. I actually spent over 2,000 euro on some that didnt work at all :mad:

If you want a contact of a fella who sorted me out big time last year drop me a pm .

Most of the problem can actually stem from tight calves which radiates the pain into the foot. I went to a physical therapist who also game me great results after working on releasing the tightness in the lower leg. Also, you can try exercises to pick up stuff with your toes which will strengthen the arch.

Drop me a pm if you want any info, I am an expert by this stage from 8+ years of suffering !

Colm_OReilly

I'm not a fan of going the orthotics route, it doesn't solve the problem or strengthen the feet.

Barefoot might be an idea for you, get the feet actually gripping the ground for balance, etc.

www.barefoot.ie sell vibram five fingers, which I'm a big fan of.

northdubgal

Colm_OReilly wrote: »

I'm not a fan of going the orthotics route, it doesn't solve the problem or strengthen the feet.

Barefoot might be an idea for you, get the feet actually gripping the ground for balance, etc.

www.barefoot.ie sell vibram five fingers, which I'm a big fan of.

Never heard of this before so I'll have a look at their site.

I do a lot of aerobic type classes, step & a lot of jumping in all these classes.

Guya

I bought two pairs of Vibram Fivefingers about 6 weeks ago. Sprint and KSO (keep stuff out).

I'm in the afterclap of an ankle ligament injury and they are really helping me get back to full fitness and strength after 2 years of injury hell. When you walk/run/exercise barefoot you use all the legs as they're supposed to be used. After the initial adjustment of about a week(longer for some people) I now feel way better and can't imagine going to the gym in normal runners ever again.

I recommend them to anybody for anything. It's a pity they're so much more expensive in Europe. If you(or a friend) are planning a trip to the states you could wait until then to buy them. If not, it's still worth it.

Do the research yourself and you'll see. Beware that there are a lot of knock-off sites. birthdayshoes.com has a good rundown.

d'Oracle

I dunno anything to comment on Vibrams, but I agree with Colm insofar as I have had orthotics for years and they never really fixed anything.

They stopped the pain, but when my calves are tight I was still uncomfortable. Also they just don't do for running about/exercising.

I have shin splints now (possibly related, but what do I know) but and after walking around in shoes all day it hurts untill I get my shoes off.

But your first port of call should be a decent Physio/Physical Therapist of some sort.

sfag31

... and I also tried custom orthotics which were too painful to wear and wearn't helping.
My sore arches eventually went away - switched my shoes - dunno if that helped.

Guya

D'oracle - the key to your physio statement is "decent".
A lazy physio cost me months of recovery time. Everyone is different.
At the end of the day a physio is only going to tell you what work to do. You do the work. You recover.

My physio thought I had regained full mobility in my ankle until I showed her the other ankle's range of motion. I was nowhere near full mobility. Then she mistook a muscle in my foot for swelling. It had gone soft from lack of use but was still a muscle non the less, not swelling. Maybe my feet are a little bit special but I don't think I'm in freak territory.

I ended up doing my own research and planning my own recovery. Happier, healthier and more knowledgeable for it.

On the point of arches. An arch is a support structure. One of the strongest on the planet. There is also an arch structure that crosses the front of your foot. When you run they naturally flatten out a bit and then bounce back into shape. If they're not allowed to absorb the shock as nature intended then the shock impacts somewhere else. Arches ARE support. Any extra support needs to compliment them, not replace them.

If you have shallower arches it can take longer to get used to running barefoot. There's no such thing as a flat arch. It's an arch or it's not.

Vibram/barefoot running has been shown to cure shin splints too. I don't have any first hand knowledge of that but have read some accounts on various forums. Thought you might like to know.

ronanos

Glowing wrote: »

I bought some gel sports insoles in Champion Sports yesterday. They also have a good selection in Elvery's - I'd recommend you go in there cos they could do a gait analysis for you and recommend something suitable!

How much does this cost? Are they customized or are you just buying something from a range?

d'Oracle

Guya wrote: »

D'oracle - the key to your physio statement is "decent".
A lazy physio cost me months of recovery time. Everyone is different.
At the end of the day a physio is only going to tell you what work to do. You do the work. You recover.

My physio thought I had regained full mobility in my ankle until I showed her the other ankle's range of motion. I was nowhere near full mobility. Then she mistook a muscle in my foot for swelling. It had gone soft from lack of use but was still a muscle non the less, not swelling. Maybe my feet are a little bit special but I don't think I'm in freak territory.

I ended up doing my own research and planning my own recovery. Happier, healthier and more knowledgeable for it.

On the point of arches. An arch is a support structure. One of the strongest on the planet. There is also an arch structure that crosses the front of your foot. When you run they naturally flatten out a bit and then bounce back into shape. If they're not allowed to absorb the shock as nature intended then the shock impacts somewhere else. Arches ARE support. Any extra support needs to compliment them, not replace them.

If you have shallower arches it can take longer to get used to running barefoot. There's no such thing as a flat arch. It's an arch or it's not.

Vibram/barefoot running has been shown to cure shin splints too. I don't have any first hand knowledge of that but have read some accounts on various forums. Thought you might like to know.

The word was there for a reason.
But even a bad physio will do a better job than the internet or randomly sticking bits of plastic in your shoes.

Guya

d'Oracle wrote: »

The word was there for a reason.
But even a bad physio will do a better job than the internet or randomly sticking bits of plastic in your shoes.

All the options you list there are pretty terrible. A bad physio is as bad as bad research online. Worse if you trust them completely. Random actions would be idiotic.

I did my own research online and in books. It was infinitely better than the incompetence I met with the physio.