I am 60+ hours post cortisone injection for the plantar fasciitis and I am feeling GOOD. Like so unbelieveably good that if I weren’t so flippin’ tall, I’d buy a pair of these….and make Mick take me dancing. 
Too much fun!
But alas, I am trying to reign in my excitement and not do something stupid like re-run the Chicago Marathon route to try for a better time. I did have one person tell me that they had the shot and it only last for 2 weeks before the pain came back. I don’t even want to entertain similar thought processes as I happily sit here but possibly that would be why the doc had planned on a series of cortisone shots to knock it out for good. Crossing my fingers!
While I am feeling good, if you have a few stretches you would like to share to help me combat the return of the Plantar Fasciitis, I’d be happy to entertain all reasonable exercises. I have been balancing on one foot, while holding the other up….to stengthen the foot/ankle in general, plus doing calf/achilles stretches. I would love to add maybe 2 more stretches. Help me out with suggestions but remember, time is NOT my friend so don’t get crazy I need to be quick and efficient with any stretching routine.
Amanda – TooTallFritz
TooTallFritz 
Glad the injection is helping so far! Good luck! And no, don’t re-run the marathon course!
TTF…OK/…here’s a stretch that might be helpful over the long-haul…It’s not specific just to the foot…but it’s a routine that involves the entire complex from foot to hip. Don’t have illustrations yet to show it…so bear with the verbal description here.
It starts with a basic hamstring stretch lying on your back…using R-leg as example take L-arm and hand and pull R-leg bent forward to your chest till you feel stretch in hamstring. To increase the pressure or stretch on hamstring..ya place that L-hand on the knee and pull forward and push down at the same time….starting easy.
2nd…take R-hand grab your foot at the toes or shoe at the toe-box and pull forward….Should feel tightening and stretching of plantar tendon and also achilles tendon…not to mention more tension in the hamstring complex. Ya hold this basic stretch for at least 30s.
Then…ya lighten up on that grip on the toes and let the plantar and achilles relax…then extend your lower leg upward to ca 45-degree bend. You should feel additional tension on hamstrings and ya wait until it releases and lightens up in tension….then go back to grabbing those toes with R-hand and start pulling back, then L-hand on the knee and pulling inward towards the chest.
You don’t force this…just feel tension and what for it to seem lighter before trying to exert more force. Again the goal ca 30s total stretch time to start.
Finally, ya fall back to same ole drop-down knee and pull leg forward to chest just as you began…holding and pulling-in on the toes and pushing down and pulling forward at the knee…just like at beginning….but by this time ya should find it easier to bring leg closer to chest without so much strain in hamstring muscles as when ya initially started routine. Again…ya strive to hold this final stretch for 30s….and when complete extend leg forward fully lying flat on the floor or mat and relax….then flex quads and hold a few seconds…relax…and repeat a few times….then switch to the other leg and repeat the entire process.
At times I also use a yoga strap and after finishing above routine on both legs…repeat a stretch with leg fully extended upward and the strap cradled around bottom of shoe and pull back to stretch the hamstring complex and pulling back on the shoe flexes the plantar.
Ideally you do 3 sets of this routine on both legs…but even once…or twice…is better than nuthin. You work up over time in duration you hold the stretches…if need be start with 15s and work up to 30s…then to 45s and maybe a minute way down the road. So…for basic 30s hold you are talking 1:30 for one leg…3:00 for both and 10:00 for 3 sets once ya efficient at doing the routine and making the transition to each leg quickly. More time if you add the yoga strap hamstring stretch.
I know this routine involves working the hamstring and backside of leg muscles…but it goes a long way to helping with the foot issues…cause they all connected. Ya will know what I mean when ya finally do the above described stretch and when you pulling back on those toes or toe-box of shoe…feeling both tightening in plantar…achilles and hamstring at same time!
Not sure bout the cortisone injection(s) and would have been more happy to see ya try Zeel first…but that your decision to do and work out with Podiatrist. I do know this above stretch treats a whole complex of muscles that are involved and can contribute to the end-pain in the foot.
Wish I had a better way to describe it and better yet to illustrate it…but haven’t got to that point where I can draw up some illustrations. Would be easier just to show-ya how to do it…but if ya pay close attention to the details above…then just experiment with it…ya know when ya doing it right cause ya will feel the tendons/fascia under tension.
The caveat here is ya don’t force the stretch…ya work it little-by-little and only increase pressure when ya feel tension released or far less than when ya initiated the stretch. You don’t force muscles that are tight…gotta get them to release in tension before ya put more flex or pressure. Knowing trigger points can help ya release that tightness sooner even while holding the stretch…but that is hard to verbally describe and just gotta demonstrate it.
Oh…ya don’t do this kind of routine on cold muscles….MUST be warmed-up and I am doing this in aftermath of my runs since the leg muscles are nice and warm and limber (for most part). Stick and roller massage also helps in terms of the leg muscles and the foot-rubz ball on foot for plantar. In conjunction with ultrasound treatment…these three therapies go a long way to healing up the issue.
Yes…a lot bout stretching muscles not in the foot….but they contribute to the problem manifested in the foot. Just my opinion and based on my own personal experience.
Give the above routine a try and if you have difficulty understanding it or knowing exactly what to do…then let me know…and maybe sometime I get down and run your F’N turf we can go over it and ya know it once and for all.
Ya gonna lick that plantar injury devil sister…trust me…it can be done!
peace 2 all,
Thanks a lot!! I do a variation of that stretch (without pulling on the toe box) but it’s an infrequent thing. I will definitely add it in.
A lot of people have been really hasseling me about the coritisone but I am super happy thus far. I am PAIN FREE. Can’t remember the last time I could say that. I hope it lasts but want to focus on stretching, icing, etc. while I am feeling good and hopefully develop a long term routine. I need one of those balls too for the foot. I was using a frozen golf ball for a while but kinda fell off that. So hard to be consistent with my lil helpers in the house!
Thanks, again!
This is a really intelligent way to awsner the question.
Some genuinely prize articles on this internet site , saved to bookmarks .