Thank you for your fantastic article. Practically all the advice it contains matches up with the weapons in my PF-fighting armoury, accummulated through a long and depressing 16-month bout. When it first reared its ugly head, 3 weeks before Edinburgh marathon last spring, I iced it, stretched my calves, rested and so on. Nothing doing. I then went to see a physio, who got me doing loads of core exercises (many of which I'd already been doing - he just told me to do more) and when that didn't work, another physio, who taped it up. A few months on and the problem was the same. So I went to see a podiatrist, who put me in orthotics, custom-made. (I'd started running barefoot a littlein 2007 and had been wearing minimal footwear(Vivo Barefoot) since then.) There I was, back in 'trainers' with orthotics - mind you, I'd have worn a jester's hat if I thought it was going to get me back to running again.... I felt miserable and as if I could barely remember how to run with all this 'stuff' under my feet. And, still no difference. I limped on for a few more months before deciding that if natural running was what I believed in, then I should stick to my guns. So I got rid of the orthotics, started working on my foot strength (and just as importantly, mobility), got myself a set of CorrectToes and stayed barefoot as much as possible. I also took the Vivo Barefoot 'Barefoot Running' Coach course in June with the eminent Lee Saxby. THIS time, if my foot hurt, I didn't rush back to orthotics, I just put on my Vivos and lived with it. Over the past 4 months, my pain has diminished more than at any other time and I am able to run more regularly than any time since the problem began. Arch support is a red herring - and most podiatrists who prescribe orthotics automatically assume that runners land on the heel and roll through. If you tell them otherwise, they look a bit worried and then go on extolling the virtues of orthotics. I ran a 21.47min 5km at the weekend - not my best by a long stretch but so happy to be back on track. Mobilise your toes, especially the big one, check out CorrectToes, work on form and stay barefoot!