stress fracture dag nabbit

[ashley]

Well, I had an injury a few months back and decided to lay of running for about a month. First jog back i was in a lot of pain that just wasn't going away so i went to a podiatrist. It was a stress fracture. its been another 2 months and the doc cleared me to run but says only in shoes with some support. I said poo on that and decided to go barefoot. I seem to do fine till 3 miles then i feel very sore again. I am frustrated and don't want to give up barefoot. It has been a miracle for pain in the rest of my body. Would it be terrible of me to invest in a pair of lightly padded shoes to wear while my foot completes the healing process and strengthens? I have thought about wearing them on longer jogs. I have been running barefoot for nearly 2 years and this is my first injury. I don't want to lose the progress I have made, but I want to jog and heal properly as well. Also my doctor said I could start back running and that pain would be normal as long as it wasn't an 8 or 9 on the pain scale it would be ok...is that true?

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Do you have pain after 3

Do you have pain after 3 miles running in shoes? Compare there.

You might want to pose your questions in the Ask the Docs forum.

If studies' results about running impact in shoes versus barefoot are true, running with padding wouldn't do anything to help lessen the force of impact. If anything, these studies show that we impact far harder when wearing padding than we do while running barefoot. What's to guarantee you that you won't run harder in shoes? At least when you are running barefoot, you aren't going to be just pounding the pavement but running more lightly because of the harder surfaces.

I know of people who have had stress fractures, from running in minshoes mostly, some barefoot, who were able to return to barefoot running without having to supplement first with shoes, so it is possible. It will be slow-going though, just as it understandably should be.

Get well!

 

[buzzie]

Not a doctor. Take everything

Not a doctor. Take everything I write with a grain of salt and serious dose of skepticsm... (I'm writing this from the verge of a stress fracture and with a couple of ligament and tendon strains.)

Shoes and other orthotic devices can be helpful as temporary measures to facilitate healing.

That said, more than 2 months out, your stress fracture *should* have healed (if allowed to do so) - so, I don't think additional support should be required at this point.

That said, you're experiencing pain at 3 miles. And, near as I can tell, it sounds as if you've been away from running for the past 3 months (1 month pre diagnosis, 2 months post). Perhaps you should be running less than 3 miles for the time being, supplementing with barefoot walking.



And, yes, some pain upon return is normal. But, caution is still warranted. Is the hop test still pain free? Is there no pain upon palpation? And have both been pain-free for at least a week?

 

[ashley]

Thanks for the advice. 3

Thanks for the advice. 3 miles seems to be the point that the pain returns so I will just keep it under for now. It just really sucks because I was up to 9mile runs and this feels like a really horrible tapering! I'm not really sure if running in padded shoes helps because I don't actually own any ( much to the disappointment of my doctor ) I guess I know what I have to do I just HATE it. Oh and I really have only had tbe injury 2 and a half months, I was trying to simplify the numbers but in this case I supppose they are kinda important. Thanks again both of y'all. I'm going to stick with it and make sure I'm bendin those knees!

 

[Barefoot TJ]

You're welcome, Ashley.  Heal

You're welcome, Ashley. Heal well.

 

[theshortwhiteguy]

I feel your pain Ashley! I

I feel your pain Ashley! I had one about this time last year, even though it didn't show up until I had an x-ray for a different injury over the summer. One thing that helped me was to soak my foot in Espom Salt as much as possible - I would even leave the bucket outside at night to chill the water, and soak it in the morning.

Good luck!

 

[ashley]

It was 70 degrees here today.

It was 70 degrees here today. Maybe I should just leave the bucket in the fridge.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

I know it's weird, Ashley. 

I know it's weird, Ashley. The weather we are having here in the south isn't normal for this time of year. It should be so much colder by now.

 

[fast2fun]

Pain is NOT normal unless you

Pain is NOT normal unless you haven't healed! I use aqua socks when I feel the need for some covering. I stress fractured my foot when I first baref footed and it was because I did too much mileage too soon. Let the injury heal and then listen to your body. Barefoot walking is a good substitute because it stimulates healing without the impact and also keeps your feet conditioned. Good Luck, Andy

 

[barnarddale]

Pain is NOT normal unless you

fast2fun, I'm curious what you mean by "...walking is a good substitute because it stimulates healing..." Does it really HELP healing or just not slow it as much as running? I ask myself this question every day since I've been suffering from a stress fracture for 4+ months now. Thanks.