Plantar Fasciitis (Ouch!)

Brian is a 'recreational' badminton player who just returned to play after a 1 month celebration of Chinese New Year. For obvious reasons he wanted to get rid of some of the 'excess' weight that he gained. 2 days after play he started having severe hindfoot pain in the mornings. The pain subsides after walking for half and hour. He seemed to feel better walking in his leather shoes but playing badminton was a painful affair.

The pain was spot on the calcaneal attachment of the plantar fascia (see the mark 'X' on the photo). He also had tightness in the calf muscles and was flat footed. He had difficulty doing calf stretching. "I never did this before", he said.

We got him to wear a slipper with raised heel support (1/4"), a pair of preformed insoles for his flat foot, daily calf stretching when he got back from work, and ice-massage over the spot. He also saw a physiotherapist for myofascial release for his calf. Within 2 weeks he was back playing. Obviously, he was told to avoid playing to vigorously!