Hi all, I am looking for a good foot specialist in the Dallas area. I have the beginning of plantar fasciitis in my left foot and the start of IT band syndrome in my right knee.
I want to start increasing my run distances and maybe even do a marathon later in the year. But with the start of these problems I might need orthotics and some professional advice.
I have started icing my foot and knee and doing lots of stretches which seams to help some. Also the info on this web site has been very helpful.
I have a very active practice teaching people (mostly athletes) how to self-treat for every type of muscle/joint problem you can imagine. Plantar fasciitis frequently comes from tight calf muscles which are pulling on the bottom of your foot. Also, it can be coming from your tibialis anterior (shinsplints muscle) because the TA goes down the outside of your shin, under a band at your ankle, across the top of your foot and finally down the inside of your arch and inserting on the bottom of your arch. When the TA is tight it is pulling of the insertion point (as well as all the other points) and causes pain that is exactly like plantar fasciitis.
The calf muscles go down into your achilles tendon which then inserts into your heel. When they are pulling they cause your heel to lift and therefore pull on the muscles of the arch. Also, there is a muscle that goes down the outside of your calf, the peroneals, that also inserts onto the bottom of your foot, also causing pain in your foot (as well as other places).
Finally, you mentioned that you are having IT pain. This is actually coming from a muscle in your hip called the tensor fascia lata (TFL). When the TFL contracts it pulls up on the ITB (this is normal) but when it goes into a spasm it is putting too much pressure on the ITB and you feel pain down the entire side of your thigh and into your lateral knee.
The forum on www.julstro.com has the treatments for all of these conditions. I’d post them here but it would be a 3 page posting so it’s better if you just go to julstro.com and look up the treatments.
The good news is that the treatments have worked well for thousands of athletes, and I believe they will work well for you also. The odds are extremely high that all you have is repetitive strain injury of the muscles, and you can easily treat it yourself, you don’t need a therapist.