[pct-l] Plantar Fasciitis and KT Tape

[Diane Soini of Santa Barbara Hikes]

I have never had Plantar Fasciitis so I never gave an answer to what  
to do. I honestly think that nobody actually knows what causes or  
cures it since people have opposite causes and solutions.

I did have pain on the tops of my feet like Marcia, actually along  
the long bones of the feet. I think I got stress fractures. My  
solution was more flexible shoes. Not so much minimalist, just more  
on the flexible and cushioned end of the spectrum rather than the  
supportive end. That allowed me to finish the trail.

Nowadays I have some NB Minimus and I love them. I wear them daily.  
They do feel a little thin on rocky trail and I can get some fatigue  
about watching my step (not to mention they attract stickers) when I  
backpack in them.

Another solution that seems to work well for me is to wear very loose- 
fitting, very wide, slightly too-big trail shoes. I have some mens  
Keens. They have a pretty square toebox to fit my square foot.  
They're at least one size too big. I wear thin socks with them so  
they are even more loose. I removed the default insoles and put cheap  
foam ones in for softness (the stitching inside sometimes is  
abrasive) and even more room. They feel clunky, clumsy and awkward  
with an overly large heel that feels like it's in the way but they do  
give me pretty good protection from thorns and rocks and being so  
loose like slippers they're not interfering with my feet's nature  
motion.

On Mar 9, 2013, at 10:00 AM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:

> From: Ken Powers <ken at gottawalk.com>
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Plantar Fasciitis and KT Tape
>
> Shroomer
>
> I was going to mention our experiences with shoes. But you seem to  
> have
> covered it better than I could. It sounds like you are now pretty  
> close to
> Marcia's "slippers". Her current favorite "slippers" are New  
> Balance Minimus
> that she wears every day whether on the trail or not.
>
> Her experience wasn't PF. After hiking the PCT she developed severe  
> foot
> pain on the tops of her feet. The podiatrist told her to wear stiff
> supports, a la Superfeet. They made her feet hurt even more. I  
> don't think
> she lasted a week with Superfeet. She discovered on her own that less
> support felt better. The next step was removing the inserts of her  
> shoes.
> She started watching the weights of new models of shoes. That meant  
> less
> structure to the shoe and therefore more comfort. She also read  
> "Born to
> Run". We found models of New Balance shoes offering less and less  
> support.
> Recently the "barefoot" running craze has introduced some really  
> light shoes
> with little structure & support.
>
> The answer to foot problems seems to be different for different  
> people.
>
> Ken
> www.gottawalk.com