Heel Pain

[peetee]

I work at home in a separate building where the floor can get dirty. I stand for the vast majority of my working day and because I need to move in and out of the house freely I have taken to wearing slip-on Crocs but I have been suffering heel pain for a number of months. The symptoms are similar to Plantar Faciitus but is concentrated and the rear of the heel bed. I believe it is due to the comparatively low shoe heel causing my weight to shift away from the ball of my foot to my heels. I have made the assumption that shoe inserts would 'wander' in slip-on shoes. I do the recommended stretching exercises which help but I have always been a relatively flexible person and often reach the limits of my joints before the muscles are taxed. so the problem persisits.
Can anyone recommend some relief and/or a slip-on shoe that has a reasonable heel height?

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
Opposite!
Your weight is shifted onto your balls and hence your Achilles is being constantly loaded, hence the heel pain.
I have suffered from this when holding my weight on my mid soles on a ladder with poor supporting shoes.
They were actually walking shoes but tough boots would be better here.

You need rigid soled shoes that give good support for whole of foot, like walking shoes NOT trainers.
With good footbeds.

I can understand that you don't want to trap dirt into house but you will either have to change foot wear / remove shoes or carpit the house where you walk in with removable old carpit?
We did this with dogs to cut down the mud in house.

NHS Physiotherapist (if you have already visited in the past then self refer on the net, my local NHS guarantees two days waiting!)
will give you correct diagnosis and advice.
Good luck.

P.S. Do you bend down a lot whilst working? Crouching?

[nez]

As a youngster I worked in a car factory where we had to wear clogs because of the dangerous swarf - it lay around on the ground like ribbons.they are very comfortable and supportive and of course easy to slip out of.

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
Slip on Crocs, They are really for occasional use I would of thought?
It also possible that the OP is doing something in their daily work which is affecting the feet, like crouching etc?
I suggest the OP sees a physiotherapist.

Its a fallacy to think soft shoes are comfortable, the opposite is true as soft shoes do not support the foot thus leading to pain.

[cotswolds]

What makes you think it isn't plantar fasciitis? This can commonly present as heel pain. A good indicator is that if after sitting, you get a sharp pain with your first step which becomes more bearable.

On the practical side of holding an insert in place, double-sided tape should cope with the forces involved.

I think the technical term for what you need to do is "offload the plantar fascia". I tried googling that and found this https://www.podiatrytoday.com/article/4736 which is well into the realms of TLDR. Second attempt found this https://www.runnersworld.co.uk/health/injury/ask-the-podiatrist-how-can-i-treat-persistent-plantar-fasciitis which is more accessible. Part of the second paragraph seems particularly relevant:

A temporary taping technique... can be used for rapid offloading of force in the plantar fascia. This can be used... if you are going to spend a long time on your feet (a potential cause of plantar fasciitis).

A physio might help, but it's a complicated subject and the right specialism is a podiatrist. I think in a few places you can self-refer to NHS podiatry, otherwise it's through your GP.

As quick self help, Boots sell a good range of orthoses. Something taped in your shoe to raise the heel might be worth trying - it can be surprising how little you need to do to make a difference.

[samby5]

Here is an idea...you might find a pair of heel lifts useful. You can fit them inside any shoes to make to increase the heel height. Worked wonders when I had Achilles tendinitis. Don't know what they would be like for plantar fasciitis though.

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-con ... c-20354846

[Cowsham]

I work at home in a separate building where the floor can get dirty. I stand for the vast majority of my working day and because I need to move in and out of the house freely I have taken to wearing slip-on Crocs but I have been suffering heel pain for a number of months. The symptoms are similar to Plantar Faciitus but is concentrated and the rear of the heel bed. I believe it is due to the comparatively low shoe heel causing my weight to shift away from the ball of my foot to my heels. I have made the assumption that shoe inserts would 'wander' in slip-on shoes. I do the recommended stretching exercises which help but I have always been a relatively flexible person and often reach the limits of my joints before the muscles are taxed. so the problem persisits.
Can anyone recommend some relief and/or a slip-on shoe that has a reasonable heel height?

Did you ever get this problem resolved ? -- I've had this for about 25 or 30 years but it's getting quite bad lately. Pain at the very back of the heel which is worsened or brought on by wearing safety boots and usually relieved by wearing my foam soled trainers although even those aren't completely solving it now.

[tim-b]

Heel spur?? https://www.feetfeet.co.uk/blogs/heel-pain/heel-spur
Boots will tend to put pressure on the spur

[Cowsham]

Heel spur?? https://www.feetfeet.co.uk/blogs/heel-pain/heel-spur
Boots will tend to put pressure on the spur

As far as I'm aware spurs and associated pain are under the heel but my pain is at the back of the right heel and to the outside edge just above where it contacts the ground. I've always wondered if I'd ever broken it cos I've done some silly things when I was young like jumping out of 1St floor windows etc.

[peetee]

Yes I did solve the problem. I think I mentioned it in another thread but here it is anyway.
For me it was simply a case of getting back on the bike. At the time I was barely ever riding, busy as i was with family pressures and work. I was on my feet for nearly 12 hours a day and over the years the flexibility I had in the backs of my legs had reduced creating tension in the tendons attached to the heel. Once that 'give' had gone my heels felt baggy to the touch - as if all the padding in the soft tissue had failed - and the nerves were unprotected from the pressure of my own weight.
Regular stretching and riding completely eliminated the problem. I am certain that this was the root cause as I am currently riding very few miles as I'm rather absorbed in building a new workshop before the summer is up. This also means a lot of standing. Yet again the heel problem is there and I'm now going to balance out my time to get some more miles in.

[Jdsk]

I work at home in a separate building where the floor can get dirty. I stand for the vast majority of my working day and because I need to move in and out of the house freely I have taken to wearing slip-on Crocs but I have been suffering heel pain for a number of months. The symptoms are similar to Plantar Faciitus but is concentrated and the rear of the heel bed. I believe it is due to the comparatively low shoe heel causing my weight to shift away from the ball of my foot to my heels. I have made the assumption that shoe inserts would 'wander' in slip-on shoes. I do the recommended stretching exercises which help but I have always been a relatively flexible person and often reach the limits of my joints before the muscles are taxed. so the problem persisits.
Can anyone recommend some relief and/or a slip-on shoe that has a reasonable heel height?

Did you ever get this problem resolved ? -- I've had this for about 25 or 30 years but it's getting quite bad lately. Pain at the very back of the heel which is worsened or brought on by wearing safety boots and usually relieved by wearing my foam soled trainers although even those aren't completely solving it now.

One foot or both?

How long does it last?

And please can you add a photo with one finger pointing to where the pain is worst.

Jonathan

[Cowsham]

Yes I did solve the problem. I think I mentioned it in another thread but here it is anyway.
For me it was simply a case of getting back on the bike. At the time I was barely ever riding, busy as i was with family pressures and work. I was on my feet for nearly 12 hours a day and over the years the flexibility I had in the backs of my legs had reduced creating tension in the tendons attached to the heel. Once that 'give' had gone my heels felt baggy to the touch - as if all the padding in the soft tissue had failed - and the nerves were unprotected from the pressure of my own weight.
Regular stretching and riding completely eliminated the problem. I am certain that this was the root cause as I am currently riding very few miles as I'm rather absorbed in building a new workshop before the summer is up. This also means a lot of standing. Yet again the heel problem is there and I'm now going to balance out my time to get some more miles in.

Thanks for the detailed reply. My heel pain is very similar to the way yours behaves and is in the same place hence why I replied to this older thread.

This is where the pain is in mine. ( circled )

This site lists the different problems

https://www.verywellhealth.com/heel-pai ... es-2549378

It probably is plantar fasciitis and maybe due to a heel spur on the right heel but one that has formed at the rear of the heel bone as opposed to underneath it or the pain of an underneath spur is radiating or being transmitted to the back of the heel bone. Haven't ever been to a doctor about it. I managed it for 30 years using soft shoes / soles ( my trusty hitech silver shadows or certain Clark shoes are OK )

but
I'm having to wear safety shoes at work more often now because of new health and safety rules. I feel safer in my gutties cos I can climb / move better / faster to avoid injury ( a bit like the helmet debate on here -- but don't want to open that can of worms --- yet. ) safety shoes feel like two lead weights on my feet and slow me down terribly.

What stretching exercises did you do to relieve your heel pain ?

[peetee]

What stretching exercises did you do to relieve your heel pain ?

Fairly basic ones, really.
Gentle pre-ride moves to start with; touching toes with the knees almost locked-out, was one. The other was standing facing the wall an arms length away (palms on the wall) then keeping one heel down and the leg straight move the other foot forward and down to support as you bend elbows.
Post ride repeat these but with greater emphasis on the stretch and keep those knees dead straight - they do sneakily start to give a bit! Also, when bent over it helps the stretch hugely if you can keep the hip rotated but flatten your back. It’s amazing how curvature of the spine compensates for inflexibility in the back of the legs.
I will also add another post ride; in bare feet stand with your toes on the first step of the stairs and your foot overhanging the floor below. Steady yourself on the newel post and drop your heels. Hold for 10 seconds, lift the foot level then drop to repeat three times. As you lift the foot the third time keep going to stand on tip-toes then drop again to hold for another 10 seconds.

[peetee]

In follow-up to my previous contributory posts, last week I had an x-ray as I have been struggling to walk following an impact to my heel some 5 weeks ago. I have had considerable periods of rest, ice, and elevation but it hasn’t improved - in fact, often the discomfort was worse because lack of activity was causing my plantar fasciitis symptoms to return.
Anyhow, the x-ray showed I have a spur of bone on the front of my heel. In retrospect that injury probably would not have occurred had that spur not been there; the impact just wasn’t severe enough. So, if you are suffering from heel pain I would certainly suggest an x-ray is done as I can say from my experience that a bone growth on the rear of a heel could very easily produce the same symptoms as plantar fasciitis.