Yes, I have Plantar Fasciitis

I know, I know...the situation is dripping with irony.

Not hours after posting the previous article about recognizing the symptoms of plantar fasciitis did my own heel start to swell up making walking (and life) generally uncomfortable. It's one thing to be ignorant but seeing that I JUST wrote an article advocating rest, stretching and time off I was hardly in the position to be a hypocrite to my own advice...

So I took it...

I stretched.
I took time off.
I iced.
I drank beer.

Since it appeared, the pain has never really felt like PF - more of a burning sensation accompanied by some patchy redness, dry skin and swelling. I mean, who needs a doctor when you have WebMD.com?! According to my online diagnosis, it was a small case of athletes foot that would clear up in couple days...

The actual doctor would tell me otherwise unfortunately. X-rays would show a clear calcium spur on the bottom of my heel. And while the initial symptoms have subsided, the dull throb of aching muscles deep within my heel seem to be signaling that my online doctorate degree has failed me once again. If you've ever had PF, deep down you know when it strikes (again). You may not want to believe it, but that won't make it go away...

I'm no longer of the age where mental strength and wishful stupidity will get me through a grueling 100-mile race without causing long-term damage and threatening my training for TRT100 in July. However, being smart and knowing your priorities never makes these emails any easier...

Withdrawing from a race always hurts

So for now, I will lick my wounds, spend some time volunteering at SD100 and try not to think about all the money I've parted with in preparation for this race. Time for rehabilitation, rest and preparing for TRT100...