What does it feel like?

• You may have pain and swelling in the ankle area; the pain may come on gradually or during or after your walk or run.
• You may have less strength and range of movement in the ankle.

What are possible causes?

• Often caused by overuse or repeated movements during sports, work, or other activities.
• Not warming up before exercising.
• Wearing shoes with poor arch supports or rigid heels.

What can I do?

• Rest. Mild cases can take weeks to months of rest for the tendon to repair itself.
• Stretching exercises.
• Wear well-cushioned shoes and change the way you play sports so that you reduce stress on the tendon.

Anything I can do to prevent this?

• Warm up and dynamic stretch before any sport or intense activity.
• Cool down and stretch.
• Wear shoes that cushion your heel during sports or intense activity.
• Wear heel pads or other orthotics designed to reduce stress on the Achilles tendon.
• Unnatural, bony hump that forms at the base of the big toe where it attaches to the foot. Often, the big toe deviates toward the other toes. When this occurs, the base of the big toe pushes outward on the first metatarsal bone –which is the bone directly behind the big toe –forming a bunion.
• Because a bunion occurs at a joint, where the toe bends in normal walking, your entire body weight rests on the bunion at each step. Bunions can be extremely painful. They’re also vulnerable to excessive pressure and friction from shoes and can lead to the development of calluses.

Bunions

What is it?

• Unnatural, bony hump that forms at the base of the big toe where it attaches to the foot. Often, the big toe deviates toward the other toes. When this occurs, the base of the big toe pushes outward on the first metatarsal bone — which is the bone directly behind the big toe — forming a bunion.
• Because a bunion occurs at a joint, where the toe bends in normal walking, your entire body weight rests on the bunion at each step. Bunions can be extremely painful. They’re also vulnerable to excessive pressure and friction from shoes and can lead to the development of calluses.

What does it feel like?

• Your bunion may not cause any symptoms.
• Or you may have pain in your big toe, red or irritated skin over the bunion, and swelling at the base of the big toe. The big toe may point toward the other toes and cause problems in other toes.

What are possible causes?

• The way your foot is shaped puts too much pressure on your big toe joint. Because bunions can run in families, some believe inherited shape of the foot can increase likelihood of bunions.
• Your foot rolls inward too much when you walk. A moderate amount of inward roll, or pronation, is normal but damage and injury can happen with too much pronation.
• You have flat feet.
• You often wear shoes that are too tight, pointed in the toes or with high heels.

What can I do?

• Rest.
• Wear shoes that do not hurt your feet (avoid high heels or narrow shoes.)
• Wear pads to cushion the bunion, and in some cases, you can use custom-made shoe inserts (orthotics.)
• Avoid activities that put pressure on your big toe/ foot, such as walking or running.

Anything I can do to prevent this?

• Proper footwear may prevent bunions. Wear roomy shoes that have wide and deep toe boxes (the area that surrounds the toes), low or flat heels, and good arch supports. Avoid tight, narrow, or high-heeled shoes that put pressure on the big toe joint.

Iliotibial Band Syndrome

What is it?

• The iliotibial band (ITB) is a piece of tough tissue that runs along the outside of your thigh from the hip to the knee. Once irritated, it can result in pain and swelling along the outside of the knee.
• The ITB is crucial in stabilizing the knee during walking or running. It can become irritated as the band slides back and forth across the bone on the side of the knee, building up friction.

What does it feel like?

• Aching pain along the side of the knee or thigh.
• The pain may not occur immediately during activity, but may intensify over time, especially as the foot strikes the ground.
• Pain might persist after activity.
• Pain may also be present just below the knee, as the ITB attaches there as well.

What are possible causes?

• Training habits such as running on a banked surface; inadequate warm-up or cool-down; or excessive up-hill and down-hill running.
• Abnormalities in leg/feet anatomy such as high or low arches, excessive leg rotation or uneven leg length.
• Muscle imbalance such as weak hip or core muscles.

What can I do?

• Rest, ice, compression and elevation (RICE) to reduce pain and inflammation.
• Stretching and using a foam roller to loosen the ITB can help prevent and treat pain although for some, this will be very painful.

Anything I can do to prevent this?

• Slow and steady build-up of miles.
• Replace your shoes in time.
• Avoid too many hills.
• Alternate direction of your track workouts.
• Cross train.

Plantar Fasciitis

• The plantar fascia is the flat band of tissue (ligament) that connects your heel bone to your toes. It supports the arch of your foot.
• Plantar fasciitis is caused by straining the ligament that supports your arch. Repeated strain can cause tiny tears in the ligament. These can lead to pain and swelling.

What does it feel like?

• Pain when you take your first steps after getting out of bed or sitting for a long time. You may have less stiffness and pain after you take a few steps.
• If you strain your plantar fascia, it gets weak, swollen, and irritated (inflamed) and your heel or the bottom of your foot hurts when you stand or walk.
• Your foot may hurt more as the day goes on. It may hurt the most when climbing stairs or after standing for a long time.

What are possible causes?

• Your feet roll inward too much when you walk (excessive pronation).
• You have high arches or flat feet, tight Achilles tendons or calf muscles.
• You walk, stand, or run for long periods of time, especially on hard surfaces.
• You wear shoes that don’t fit well or are worn out.

What can I do?

• Give your feet a rest. Try not to walk or run on hard surfaces.
• To reduce pain and swelling, try putting ice on your heel.
• Do calf and towel stretches, especially first thing in the morning.
• Get new shoes with good arch support and a cushioned sole. Or try heel cups or shoe inserts (orthotics). Use them in both shoes, even if only one foot hurts.

Anything I can do to prevent this?

• Take care of your feet. Wear shoes with good arch support and heel cushioning. If your work requires you to stand on hard surfaces, stand on a thick rubber mat to reduce stress on your feet.
• Do exercises to stretch the Achilles tendon at the back of the heel.
• Stay a healthy weight for your height.
• Establish good exercise habits. Increase your exercise levels gradually and wear supportive shoes. Cross train.
• Put on supportive shoes as soon as you get out of bed. Going barefoot or wearing slippers puts stress on your feet.

Runner’s Knee

What is it?

• Typically pain under or around the knee cap. It can worsen with activity, descending stairs, prolonged sitting, standing or running.

What does it feel like?

• Pain behind or around the kneecap.
• Popping or grinding sensations in the knee.

What are possible causes?

• Overuse, repetitive activities such as walking or running.
• Direct trauma to the knee, like a fall or blow.
• Misalignment can cause rubbing and friction behind the knee cap, resulting in pain.
• Flat feet, fallen arches or overpronation.
• Weak or unbalanced strength between thigh, hip and core muscles.
• Poor flexibility across the thigh, hamstrings and iliotibial band

What can I do?

• Rest the knee. As much as possible, try to avoid putting weight on your knee.
• Ice your knee to reduce pain and swelling.
• Compress your knee with an elastic bandage, straps, or sleeves to give your knee extra support.
• Elevate your knee on a pillow when you’re sitting or lying down.
• Practice stretching and strengthening exercises if your doctor recommends them.
• Wear arch supports in your shoes.

Anything I can do to prevent this?

• Keep your thigh muscles strong and limber with regular stretching.
• Wear orthotics and supportive shoes.
• Avoid running on hard surfaces, like concrete.
• Stay in shape and keep a healthy weight.
• Never abruptly increase the intensity of your workout. Make changes slowly

Try these products

• Compression sleeves or socks
• KT tape
• Foam roller
• Shoe inserts
• The Stick Massager
• Knee ProTec
• Compression tights

Shin Splints

What is it?

• Shin splints is a general term used for pain along the lower leg or shin bone.
• It is typically caused by overuse or a significant change in training, which can result in injury to the shin bone itself or to the soft tissues, muscle and tendons that connect along the shin..

What does it feel like?

• Shin splints cause dull, aching pain in the front of the lower leg.
• You may feel it only during exercise or when you’ve stopped exercising. Sometimes, the pain is constant.
• Depending on the exact cause, the pain may be located along either side of the shinbone or in the muscles. The area may be painful to the touch.

What are possible causes?

• Irritated and inflamed muscles or tendons caused by overuse.
• Flat feet or high arched feet.
• Tight calf muscles.
• Improper footwear which do not provide enough support for flat feet or cushion for high arch feet.

What can I do?

• Rest your body so the underlying issue heals.
• Ice the shin to reduce pain and swelling.
• Wear arch supports in your shoes.
• Compression sleeve to support and warm the leg.
• Exercise to strengthen the muscles in your shin and calf.

Anything I can do to prevent this?

• Always wear shoes with good support and cushioning.
• Warm up and stretch your legs before working out.
• Stop working out as soon as you feel pain in your shins.
• Don’t run or play on hard surfaces like concrete.

Try these products

• Compression sleeves or socks
• Vibram FiveFingers footwear
• Foam roller
• Spri bands
• The Stick Massager
• KT tape
• Spri Wobble Board
• Shoe inserts