You take off your shoes and say to yourself “my feet are killing me!”
You begin to waddle around like a duck for the rest of the afternoon because your feet are hurting so badly.
You go to sleep thinking nothing of it.
You wake up and realize your feet hurt worse than they did the day before.
You go about your daily life.
Nothing changes.
Pain stays the same.
The cycle continues.
Does this sounds similar to what you’ve experienced?
Well, read carefully, because here are the ways to help treat and/or prevent plantar fasciitis!
Yeah, you probably expected this to be number one. No surprise. Here’s why: the more often you play, the more stress you are putting on the fascia. Small micro tears occur in the fascia begin to increase in size as too much tension builds - especially near the heel. These tears occur through overuse in the fascia and surrounding muscle groups. It’s better to increase your rest time when symptoms start to arise, rather than to play through and create larger tears in the fascia. If you’re like me, I know it’s tough to miss a day of pickleball, but a few days of rest can make a world of difference when it comes to foot symptoms.
Doesn’t a massage sound good right about now? How about giving your feet some love? Many of my plantar fasciitis clients find pain relief from self massage using either a ball (tennis, lacrosse ball, even a pickleball!) or a water bottle (some like the frozen water bottle). I prefer using a ball for my clients because they are able to gain more mobility in their foot from it. Here’s a sample video you’d see in one of my plantar fasciitis programs.
Make flexibility and stretching a priority when dealing with plantar fasciitis! Make sure you are stretching your big toe, calves, and quads! Here's a great toe stretch you can perform as you read the rest of this article.
I see so many people playing in shoes that are probably too narrow for them. When the toes don’t have enough room to spread out and move as they’re supposed to, the foot (and fascia) will get irritated. I recommend to my clients, a “wider” toe box shoe that has a good arch support! Orthotics can help reduce pain, but should be paired with daily foot flexibility and strengthening exercises!
To combat plantar fasciitis, the foot has to be stronger and more flexible! For many pickleball players dealing with plantar fasciitis, it’s pretty simple…their foot isn’t strong and doesn’t move well. That, in combination with overuse, sets them up for failure! What are you doing to strengthen your feet? Anything? You may know that you need to, but aren’t exactly sure where to start. I’ve put together a FREE 7 day plantar fasciitis program for pickleball players to start on! You should really do this! Tons of value for 7 days with no need for a credit card! If you've read this far, click this link! https://www.trainerize.me/profile/athletesprehab1/Garrett.Nealon/
If pain persists and you have exhausted all of your options, you need to go see a doctor! A sports podiatrist will have some different treatment options like cortisone injections, taping, splints, etc.
Plantar fasciitis treatment usually takes multiple months to fully rehab. It requires combinations of rest, ice, stretching, and strength training. It is a process, but it is necessary so that you can play more pickleball in the future!
Garrett Nealon CES, CPT
]]>*DING*
That’s your Apple Watch saying you need to stand up.
*IGNORE*
*Continue to work/drive *
You finally get up and you start feeling how tight your back is. You try to give it a few seconds of a stretch or twist looking for instant relief, but it doesn’t help much.
The cycle of your back pain continues.
Who else is guilty of this?
Is this you?
If it is, stay with me here
The 3 things you MUST DO to get out of back pain are:
It doesn’t matter if you’re walking your dog down the street or going to a HIIT workout class..movement is a key component for getting out of pain! If you haven’t moved in a while, yes, it’s going to be uncomfortable. Should you still do it? Yes. Your body is meant to move, and move often. Without movement you lose strength, when you lose strength then you’re bound to gain fat, when you gain fat its a slippery slope until you put on weight. Many people wonder how they gain weight so fast and its pretty dang simple, you ate more than you burned that day! Now, ask yourself, how much do I move per day? Do I move every hour? Do I move every 30 minutes?
Get moving today!
This one is a SHORTCUT for pain relief. Its a LIFEHACK! Well, that’s what you guys want to hear, right? When I phrase things like “shortcut” or “Lifehack” more people are bound to buy into it. People want things in the shortest time possible. Unfortunately, this one takes a while. It will help initially by helping you unwind and decompress before bed, but when you do it for a month you will start the see the benefits in your quality of sleep, improved posture, and pain relief!
Here is one of the best bang for your buck stretches.
The “COUCH” Stretch
1/2 Kneeling position (use something comfortable under knee), prop your rear leg up on the couch and tuck your tailbone under so your hips are even.
Hold this for 1 Minute each side!
*If you’re unable to perform this stretch, try doing it without bringing the back leg up. Keep it down on the floor
My piece of advice for you is to get stronger. Train different positions like the squat and the plank. These are positions you will be in most days. Positions you need to be able to OWN. Conquer what is setting you back from living up to your true potential. Conquer this pain that has set you back for months and years. It’s time to TAKE BACK YOUR LIFE!
If you are lost on your pain relief journey and want a coach to help you get PAIN FREE, call me at 571-733-8981 or email at athletesprehab@gmail.com
We can chat about what course of action is best suited for you!
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What are you doing these days? Are you relaxing more? Are you getting bored? Do you miss your old clients? These are only a few of the questions I’ve gotten in the past month. Things are changing. I am learning things way outside of my comfort zone and embracing the challenges that have come with it!
First, I am happy that I am challenging myself in a different way. I have never been the type to absolutely love working for someone else, and even though I know this journey will take some time, I will be better off for it. With happy comes a wave of sad, though. I miss the clients I’ve trained over the past year and a half at Burn Bootcamp. When I left I was helping so many people get results and they were buying into what I was telling them. That’s something you don’t ever want to give up as a coach or trainer. I had to make the jump to do my own thing at some point, though, and I couldn’t keep delaying it. I gave over 2 months of notice and I finally did it!
Secondly, am I getting bored? Honestly, having more free time has taken some getting used to. I have to be more disciplined since I don’t have someone telling me what and when to do things. There is definitely a learning curve to it.
Third, when are you going to tell us what you’re doing? Right now. I’ve been grinding over the past month getting things ready. However, there’s one thing I’ve learned, and it’s that I will never be fully ready. So here it is. I will be launching in-person and online personal and post-rehab training in June. I am currently looking for 10 active adults that are looking to get out of pain, lose weight, and get back to doing activities they love. Helping people get out of pain fulfills me because I’ve dealt with serious pain in my lower back, shoulders, and knees for years. By taking on a hybrid approach (in-person/online), I am able to help more people in a more time-efficient and cost-effective way.
Lastly, this hybrid training may be foreign to many of you, so I want to elaborate. I am looking for a specific population of active adults aged 40-65 years old. For those that live in the neighboring communities of Chesterfield, I am hoping to work with in person. If you know someone looking to train in person, contact me directly through either email or phone! Others that live out of state and are trying to find a detailed exercise program and nutritional guidance after completing physical therapy, I am hoping to recruit for my online coaching. If you know anyone that fits this description in-state or out of state, please send them this link to fill out a questionnaire! https://athletesprehab.com/pages/online-coaching
I want to say thank you to YOU, yes YOU. You have taken the time to read this article and catch up with things I’ve been doing over the past month. I will keep churning out articles and video content, so keep your eyes peeled! I will get 1% better everyday!
-G
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The weekend is one-third of the week. One-third! If you have a specific goal that you are working for, it will delay your progress significantly if you are ignoring your goals on the weekend. I’ve had a few tough weekends lately with some events that have tried to de-rail my progress. However, over the past few years I have come up with a few ways that have helped me stay on track when the weekend temptations come around.
Why do you want to do this?
If you haven’t come up with a “WHY”, this is an essential step to your success. A strong “WHY” inspires us. IT IS YOUR PURPOSE. For me, my why is also my business why, which is to help active adults out of pain and back to doing the activities they love. I have to stay strong mentally and physically so that I am at my best to help others through similar aches and pains to what I have gone through. A weak “WHY” is the opposite. A weak “WHY” is easy to break, and more likely to fail you in the long run. Think of why you want to reach your goals. Be specific. Make sure it is more than just physical changes, too.
This weekend my in-laws will be in town for Mother Day. Our plan is to go out to one of our favorite restaurants, Sergio’s, for a Sunday lunch. Before we go, I will take a look at the menu and see what “healthier” options they have. Having a plan is the first step to success. You will be better prepared for what life throws at you, rather than being the last one at the table to order and not knowing what to get, so you go with what you know - the pizza (not the healthiest). Look for options that involve lean proteins (chicken, turkey, lean ground beef, eggs, fish). I am going with the Shrimp Fra Diavolo! The protein dishes will usually keep you full for longer all while being a building block for muscle growth! Quick tip- go for grilled over fried foods.
If you’ve gotten this far, thank you for reading! This month, I am starting to take online coaching and nutrition clients. If you, or anyone you know, could benefit from coaching please send them to my online coaching page https://athletesprehab.com/pages/online-coaching
Written by:
Garrett Nealon Trainer, Athletes Prehab
References:
https://tools.myfooddata.com/nutrition-facts
https://health.clevelandclinic.org/5-ways-to-win-your-battle-with-weight-loss-2/
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Something I wish I knew in high school, and even as an athlete in college, was the importance of my diet.
People say “just eat clean”!
When I heard that in high school I was like, “OK, no candy”. When I got to college I thought “OK, no fast food”. When I became an adult, it was "I’ll mix in a salad couple times a week". It never crossed my mind how important the foods I ate were to my mental and physical performance. If I were to go back and tell myself a few things to prioritize nutritionally, they would be:
These three things are what I would go back and explain to myself. Athletes and coaches take note and relay this to your team, it will be a guaranteed game changer!
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