Forums >Health and Nutrition>How do you "un-drop" a met head
Chicago had a groupon for gait analysis, so I went for it. I've been running 14yrs...have one of those "I've seen people swing their arms like that at the end of a race, but never at the beginning." kinda forms.. I can run a marathon, but have trouble hopping on left foot, going down stairs, running down hill..blah blah blah. just another frustrated runner who keeps getting injured..
Analysis concluded wicked tight hip flexors, weak glutes, and probable dropped 1st metatarsal on left foot. Symptoms of drop met fit/could explain a lot.
How does someone fix a dropped met head? Generalized term is Metarsalgia.
KC born 7-14-13. RC born 7-21-15
Old PR's: 5k 19:36, 10mi 1:07:46, HM 1:30:04, M 3:06:19
Working on a Comeback after baby #2
325th place or bust!
Let me suggest... (sorry, that's all I got)
PR: 5K 22:41, 10K 51:05, HM 1:59, Sprint Tri: done!
Erin, I think I had a bout of Metarsalgia. I think it's one its way out. I think what you have might be something totally different.
"If you have the fire, run..." -John Climacus
Prince of Fatness
My immaturity just won't let this one go. Sorry.
Not at it at all.
Hehehe. i like it! I tried googling dropped met, didn't get anything specific. Although one comment really rang true. Rigid orthotics on left side cause intense medial knee pain.--someone posted same thing, docs always tried to give her correction for over pronation, and it would kill her on the medial side of the knee.
ooooH! exciting!!!! that is exactly what happens on left foot. Person said it ended up being excessive heel supination followed by excessive forefoot pronation. Which I do.
Action can create a see-saw effect which can drop a met. Rigid shoes/orthotics aggrivate problem.
scar tissue can lock a met also
Post laterally in the heel, still looking for how you post forefoot. Maybe dancers pad to off-load 1st MTP.
I saw these at the drugstore.
I've tried those before, very cushiony, but didn't change how foot landed. Trying dancers pad with lateral heel wedge. gonna mosey a short run and see what happens.
-Adidas shoes with the split heel/ foremotion unit never worked for me, now realize probably allowed more supination on heel strike, further see-sawing the foot.
-Adidas Adios racing flats are freak'n awsome though! (No split heel)
Good Bad & The Monkey
I'm sorry. What is a dropped met head again? Do you have xrays to prove this?
I'm running somewhere tomorrow. It's going to be beautiful. I can't wait.
Poor baby
The 1st metatarsal is plantarflexed. I don't have xrays, but can see the 1st ray is pointed more down. given the description of symptoms, it fits. I don't really push off that foot, just kinda roll over it. walking barefoot feels pretty funny. Few years ago Chiro had said I ran with only using one foot, but didn't really explain why.
Last year, ran pr 5k, somehow pushed off foot, The big toe joint was in extreme pain after. First met bone points down into ground and gets jammed if foot pushes off of it. Fat pad wears away in that area. Probably been going on for years, and I compensate by not really using the foot.
Feeling the growl again
Well, if you can get him to go to rehab and get clean someone may pick him up again.
Really bad jokes aside, I hope you get this figured out so you can run on it again.
"If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does. There's your pep talk for today. Go Run." -- Slo_Hand
I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills
I think the first metatarsal head is supposed to drop farther than the rest of them .... it is stronger than the others and absorbs the brunt of the impact, and pronation (not overpronation) rolls the balance of the impact to the other metatarsal heads.
I'm pretty sure that if you had metatarsalgia, you would know that something was wrong, and wouldn't wait for a groupon to come around before trying to take care of it.
I would find out exactly what it is that these people are trying to sell you. Maybe the business model is to let the groupon bring you through the door, and then convince you that you need other services.
CyclingAHEAD until 2012
It's been an on-going problem, I've tried PT, orthotics, fractured metatarsals over the years. Left 1st met feels like there is no shock absorption, doesn't pronate properly at toe off, stiff.. With groupon did dartfish video. With that, I can take it back to PT. I was visiting chicago when I did the groupon. I live in Boston, company knew I was leaving, and not getting any more services from them. They did hour and a half assessment. no one has ever spent that long before.
Chicago had a groupon for gait analysis, so I went for it. I've been running 14yrs...have one of those "I've seen people swing their arms like that at the end of a race, but never at the beginning." kinda forms.. I can run a marathon, but have trouble hopping on left foot, going down stairs, running down hill..blah blah blah. just another frustrated runner who keeps getting injured.. Analysis concluded wicked tight hip flexors, weak glutes, and probable dropped 1st metatarsal on left foot. Symptoms of drop met fit/could explain a lot. How does someone fix a dropped met head? Generalized term is Metarsalgia.
Same problem here. Just developed three weeks ago. Never had any such problem before.
I see some info about intrinsic muscle strengthening and some PT manipulative therapy.
Did you resolve your issue? If so, how?
Things that have helped
Yoga toes
Met bar on shoe insoles
Newton running shoes
accupuncture
Solved? Nope, long ways to go, but def has helped.
work in progress. realise part of problem is PT's all call it something different... "hypermobil ray" dropped metatarsal" unstable forefoot" "plantarflexed ray" the "cool new term" now is ligamentous joint laxity.
In my case when pressure is applied such as pushing off when running the ray moves way too much, and I am unable to push off. so the met just hangs loose lower to the ground. I now no longer put pressure on that whole medial portion of the foot. didn't realise I was doing that Till I decided to really try to push off the foot...OMG! throbbing pain!!!!