I seem to be on the mend and have been able to put some nice, slow runs together. I have a question.... When I went to a podiatrist (when this first started, he is a runner also) he claimed that my Asics Gel were the cause, and then gave me a list of shoes he recommends...but I am not sure that the Asics were the cause. I have 2 pair of them, one with 200 miles and one with 178 miles. I am loathe to "let them go" as they are mighty expensive. So, the question: Would you go out in "those" shoes again? Or just let them go and bite the $$ bullet? I am leaning towards trying them again.....

This reply is a little late, but for people still looking for a cure (or just relief) from PF, here are some recommendations. I've been running for over 35 years, and have suffered through a few debilitating episodes, and some mild cases of PF. To show that it is something that can hit you no matter what - I'm currently fighting a medium-bad case. I've found I most often get PF if I change shoes or training or my shoes are too worn - mild pain tells me to wake up. My current case was only mild until I tried racing on the mild pain and aggravated everything. Anyway, to keep the pain at bay, I always replace the insoles in my running shoes with Spenco or Sorbothane or SofSole - anything with more arch support than the flimsy things already in there. The graphite arch supports have been good to me. I currently have Spenco PolySorb Total Support insoles in my new shoes. To deal with the pain after I get it I stretch (achilles, calf, hamstring, lower back, plus foot/PF stretches), ice, tape and use the good old golf ball roll. All of this has helped me continue to run while battling (including 2 hour LR), and I feel like I'm on the other side now, getting better. I've never tried the Walk-Fits, but they would seem to work - I just like the full length insoles, plus I need cushioning in the heel, not a hard surface. I tossed my orthotics because of that. If you do want to try the Walk-Fits, you can get a better price on eBay (under $14.00 with shipping). Another remedy may be something called the Heel-Right support (more like a wrap). They're website is http://www.heel-right.com/. It was my next option. The developers throw out a study which found 73% relief in just 3 weeks (hey, they're wearing lab coats - they MUST know what they're talking about!). It seems a little expensive, but if it works you'll save yourself months of pain. AND they offer a 30 day money back guarantee - so very little risk. Hope this helps! Good luck everyone, Steve

Bap, stupid as it might sound I had foot problems achilles and slight PF. I thought it had gone and bought some flats but before I wore them my foot played up again. After a while it wasn't going away so assuming I'd never run again I wore the racing flats just to see what they were like as I had never owned any and my feet felt far better afterwards than using normal trainers don't ask me why. My better half ( who is not a runner) has had PF and really suffered, she ended up having cortisone injections and it still came back but to quote Johnmaas "Gently stretch and massage the fascia. I did this by sitting on the couch, placing my affected foot up on top of my thigh. Then, gently pull back on the toes, and with your other hand use your thumb to massage the area just in front of the heel(usually the most tender area)." She does this every morning before she takes a single step ( and a very erotic sight it is ) and has managed to clear it up completely. One lesson to learn is don't ignore any aches or pains.

I had right foot PF issues for nearly 20 years and finally have found my cure.  I early on used to have professional orthos that worked well but they wore clean out and even after I got new ones, the PF never resolved itself.  My silly wife says one day "Hey try these I got a while back WALK FIT shoe inserts that cost like 15 bucks".  I did on the side that was still hurting really bad in the mornings and etc............   These dang things have done the job and I have been fully pain free for over 2 years now.  FULLY PAIN FREE!!!   I still keep the right side in my running shoes and I wear another one in the right side through the day in my regular shoes.  It took about a month to 6 weeks till I started to notice the change but in 3 months the pain was really gone.  I actually wore em in my regular shoes for a few weeks til I got used to them before I tried em on the run, that eliminated the 'damn this feels funky" issue. 

 

 http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dshoes&field-keywords=walkfit