How long is "normal" for TOFP?

fetish4running

Barefooters
Jun 5, 2010
331
0
16
I'm so mad at myself. I somehow have ended up with TOFP that seems to be really hanging on. I had a nasty knot in my calf and for some unknown reason decided to take a run in my Bakilas. Somehow I ended up with TOFP. It was quite mild, so I cut out my long run and only ran BF. It was stupid of me because now it is quite painful and I haven't run in a week. It still hurts to walk on it and I'm wondering how long is normal for TOFP before I have to admit it's a stress fracture.

I've read everything I can find about the subject and it seems as though it should go away if I'm not running on it. I'm just so disgusted. I've been running barefoot for over a year now. And now I get the dreaded TOFP.

I've been icing it and even wearing shoes (oh how I hate shoes!) and trying to stay off it. That's no easy task! I feel like a lazy person and I'm getting crabby because I want to run.
 
Just in case you didn't find

Just in case you didn't find this one...



Here's an email I received from Ken Bob recently that is sure to help you:


There's actually a whole category on "Foot Pain"

http://therunningbarefoot.com/?cat=265

Some of my more recent posts on the top of foot pain (most related to the mis-use of minimalist footwear, to minimize feedback);

http://therunningbarefoot.com/?p=2684


http://therunningbarefoot.com/?p=1598


But for the post you're looking for, you gotta go back a couple years:

http://therunningbarefoot.com/?p=1186


I've revised the post since it's originally posting, as I discovered the exercises aren't needed. And some people (particularly ex-marines) we're trying to overdo, the gentle lifting of small weights, by increasing the weight, or trying to pull their entire body weight across their mattress when pressing "gently" against the edge of their mattress with the top of their foot.

Anyway, we can simply do the same exercise while running, that is, lift up the fore-foot, exercising the top of the foot, which is actually better, because you get about a thousand very gentle fore-foot lifts each mile you run, and avoid the excess strain of pushing off with the trailing foot (it's really difficult to push off while lifting the fore-foot), instead of trying to do the fore-foot lifts in a separate workout.
 
Well usually stress fractures

Well usually stress fractures are accompanied by swelling and sensitivity to touch. If you don't have those, it's probably not time to worry yet.

As for how long TOFP lasts, I don't think I can say anything that isn't covered in TJs post.
 
Looking back before the

Looking back before the definite stress fracture, I had foot pain (hurt to walk on and put pressure on after runs). I think top of foot pain should feel more like muscle pain rather than achy hurt bone pain and shouldn't hang around for more than a day or two. I didn't ease off of it, and pushed through to a half marathon and ended up with a stress fracture. I say, take some time off and see how it feels to get back out there on it with a short easy slow run. If it's good, then keep going, if it hurts...allow yourself more time off. Being out for 6 weeks stinks! GL, keep us posted. Hope it isn't a sf.
 
Thanks Zum.  The extreme

Thanks Zum. The extreme tenderness is definitely subsiding. In fact, I have to really push hard to make the top of my foot hurt. I'm perplexed, however, by the initial pain I feel when I stand up and put weight on my foot. It goes away quickly and then I'm fine. I'm still wearing my foot coffins, which I hate, hate, hate. But there is improvement. I really hate not running. And I can truly say that I despise biking. My butt is sore, I can't itch my head cuz of the stupid helmet, and it's just loud with the wind blowing in my face.



Woe is me!
 
haha, good for you for

haha, good for you for staying active though during this time.

Is it sore in a particularly area, part of the bone when you push on it? Sore between the bones or on the bones?
 
That's a really tough

That's a really tough question. I think the primary pain is about an inch back from my third toe. What bothers me most, though, is when I stand up. It's hard to pinpoint where it hurts, but it's a sharp pain. If I stretch my foot and slowly stand up onto my toes, the pain goes away and then I can walk like normal. My husband (who runs in FF) says he has had the same sensation and it went away, so that makes me feel better.
 
Are you still resting it? I'd

Are you still resting it? I'd see what Doc has to say, may be a bruised bone or begining of a sf. Hope it clears up soon for you :)
 
I've had TOFP since early

I've had TOFP since early June. My pod. took xrays and manipulated my foot and determined that it was not a stress fracture. He at first taped my foot which helped but with the hot weather we've been having, the effect didn't last very long because the tape would loosen up. The next visit he gave me a rigid orthotic for my shoe to support my arch. He said that because of my high arch I was more prone to this injury. This seems to have helped. I can at least walk without pain now. My plan is to get this completely healed and along with calf stretches and foot strengthening exercises, to return gradually to BFR. I really did not do any of this when I started and probably did TMTS which led to my injury. I have always been prone to tendon injuries and consequently the long healing process. I know what you mean about the bike. I've been on mine the last two months, but it has gotten me out of the house in the morning for my regular exercise, so I'm thankful for that.
 
Can I ask how he manipulated

Can I ask how he manipulated it to determine no stress fracture? Interesting that taping helped. Just a firm, tight taping?

I'm wondering, too, if maybe my age is making it take longer. I'm 43 and have worn shoes all my life. Even though I've been bf for 1.5 years, that's nothing comparitively speaking.
 
fetish4running wrote:Can I

fetish4running said:
Can I ask how he manipulated it to determine no stress fracture? Interesting that taping helped. Just a firm, tight taping?

I'm wondering, too, if maybe my age is making it take longer. I'm 43 and have worn shoes all my life. Even though I've been bf for 1.5 years, that's nothing comparitively speaking.

See my second post in this thread at RW. I included a pic in that post:

http://www.runnersworld.com/community/forums/runner-communities/barefoot-running/sad-day

The pod. bent my toes up and then down and then to each side, and then put pressure on different parts of my foot, all without causing me discomfort. He said that if I had a fracture, at some point, I would have jumped out of the chair. Tendon injuries can sometimes be harder to heal from than breaks, because there is so little blood supply to them. Break a bone, have it set correctly, and immobilized, and in 6 weeks you are usually good to go. Tendonitis can hang on and on and the older you get, the longer it takes. My advice: If you were wearing supportive (ie. good arch support) shoes before you got injured without any problems, then go back to them while you recover. Start a program of calf stretches and foot strengthening exercises and when you are healed, start back at square one with BFR. Take it super slow.
 
Thanks, Mique.  Did you have

Thanks, Mique. Did you have a pod. that was okay with bf running? I've kicked around the idea of going to see a doctor, but basically I need to lay off until it feels better...however long that may be. I would like to know if it's a stress fracture, but in the end, it really doesn't matter. And it's not like I have gobs of time to have xrays and/or an mri.



I'm really feeling discouraged though. I feel like I'm a horrible witness to BF running when I've gone and injured my foot! Not to mention that I feel like a complete dork wearing shoes. My daughter told me today that I look funny with shoes on. I hate it.
 
If you don't have the

If you don't have the insurance to cover it or the time to chase it, and you think it might be a stress fracture, all they would basically tell you to do is take six weeks off and wear a boot/splint. Otherwise, did you post on Ask the Doc/Dr. Mike's Forum here at the BRS?

BTW, guys, if you know of a barefoot-friendly podiatrist, be sure to add them to the map of barefoot-friendly podiatrists thread stickied to the top of the Health, Nutrition, Injuries & Medical Conditions Forum.

And you're not a horrible ambassador for BFR, Fet. Just because we run barefoot doesn't mean that we won't experience injury at some point. We happen to believe that running barefoot allows us to sense a pending injury where shoes silence that message. Just think what kind of injury/s you may have had if you were running in shoes?
 
No, I haven't asked the Doc. 

No, I haven't asked the Doc. I hate to bug him. We have insurance, but like you said. Six weeks off, blah, blah, blah.

Thanks for trying to make me feel better, though. Any ideas as to what I can do to stay in shape? I detest biking. I'm thinking of joining the Y so I can use an elliptical. Is that an acceptable form of exercise?
 
First of all, I forgot to ask

First of all, I forgot to ask you what type of distances were you running BFR after 1 1/2 years and were you doing a lot of hills? Also what type of surface did you usually run on ie. concrete, asphalt, grass ? Generally if your foot was fractured, depending on the severity, they would either put you in a boot or if not bad, have you wear a stiff soled shoe. Before I went to the doc, I made an insole out of some 1/8 inch fiberglass that I had and wore that inside my shoe to take away the flex in my foot. Since I have my arch orthotic, I don't do that anymore. I would be kind of hestant about the eliptical, mainly because if it is fractured, you're still putting a lot of weight and movement on the joint. Usually, with something like that, try a little of it, if it doesn't make it worse, then maybe it's OK. It could still prolong the healing process however.
 
A typical run would be 7-8

A typical run would be 7-8 miles, all chip-seal. And yes, I had some pretty decent hills. Never really thought much about that. I suppose that didn't help me, huh? Wouldn't you think that if it IS a stress fracture, that it would hurt to bend, pull, or twist my toes? None of that hurts. Even the TOFP isn't that bad; it's just the initial weight put on my foot. And even that goes away. Shouldn't a fracture hurt all the time?
 
Fet, I can't answer these

Fet, I can't answer these questions, since I'm not a doc, but if you would, please post exactly what you are and are not experiencing with this along with a picture pointing to the injured area on the Doc's forum. I'm sure he can help you.
 
Your symptoms sound similar

Your symptoms sound similar to mine, probably a case of extensor tendonitis. My pain was just as I took a step and my heal started to lift off. There was a mild pain as my forefoot started to bend. It's not encouraging to me, a beginner BFR (less than 1/2 mile, barefoot) that you got this after 1 1/2 years. As I stated before, get your arch supported for now and do calf stretches. Also, it's good to massage the calves with a roller. I simply have a pipe with a PVC pipe over that, and I roll this up and down my calf muscles. Once I got my arch supported, I have been able to walk without pain, so you could do some fast walking for exercise. One thing with tendonitis, (as you get older), DO NOT do anything that aggravates it more or you will make a chronic injury out of it. I don't plan to resume my BFR transitioning until September. I would like to get some type of BFR distance in before the cold weather and I have to go back to shoes.