Pain beneath and slightly behind big toe

[clappboard]

Hi all,

I've been experiencing some pain lately, as I've started running more frequently again due to the snow melting, slightly behind the joint of my big toe. It doesn't hurt very much when I'm running, mostly walking or standing. It's only really bad in one foot, my left, and is a sharp sort of ache right on the very back edge of the pad. I almost want to say that it's "turf toe", but I never played football/soccer or any sport that would really cause it, and a month's rest seemed to make no difference.

It feels almost like my bones and tendons on that one spot are grinding against the floor with no padding. I know that's not quite the case, but it seems as though the pad on that part of my foot is thinner, and I can easily feel the ridges of the joint beneath it.

Not sure if it's relevant, but my winter boots aggravated it quite a bit when walking at times. They're the only shoes that I wear with a little bit of arch support. I've been running daily despite it, as the weather's really nice now.

If anyone has any idea what's going on with my feet, please let me know!

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Feel free to also post this in the Ask the Docs forum. We have six doctors ready to answer your questions.

 

[Sid]

I saw your post about the 5th met issues. http://www.thebarefootrunners.org/index.php?posts/156126
I haven't responded as we're supposed to wait for a doc to respond first.

Not sure if this helps. I've had some 5th met issues myself. I think it was related to a bunion on the same foot, causing some foot weakness, and developed some unusual callus patterns, Photo B. The pain was right underneath those calluses.
http://www.thebarefootrunners.org/index.php?posts/151886

It's gotten a lot better, but I've had to spend several months improving my bunion and strengthening the big toe. It's a work in progress!