heel pain from shin splints??

Question
Hi~i'm a 38 year old woman who runs about 20 miles a week (and i frequently spin). I wear orthotics.

I have been experiencing heel pain in the ball of my heel for about 3 weeks. I think it might be some sort of shin splint? (just a guess).

Is this a common runner's injury? I took over a week off, then ran yesterday only to have the pain come back.

How long would you take off?
thank you,
Christine

Answer
Hi Christine,

Sometimes heel pain can be a symptom of Plantar Fasciitis. Recovery time varies for this. You will need to stretch and ice the area to improve the condition as rest alone may not remedy the pain. If you Google 揚lantar faciitis?you抣l find a host of good sites with solutions. Here's one: http://walking.about.com/cs/heelpain/a/plantarfas.htm

Additionally, the other expert in this group (John) is more knowledgeable about foot injuries, so you might want to fire this question over to him as well.

Good luck,
Greg