#stressfractures

Active duty military personnel endure physically demanding activities that put immense strain on their feet, leading to common injuries such as:

Plantar Fasciitis: Plantar fasciitis or heel spurs due to injuries arising from continuous strain or because of ill-fitting shoes.

Stress Fractures: It exercises and relates small bone fractures to activities that involve impact repeatedly.

Achilles Tendonitis: Inability to bear loads and increased joint pains and stiffness because of too much activity.

Ankle Sprains: Sprains due to twisting forces.

Blisters: Rubbing injuries due to use of a wrong boot size or marching for long hours.

Tips for Prevention

Wear clothes and supportive, well-fitted boots while hiking and replace them as frequently as possible.

Emerge more gradually on the intensity of the activity to prevent over-use syndromes developing in the body.

Maintain cleanliness of your feet in order to avoid infections.

Organized some forms of exercises regarding stretching and strengthening for improved flexibility.

Rest breaks must be taken to avoid exacerbation of the problem and give muscles a chance to recuperate.

Treatment Options

R.I.C.E. should be used for the initial treatment of acute injuries.

If further support is needed it may be advisable to utilize custom orthotics.

Go for other sophisticated procedures in case they are required such as the shockwave therapy.

It has been proved that foot should be taken care of to ensure the military personnel has strong and fit feet to meet the physical tasks required of them.

Stress fractures are theee worst! These hairline fractures occur in bones and often pop up in the middle of a rigorous training cycle, causing pain and lots of frustration.

Stress fractures can vary between sharp shooting pains and dull pains. Often they may cause the feeling of phantom pains when you are laying down or when you aren’t bearing any weight on the bone. One key symptom in stress fractures is that there’s a localized pain that you can pinpoint with one finger. The area may also be pretty significantly tender to the touch.

If you think you may have a stress fracture, talk to your doctor and get an mRI done. (X-Rays don’t always show stress fractures).

Some causes of stress fractures are:

-Insufficient caloric intake (Make sure you are eating enough! You are a race car and your body needs fuel.. food!)

-Overuse (high mileage)

-Bone density

-Lack of vitamin D and calcium

-Previous stress fractures

-Foot strike/biomechanical issues

-Sudden shift in training

I’ve had two stress fractures so far and they have not been fun! I took this picture the first day I got my first stress fracture- I still went to practice to cheer on my teammates and dear friends on in their workout. It started raining as soon as I walked onto the track. 

Weeks off of running and building back up from square one can be very disheartening and frustrating, however with cross training and a positive mindset, this type of setback can make you come back ten times stronger. After all- after a fracture, the bone always heals stronger than before, and so will you!

Hope your running is stress fracture free