Hi. During yesterday's 25k I started to have pain in the top of my right foot near the ankle and the pain radiated farther up the inside of the front of my leg. It happened around mile 7 and I could not run on it but did finish the full distance walking. It was sore but I was able to walk. I spoke to Ike and he did a quick muscle test and there were no issues with the muscles.

There is swelling and light bruising (it has gone down overnight from lots of icing) and the raised bump at the top center of my foot has also gone down.

I'm walking with a limp and it appears to be only the movement and pressure from walking or running that causes the pain. It is just a solid pain, not throbbing, not stabbing. I can move my foot side to side, stretch without issues. But it is difficult to put solid weight on that foot with any force (like walking and running). Even slow walking I cannot do without a limp. The bulk of the pain now seems to be more pronounced up the side of my tibia than actually at the front of the ankle. It only goes up halfway and does not go near nor radiate from my knee.

Some considerations

- I've never had any issues with my ankles and definitely not when running.
- I ran the Butte to Butte 10k last Sunday and it's a pretty harsh downhill for almost 2 miles so I considered that maybe this caused some irritation. However, I did two 30 min run's during the week with no issues.
- I've been testing different over the counter inserts in my shoes trying to get the right balance of comfort, balance for my hips and knees.
- I had no knee pain yesterday running (and I only get it in the back of my knee) and my left hip was sore, but that is due to the long duration of walking and trying to take pressure off the sore foot.

What are the considerations from how this sounds? Sprain and rest it for a few days and then if it does not improve get it checked out? Thanks in advance for any insight. Never having foot injuries other than blisters and a twisted ankle, I'm not sure how to judge a sprain vs. something more serious.

Beth Lewis-Anderson

Beth,
Sorry to hear about your troubles. From the sound of it you have sprained a ligament or the joint capsule. Ice and rest is very prudent. You could also try some one leg stand is if not to painful and possible some toe raises to help pump nutrients into/out of the area. Again let pain be your guide. You can do low impact exercise like elliptical , cycling, and swimming to increase your cardio in the mean time. If you do continue with a run/walk mix, you should shorten your stride and avoid really hilly terrain. Feel free to stop by the tent and let one of the docs take a look at your ankle to give it a proper diagnosis. If you are still limping a week after the injury you should have it checked out.
I hope you are felling better.
Dr Jake