Plantar fasciitis
Also called: heel pain, plantar fasciopathy, policeman's heel. Clinical name: Plantar fasciitis (plantar fasciopathy).
Plantar fasciitis is heel pain from an irritated band of tissue under your foot, usually worst on your first steps of the day. Most cases ease within months, and over 90% settle within 10 months with the right care.
What it actually is
Plantar fasciitis is pain on the underside of your foot, around the heel and along the arch. It comes from irritation of the plantar fascia — a thick, springy band of tissue that runs from your heel bone to the base of your toes and helps support the arch every time you take a step. When that tissue is overloaded, it becomes painful and stiff, especially where it anchors to the heel.
The tell-tale sign is the first-step pain: a sharp, bruise-like ache under the heel with your first few steps out of bed, or after you’ve been sitting for a while. It often eases as you warm up, then creeps back after a long day on your feet. Clinicians increasingly call it plantar fasciopathy, because it’s more of a wear-and-overload problem in the tissue than the pure inflammation the “-itis” ending suggests.
It’s one of the most common causes of heel pain, and it’s usually brought on by a change your foot wasn’t ready for — a jump in running or walking, a new job on your feet, less supportive shoes, or a combination. That matters, because it means the fix is rarely a single treatment. It’s calming the tissue down, then patiently rebuilding what it can tolerate.
How bad is it?
Plantar fasciitis isn't graded 1–2–3 the way a muscle tear is. It's usually described by how long it has been going on and how much it limits you: early or irritable (sharp pain with the first steps of the day, settles as you warm up), persistent (pain that lingers through the day and after being on your feet), and long-standing (grumbling for many months, often needing a structured strengthening plan). The longer it has been there, the longer it usually takes to settle — which is the single best reason to start managing it early.
How long will it take?
Recovery moves in phases. This is the typical shape of it — yours may run faster or slower, and the numbers below are general ranges, not a forecast for your specific injury.
When to get it looked at
Most cases settle with time and sensible loading. Get it assessed by a professional if any of these apply — they can point to something that needs hands-on care:
- Heel pain that hasn't improved at all after two weeks of self-care
- Severe pain, or you can't put weight through the foot
- Tingling, numbness or loss of feeling in the foot (this points away from plantar fasciitis)
- A sudden pop or tearing sensation in the arch, rather than a gradual ache
- Foot pain alongside diabetes, or any redness, warmth, swelling or fever
This is a list of warning signs, not a diagnosis. If you are worried, or the pain is severe, see a GP, physiotherapist or urgent care.
What to track while you recover
Plantar fasciitis is slow, and the day-to-day swings make it hard to tell whether you're actually getting better. A simple daily record turns that fog into a line you can see moving — and it's the thing a physio will ask about first.
- First-step pain: how bad the first few steps out of bed are, 0–10 (the single most telling number for this injury)
- Time on your feet before it flares, and what you were doing
- Which shoes you wore, and whether an insole helped
- Whether you did your stretches and strengthening that day
- Anything that clearly made it worse — a long walk, standing shift, or new shoes
This is exactly what InjuryLog does.
Log each of these in seconds, watch the trend build day by day, and keep every scan and receipt tied to this one injury. Free to start.
What to tell your physio
The first physio appointment goes faster when you can answer their opening questions from a record instead of memory. Bring the pattern, not just today's pain.
- How long it's been going on, and whether it's improving, static or getting worse
- The classic pattern: sharp with the first morning steps, easing as you warm up, worse again after rest
- What reliably makes it worse (standing, walking, specific shoes) and what helps
- Any change in training load, footwear, weight or work that lined up with it starting
- Whether you've had it before, and what did or didn't help last time
Walk in with the whole picture.
InjuryLog turns your daily logs into a clean Physio Visit Pack, a one-page summary your physio can actually read, so the first appointment starts with facts, not guesswork.
The questions people actually ask
How long does plantar fasciitis last?
There's no fixed number, but it's usually months rather than weeks. More than 90% of people improve within about 10 months of simple treatment, and a small minority are still dealing with it after a year. It tends to last longer the longer you leave it unmanaged, which is why starting stretching, supportive footwear and gradual strengthening early matters.
Will plantar fasciitis go away on its own?
It often does eventually, but 'on its own' usually means very slowly and with more flare-ups along the way. The evidence is that simple self-care — supportive shoes, calf and foot stretches, load management and progressive strengthening — is what gets most people better within months rather than leaving it to chance.
Can I run with plantar fasciitis?
Sometimes, but not through sharp or worsening pain. Many people keep some running by cutting volume, switching to softer surfaces or cushioned shoes, and making sure it isn't more painful the next morning. If your first-step pain climbs day to day, that's the signal to back off and let it settle before rebuilding.
Can plantar fasciitis be cured?
For the large majority, yes — it resolves and stays resolved once the tissue's tolerance is rebuilt with strengthening and sensible loading. A minority get recurring episodes, usually tied to footwear, sudden jumps in activity, or stopping the strengthening once the pain goes. Keeping up the calf and foot work after you feel better is the best insurance.
How do you cure plantar fasciitis in one week?
You realistically can't. This is a slow-to-settle tissue problem, and anyone promising a one-week fix is overselling. What you can do in a week is take the edge off — rest from what spikes it, ice after activity, wear supportive shoes and start gentle stretches — while accepting the full recovery is measured in months.
Why does plantar fasciitis come and go?
Because it's load-sensitive. It flares when you spike the demand on the tissue — a long walk, a standing shift, new or unsupportive shoes — and quietens when you back off. That on-off pattern is normal and doesn't mean it's not healing. Tracking what preceded each flare is the fastest way to spot your triggers.
Is my plantar fasciitis healing?
The most reliable sign is that your first-step morning pain is trending down over weeks, and you can spend longer on your feet before it complains. Day-to-day it will still swing, so judge it by the fortnightly trend, not a single bad morning. This is exactly the kind of slow trend a daily log makes visible.
Does plantar fasciitis show up on an MRI?
It can, but it's usually diagnosed from the history and a physical exam, not a scan. Imaging like ultrasound or MRI is generally only used when the diagnosis is unclear, it isn't settling as expected, or a clinician wants to rule out something else such as a stress fracture or a tear.
Sources
- Plantar fasciitis — NHS
- Plantar Fasciitis and Bone Spurs — AAOS OrthoInfo