Causes of Pain in the Soles of Your Feet

There are many reasons that you might experience pain in the soles of your feet, and each will have a different treatment. Today, we'll tell you about the most common conditions.

The soles of our feet are one of the areas that we often pay the least attention to. But any condition that causes pain in the soles of your feet will be debilitating and affect your daily life, for obvious reasons. As a result, it’s a good idea to know what the main causes might be so that you prevent this from happening or at least treat the pain as soon as it appears.

It’s worth remembering that the feet support the entire weight of the body, and the body is designed so that both feet can do this perfectly fine under normal conditions.

The natural distribution of forces in the body means that all the bones, phalanges, joints, and the plantar fascia absorb a certain amount of these forces. However, if this distribution is altered, this can cause problems for your feet. Let’s take a look at what these problems might be.

Causes of pain in the soles of your feet

Let’s analyze each of these causes of pain in the soles of your feet one by one. That way, you’ll know how to identify them and some basic ways to treat them.

Plantar fasciitis

This is a common condition where the tissue in the sole of the foot becomes inflamed and causes pain when walking. It’s usually caused by running for too long, abnormal gait, or wearing inappropriate footwear... or a combination of the three.

What this means is that it’s a direct result of placing too much pressure on the soles of your feet in an unnatural way. Until this inflammation has subsided, the pain won’t go away. And the longer you go without treatment, the more intense this pain or discomfort will become.

Treatment usually involves rest, massage therapy, heat therapy, shock waves, and, if necessary, anti-inflammatory medication.

Pain in the soles of your feet: calcaneal spur

This is a condition where a small bony structure appears on the sole of the foot. It mainly occurs when the foot is subject to excessive traction or tension.

When this happens, the fascia tissue is replaced by bone tissue, and this can make every step painful. In the case of heel spurs, patients describe the pain as a stabbing sensation, as if you’re walking on needles.

To treat this, it’s necessary to treat the inflammation first. Then, fascia stretches are usually performed and a study will be made of the patient’s gait.

It may be that the patient doesn’t walk correctly, in which case, they’ll need to wear insoles to correct their gait. In severe cases, they may even need surgery to remove the spur.

Metatarsalgia

The metatarsals are the bones in the midfoot, between the heel and the toes. These five bones are responsible for supporting much of the weight of the body. As a result, they’re susceptible to inflammation or pain after long walks or if supporting the foot incorrectly.

If this happens, you’ll need to look at the type of footwear you wear or the sport you’re involved in. Your doctor may well want to take a look at the anatomy of your foot to find the cause of the problem.

Achilles tendonitis

Because of its location, inflammation of the Achilles tendon can also cause pain in the soles of your feet. This can be caused by overuse or misuse of the tendon. This can mean continuous, strong contractions of the calves and the soleus, which are the muscles that connect to the tendon. Again, it may also be the result of an abnormal gait.

In this case, besides being careful with sports you take part in and trying to correct your gait, you’ll also need to do some stretching. If you visit a physiotherapist, they’ll be able to use other techniques. These may include thermotherapy, ultrasound, or electrotherapy to help relieve the pain.

Pain in the soles of your feet: there is a solution

There are other less common causes of pain in the soles of your feet. The ones listed above are the most common. If the pain is persistent, you should also visit your doctor for a proper diagnosis.

Once they’ve identified the cause, then you can follow the correct treatment. However, to prevent these conditions from developing, the best way is to ensure that you have a correct gait and wear appropriate footwear. Whenever you buy new sports shoes, make sure you undergo a gait analysis to check that the shoes are right for you.