foot and back pains

[Michael elizondo]

Okay, well first off I have just started sprinting aout 6 months now, but recently I've been plagued with injuries on m back, knee and foot. The foot pain is the worst although the back is close second. I've not done weight training for two and a half months now bcause of it but I've been training at the track.

WHat seems to still be happening is when I do high volume work or even max sprints, my feet feel like someone has just dropped a sledge hammer on them, like just above the toes. Kills.

Then, whenever I do starts or when I get into my acceleration phase, my back starts feeling slight pain, normally whenever my feet hit the ground.

I admit I have extremely flat and long feet and am yet to get spikes but could there be any other reason? Do I need anti inflammatories or could it be possible bone fractures in the foot?

[Garrett Smith]

Foot drills. More info on their implementation here.

Do them before every single workout, first thing in the warmup. Make sure you are barefoot! Foot/ankle problems manifest themselves up the entire kinetic chain, and your flat feet potentially signify some weakness in the intrinsic muscles of the foot.

Walk barefoot as much as possible. Jump rope barefoot. Get some Nike Free 3.0s for daily wear. Concentrate on lifting the arch(-es) in any squatting movement (you'll need to start unweighted to learn how to do this).

Start all of those things easy, do less than you think you need to.

[Michael elizondo]

Originally Posted by Garrett Smith

Foot drills. More info on their implementation here.

Do them before every single workout, first thing in the warmup. Make sure you are barefoot! Foot/ankle problems manifest themselves up the entire kinetic chain, and your flat feet potentially signify some weakness in the intrinsic muscles of the foot.

Walk barefoot as much as possible. Jump rope barefoot. Get some Nike Free 3.0s for daily wear. Concentrate on lifting the arch(-es) in any squatting movement (you'll need to start unweighted to learn how to do this).

Start all of those things easy, do less than you think you need to.

thanks alot mate, so could the increase in foot muscle strength help prevent the painful bones in my foot?

[Garrett Smith]

Absolutely. It could also potentially help your back pain.

[Paul McKirdy]

+bajillion thank you for the foot drills link. They have helped me a ton, maybe to even support a ton some day. I was starting to have pain issues with feet as I have been going heavier and heavier with squats and deadlifting.

I have also recently started doing them heavier than BW with a weighted wheelbarrow. Under +BW condition I even notice work on my hips, even more so than loading the wheelbarrow up three times as heavy and walking normally. Good stuff!