Good news in the long term...

...bad news in the short term.

So today I went to the podiatrist. In an aim to actually be seen this year (and whilst the pain was still present) I cut out the middle man and saw a private practitioner. I could have made an appointment with my doctor (which would have been a week or so) and then they would have had to refer me on to an NHS podiatrist and we all know how long that could take.

Apparently I have unusually high arches and a lot of over pronation of my feet most likely due to the hypermobility of my joints. The pronation has caused tendonitis in my feet (which is responsible for my arch pain) and the high arches have given me shin splints due to reduced shock absorption through the foot. She was slightly concerned that I may have a stress fracture on my shin, not being a common thing she had to refer to her textbooks and decided it was best I go for an xray to be sure.

An hour or so at the walking wounded clinic (aka minor injuries unit) and the shin bones are fine. No surprise there but I could hardly go back and see her and say I hadn't had it checked out.

In the short term this means no real walking (ie, at speed or to distance) for the next couple of months until it is fully healed and treatment through R.I.C.E (rest, ice, compression and elevation) and anti-inflammatories. Gutted about the walking as I've been itching to get back out since the marathon and I'll be back to square one in terms of fitness by then.

In the long term however she has provided orthotic insoles (seen above) these should help hold my feet in the correct position and relieve some of the strain from my feet and legs. This should help prevent the tendonitis and shin splints from reoccuring and could relieve the knee pain that has plagued me since I was young. I need to break my feet in to them slowly as it's quite painful having my feet in the correct position due to the muscles not being used to it. I guess the neighbours will just have to put up with me clomping round the house in my trainers during the day for a while.

[edit] Completely forgot to mention, she's getting a colleague who specialises in sports injuries to come all the way across town for my next appointment. I don't know whether I should be pleased about this or apprehensive