Treating Metatarsalgia or Ball of Foot Pain
If the ball of your foot hurts regularly, you may be suffering from metatarsalgia, a condition in which the ball of your foot becomes painful and inflamed.
What Causes Metatarsalgia
Here are a few common causes of metatarsalgia:
Poorly Fitting Shoes
Shoes that have a narrow toe box or lack support can contribute to metatarsalgia. Women who frequently wear high heels often suffer from metatarsalgia since it places a lot of pressure on the ball of the foot.
Intense Training and Stress Fractures
Distance runners often get metatarsalgia since the foot absorbs a lot of shock when it comes in contact with the ground. However, this is applicable to anyone playing a high-impact sport that puts stress on the body. Similarly, small breaks in the metatarsals caused by stress fractures can affect how you distribute weight across your food and lead to metatarsalgia.
Certain Foot Shapes
Having a high arch or flat feet places abnormal pressure across your metatarsals, causing pain and discomfort. If your second toe is longer than your big toe, this also affects the pressure distribution across your foot. Other conditions such as hammertoe or bunions also contribute to metatarsalgia.
Recovery
If you think you may have metatarsalgia, the first thing you’ll want to know are the next steps you need to take in order to recover.
Wear Properly Fitting Shoes
Make sure that your shoes are neither too tight nor too loose. Avoid high heels, and choose shoes that have a roomy toe box.
Arch Support
Wear shoes with arch support to help reduce stress on the metatarsals. You can either find shoes that come with arch support or buy special insoles to put into your shoes.
Metatarsal Pads
Ideally, wear shoes that come with a metatarsal pad, which reduces pressure on the ball of the foot, spreads the transverse arch (the arch just behind the ball of the foot), and properly realigns the toes. The Walking Company offers orthotic insoles with metatarsal pads and an exclusive collection of shoes with built-in metatarsal support for metatarsalgia.
Shop Orthotic Insole with Metatarsal Pad
Shop Metatarsal Support for Metatarsalgia
Rest
Keep off your feet, and avoid any strenuous activities that would put additional stress onto your feet. It’s still important to stay active as you recover, so you may want to find a low-impact activity like swimming or biking to get some exercise without straining your feet.
Ice
Be sure to ice your foot for 20 minute intervals a few times a day. This will help to reduce inflammation.
The Authority on Comfort
At The Walking Company, we’re passionate about helping people recover from metatarsalgia, which is why we offer a whole line of shoes dedicated to reducing ball of foot pain. They include specifically designed features such as:
- Arch support to help more evenly distribute pressure across the foot
- Built-in metatarsal pads which support the metatarsals, realign the toes, and reduce pressure on the ball of the foot
- Roomy toe box to reduce pressure on the forefoot
- Cushioning to absorb shock and improve comfort
For many people, finding the right shoes is the key to start healing, and we’re here to support you every step of the way.
The Walking Company. The Authority on Comfort to help you Keep on Walking.