How long before I can start running after a plantar plate sprain? Well, that is what we’re talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.
One of the most common runners’ injuries that I see as a second opinion is when people call me, and they have a plantar plate sprain. A plantar plate sprain happens usually on the bottom of the second toe right here. It is a little bitty ligament that gets sprained. And of course, if you are a runner and you get one of these, you want to know how long is it going to take this thing to heal, and how long is it going to take me to get back to running.
Well, since lots of runners call me, and they’ll say that I ask chat GPT, or I use some AI program to try to figure this out, I wanted to tell you what AI told me when I asked this question of how long can I run after a plantar plate sprain, and the answer was this.
Recovering from a plantar plate sprain can take time. Correct, and the exact duration depends on the severity of the injury. Also correct, and how well you follow treatment protocols. Correct, three times in a row. Now, in general, here’s a breakdown of what you might expect. Number one, mild sprain.
Recovery time, two to four weeks. Okay, in my mind, that would be a really, really, really mild sprain, because most runners do not get a sprain that is just going to heal without any real intervention in two weeks. So, you would have to do a lot of stuff to get it to heal in two weeks. Four weeks sounds closer. But it’s very variable, depending upon how much stuff you drew.
Here’s the approach that artificial intelligence says. Well, if the sprain is mild, you may be able to run, and you may be able to get back to running after just a few weeks of rest, stretching, and strengthening exercises. It’s essential to address any biomechanical issues that contributed to the injury. Okay, so if you have a really long second metatarsal, and the way that you push off puts stress on it, that is a biomechanical contributor.
If you have a bunion deformity, and your bunion’s moving out of the way, and you might stabilize with orthotics or inserts or something, that is a biomechanical issue. But this is all pretty obvious, right? Like, you need to rest it, you need to strengthen, you need to stretch it. Okay, well, you need to stretch other things, not that ligament. That would be the wrong thing to do.
You want to strengthen the things that support that ligament, and you want to stretch the things that actually are pulling that toe upward, stretching the ligament on the bottom. Now, the second one that it talks about here is a moderate sprain, saying the recovery time is four to eight weeks.
Well, I don’t really think four to eight weeks is a short period of time for runners with plantar plate injuries and most of the runners who call me for a second opinion have had it way more than four to eight weeks. And the approach here is simple.
A moderate sprain will require more rest, possibly using orthotics or a stiff soled shoe to reduce the pressure on the toe. You might need to gradually transition back to running once pain subsides, often after a period of cross-training and strengthening exercises. Okay, this is also not rocket science. You want to get stronger, you don’t want to get weaker. You want to do other things to support your running fitness, and you want to make sure that when your ligament is healed, the plantar plate ligament is better.
When you return to running, everything isn’t so weak, you just get a different overtraining injury. The third one is a severe sprain. The recovery time here, according to artificial intelligence, is two to three months or longer. I would emphasize longer.
The approach here, according to artificial intelligence, is if the sprain is more severe, it could take months to fully recovery. I would agree with that. In this case, you’ll likely need to avoid running 100%, engage in low impact activities like swimming or cycling. I would be real careful with both those, until the area heals. So, if you just stop running and you go swim and cycle, you’re probably not going to get better. I’ll tell you that right now, because I see lots of triathletes who have tried that, and that is not really going to work for a lot of different reasons that we could talk about in another episode.
Once you’re pain-free, a gradual return to running will be essential. That is true, but it’s not just the gradual return to running. It’s all about the gradual strengthening of everything in your runner’s body that supports and protects that one little bitty injured plantar plate ligament, so that you can run without stressing it in the same way that you did when it got injured, or any way that might slow down or re-injure it as you return to running. That is really the key.
If you want to learn more about the exact approaches I use instead of just artificial intelligences, sort of vague approaches, how to deal with plantar plate injuries, I go into a deep dive in the Plantar Plate Masterclass. You can join me for free in that training at www.docontherun.com/plantarplatemasterclass. So come check it out, and I’ll see you in the training.
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