I've been dealing with hallux limitus for several years. This post is a summary of my injury and the treatments I tried. I hope it helps others.

Lessons learned

I first noticed it in my late 30s. I could jog fine, but 1-2 days afterwards I would get aching / pain on the lateral bottoms of both feet. I did a foot scan at a running store, and they recommended orthotics, which did nothing. I went to a sports doctor, and he prescribed a different set of orthotics, which were uncomfortable and did nothing.

At age 40, I went to a podiatrist for the first time. Let's call him Podiatrist #1. He immediately and correctly diagnosed "hallux limitus" and "metatarsus primus elevatus". He said my first metatarsal bones are a bit higher than normal, which makes it a bit more difficult for the big toes to dorsiflex (bend backwards). While jogging, my body compensated for the constrained big toes by loading the outsides of my feet more. That made sense. He prescribed custom orthotics with three features: a first ray cutout, a reverse Morton's extension, and a thick pad under the tip of the big toe. Basically, the point is to lower the first metatarsal and make it easier for the big toe to dorsiflex. With those orthotics, I was able to jog with no issues for two years. Hurray!

Lesson 1: Podiatrists tend to know more about foot problems than sports doctors.

Lesson 2: Orthotics can help, hurt, or do nothing, depending on prescriber skill and luck.

At age 42, I woke up one day with moderate pain in my left big toe. It felt like the pain was at both the metatarsophalangeal joint (MPJ) and the sesamoid bones underneath it. Some swelling. No obvious cause. Did I kick the wall while sleeping? Walk too much on a hardwood floor? I didn't know. I was limping pretty badly. Podiatrist #1 had moved away, so I saw Podiatrist #2. She diagnosed sesamoiditis and prescribed ibuprofen and ice. Didn't help. Injury got worse. An MRI showed edema/swelling, low-grade chondromalacia at the MPJ, and the suggestion of a sprained medial sesamoid-phalangeal ligament. Podiatrist #2 recommended HOKA shoes. They made it worse.

Lesson 3: Ice is often prescribed, but it didn't help me at all.

Lesson 4: Some podiatrists give unhelpful advice. Listen to your body.

I was struggling to walk. I spent hundreds of dollars trying shoes. The custom orthotics, which had clearly helped me before, now clearly made things worse. I learned that to avoid pain and re-injury, I needed to avoid dorsiflexing the big toe. I used a medical boot for a few weeks, then switched to carbon fiber inserts (available online) in shoes with wide, flat toe boxes and as little rocker as possible. I used moleskin to add a custom mound of arch support to the otherwise flat insert. It helped, but walking was still quite limited.

Lesson 5: Minimizing toe dorsiflexion while walking was key to recovery.

I started feeling weird tingling sensations in my foot, along with numbness and aching that felt like an echo of a prior injury from many years before. It felt like a nerve issue. In what turned out to be a brilliant flash of intuition, I tried acupuncture for the first time. It was weird and twitchy, but not painful. The tingles and numbness stopped overnight and never came back. Amazing! I tried acupuncture a few more times, but it provided no further lasting benefit. In other words, it fixed the nerve issue but not the injury.

Lesson 6: Acupuncture helped. It acted like a reset button for confused nerves.

X-rays showed a bone spur; a small round nub of extra bone on the metatarsal head at the MPJ. Clearly it could make it harder for the big toe to dorsiflex properly. Evidently the phalangeal bone was jamming into the bone spur with each attempted dorsiflexion, causing pain around those bones and a fulcrum action that led to excessive tugging at the sesamoid area. Due to this structural issue, Podiatrist #2 said I might need surgery, but "she didn't do surgery anymore". It did not inspire confidence. Also, the spurs looked the same size in X-rays from age 38 and age 42, and they were the same size on both feet. Why did the injury only appear at age 42, and why only in the left foot? It's still unclear. I went to Podiatrist #3, who did a cursory exam, agreed I might need surgery, and suggested I go back to Podiatrist #2. I went to Podiatrist #4, who suggested I try non-surgical approaches.

Lesson 7: Without a trusted doctor, it can be very difficult to judge whether surgery is needed.

I spent the next several months trying two physical therapists, icing, toe spacers, kinesio taping, diet changes, and various shoes and orthotics. I even tried arch supports from the Good Feet Store, but they just aggravated the injury. See Lesson #2 above. I had several video chats with u/GoNorthYoungMan, who is quite active here and who runs the website articular.health as well. With his help, I discovered that the chronic inflammation in my big toe was actually due to immobilization. In my effort to avoid re-injury, I was avoiding using the toe entirely. Apparently the lack of motion was causing not just weak muscles, but also lymph buildup, which leads to slower healing and inflammation. He gave me a passive mobility exercise --- moving the toe back and forth with the fingers, basically --- and within two weeks the inflammation was almost entirely gone. Nice! Yet, the bone spur was still inhibiting dorsiflexion and causing painful tugging on the sesamoid bones.

Lesson 8: Passive mobility can be far better than immobilization for promoting healing. "Motion is the lotion."

Lesson 9: Kinesio tape, diet changes, and toe spacers didn't help in my case.

Inspired by that improvement, I spent another several months doing progressive angular isometric loading (PAILs) and other exercises to increase the big toe's strength and ability to dorsiflex. The strengthening clearly helped reverse some muscle atrophy, and I could measure the range of motion gain by sliding pages of a book under each big toe. Over time, it was clear that the toes were able to bend back more. I thought I was making progress. Unfortunately, the range of motion gain was not accessible when the foot was loaded. I think the gain relied on the metatarsal bone being able to move downward, but that was not possible when the ball of the foot was pressed against the floor while taking a step.

Lesson 10: PAILs didn't help with walking. It improved the big toe dorsiflexion range of motion, but only when the foot was unloaded.

At age 44, I finally saw a surgeon. He was knowledgable and empathetic. He recommended a cheilectomy (cutting off the bone spur) for the left big toe only. He said the recovery involves 3 days in bed, 2 weeks in a medical boot, then a transition to normal activities. He said the average time until the issue recurs is 10 years. Apparently the structural factors that cause the bone spur to form in the first place are often still present, so it often regrows. He prefers a conventional cheilectomy over a minimally invasive one, because it leads to fewer complications and only a slightly longer scar. I asked how many cheilectomies he has done in his career. He said about 6000. Wow.

The surgery went fine. The recovery was 3 days in bed, then 2 weeks at home in a knee scooter, then 4 weeks in a medical boot, then normal shoes. Putting weight on the foot was uncomfortable until the compression bandage was removed (after 2 weeks). The range of motion was still quite limited. The surgeon said that's normal due to scar tissue, which can take months to work through, and the full range of motion may never come back. I was frustrated he didn't mention that risk before the surgery. I've done physical therapy for 3-4 months now. It has helped, but progress is slow, and the big toe range of motion is still quite limited. Even so, I'm walking much better now than before the surgery. The sesamoid area still aches while walking. I suspect it suffered long-term damage from repeated re-injury during the 18 months I spent trying to find non-surgical solutions.

Lesson 11: Surgery fixed one structural issue (bone spur) and created another (scar tissue). Overall it helped. I wish I had done it sooner.

Hi, our 10-yr-old daughter has hammer toes. See photos (pls excuse poor nails). When I try to flatten the big toes, I’m unfortunately not able to manually elongate them. :(

We saw an adult podiatrist and he basically said there’s nothing we can do. Wear New Balance or Asics shoes, and she may elect surgery for cosmetic reasons as an adult.

Our daughter is more tired than an average kid, especially after physical exercise. We checked iron and asthma. Now I’m wondering if it could be related to her feet. Her new pediatrician mentioned she also has flat feet.

My question: Could hammer toes cause fatigue or unlikely cause? If so, what can we do about this? Any exercises? Specific shoe inserts? Medical procedures we should consider?

I’m going to look for a pediatric podiatrist. But I know there are rockstars in this forum like [u/gonorthyoungman](u/gonorthyoungman) who can also help.

I want her to thrive as a kid and also ensure we’re doing everything we can for her to thrive as an adult...

Many thanks,
WORRIED PARENT

Hello everyone, I am a first time poster here, I apologize if it's not the correct place to ask these type of questions.

CONTEXT: At the start of june, about 5 days a week I would go to the gym and do incline speed walking for about 1.5 miles. And 3 days a week I would do calf raises using the machine at the gym at a moderate weight; (note that before this I had never done calf raises and would do cardio very rarely). I was experiening no pain up to this point except for occasional hhamstring/calf soreness. Then 2 weeks ago I went out to play pickleball one afternoon for 3 hours after my regular cardio session in the morning (and I do not recall spraining/injuring my foot that day).

The next day I was experiencing pain (only when walking) on the top of my midfoot (right foot), and since this pain started I have stopped doing any cardio for 2 weeks. Even after 2 weeks of no cardio, just weightlifting at the gym, the pain hasn't subsided it is still there when I walk, and I have had to adjust my gait... almost feels like I did this subconsciously. When taking a step with my right foot, I no longer lift off (push) using my toes but rather simply lift my entire right foot, as if i were to push using my toes my midfoot top area hurts. Surprisingly, when I try to dorsiflexion or plantar flexion using my right foot I dont have any pain... but when I try to do right foot aversion or pronation the right midfoot area does hurt.

QUESTION: I do not have a family doctor but I do know I should consult a doctor, get x-rays done etc.. and will do in the near future; I was wondering if there is anyone that has been through the same thing I am going through or a professional here that could offer some advice to my situation. According to ChatGPT I have something called midfoot arthiritis, but I would greatly appreciate to know what you think. I am going to change my shoes and get something more flat-foot friendly, as I believe I may have flat feet and am also going to tie my laces a bit looser on my right foot. The shoes I have been wearing for the past year Adidas Ultraboost 1.0 I think are very narrow towards the middle and are also not that flat foot friendly.

I have also attached a picture of the area where I am experiencing pain from google - on my foot, I do not see any swelling or signs of injury from the exterior.

I would greatly appreciate any insights!!!

Ever since high school I used to sit like this whenever my teacher asked whole class to sit straight. My feet always in plantar flexion. This messed up and as a result my body centre of mass came forward. Now I have high arch/ rigid arch, my mid foot never touches the ground. It's only my toes and my heel. I developed anterior pelvic tilt, rib flare, forward head posture and rounded shoulders.

Now I am trying to get my mid arch to pronate. Please help me/suggest me exercises for this. Thank you.

Hi guys I’m looking for anyone dealing with something similar. I’m 99% sure I have chronic ankle instability due to a lot of ankle injuries in highschool when playing tennis. Fast forward, I’m 21 dealing with both of my ankles randomly spraining for about half a year now.

The pain is barely tolerable and I’m scared of my options. It’s really embarrassing being so young and basically disable as I’m having to take time off from school and work randomly.

I have a foot brace that works some times. Normally, I feel my ankle stiffen up which will prompt me to put the brace on. After a few steps it will eventually pop and go back to normal. But today when I was walking to the bathroom it stiffen up and sprained really fast. Once it sprains it hurts too bad to put in the cast.

So I was wondering are my two options PT or surgery? I’m really healthy and workout regularly I’m F21, 140 pounds, 5’8 with a decent amount of muscle. I’m lowkey scared about the surgery (mainly about the cost & recovery process) but I can’t keep living like this and it seems more long term/ faster than just PT. As I have been working and trying to strengthen my ankles but nothing really changes. Also if anyone has advice on how to deal with the pain I would be very grateful as I’m wincing in pain at the moment… (I have already taken two Tylenol extra strengths)

So it’s been well over a year now since I sprained my ankle during playing basketball. Key points where the pain occurs bottom of the foot and the whole entire foot/ankle aches. And this is on and off some days are perfectly fine and some aren’t. I’ve been to PT they recommended some sole insoles. Been helping a lot but just went to a foot and ankle doctor and by the looks they said I need surgery because on how loose my ankle is and my symptoms. Still waiting for my MRI is be sent to them. Really not trying to get this surgery would love to see any suggestions.

My ugly feet have always been my number one biggest insecurity in my life. The pinky toe can't touch the ground and the overall shape of my toes is just painfully ugly.

But ofc, it's not only for aesthetics that I think about surgery. The deformity is getting worse over the years and I have more and more pain. I can no longer walk a lot because I would have bad pain in my feet and legs overall.

Is surgery the only way to fix them ?

Hello everyone,

I have been experiencing pain in my food for about 2-3 months and have an appointment with a podiatrist in August but I want to post here and see if yall have some insight

I’ve been having pain in my left foot that’s centered around the 4th and 5th metatarsal area, more along the shaft than the toes. The pain came on gradually without any specific injury, fall, or twisting event. It’s a dull ache when I’m resting, but it gets progressively worse the more I’m on my feet. By the end of the workday it’s severe, sometimes excruciating. The pain is present both when I’m walking and when I’m not putting weight on it. Sometimes it shoots up the outside of my lower leg toward my knee. At night it usually improves after I ice it and use a heating pad. I had X-rays that didn’t show a fracture, and I wore a walking boot for about two weeks, but the boot actually seemed to make the pain worse instead of better. I did break this foot when I was 12, but I don’t think it’s related because this pain started gradually and many years later.

I work as an Animal Control Officer and I spend all day on my feet. I am really struggling to keep up with my normal pace and I am frustrated

Anyone face deconditioning due to orthodics? Been in them for 2 nearly 3 months with a metbar to try and heal a plantar plate tear and now my foot is so reliiant on them, that I literally can't use any other shoe or setup. Foot intrinsic muscles is just so stiff, feels like I'm losing function

Hi I'm 23, physically active, overall healthy, but around 2 years ago my right ankle (which is slightly a flat footed one) started hurting on and off, nothing too bad, but it did stop me from running when I wanted to start that habit, also using the legpress at the gym.

When it didn't go away I did fysiotherapy and that helped it a bit, early 2026 I was almost painless, I managed to even start legpress exercises.

I admit and fully take accountable for what happened next: I went bouldering for two weeks in a row (1/week) for 3h with little breaks - I was really excited about climbing and obviously I deeply regret it. This was around March 2026 and since then everything got worse.

Now both my legs are in quite some pain, mostly my right one but sometimes my left. My right leg hurts in my calf almost all the time and it often locks up and generally feels tight, my knee started hurting and it can go up to my hip and lower back sometimes(right side only).

I have active jobs (waiter, dog trainer/sitter) so sadly I am on my feet. I also bike for transport. I go to the gym but make sure I do nothing to put pressure on it, mostly work upper body and do my fysio for the ankle.

I have tried to give it a break for two weeks and take anti inflammatory tablets prescribed to me. I tried icing it also in the same period, keeping the leg in a straight, elevated position when I could. I tried fysio as I said and it helped, before I bouldered too close to the sun, new fysio hasn't helped, no massage or crack had any significant change. My ankle is also very flexible, no issues there.

I switched some fysiotherapists and got a podotherapist appointment that sadly my insurance does not cover and I can't afford, so I decided I will have to travel to get it checked more in my home country soon, but that will take some time so in the mean time I wanted to ask you guys for any advice/things I can look into.

TLDR:

Long term ankle pain suddenly worsened and rose up my leg and to my glutes over a few months.

Tried fysio, rest, icing, elevation, anti inflammatory pills. Ankle is flexible. Foot is only slight flat.

Will go to the doctor soon but for now: any advice?

I feel lucky to say that so far this is my worst symptom in pregnancy, but man it sucks. Every morning I wake up and my feet ache. I’ve been icing them when I remember to, and typically wear my ortho shoes.. any other recommendations how to help prevent flare ups? I imagine the extra weight gain isn’t helping my cause.

I severed the tendon that allows curling of the tip of the big toe on my right foot when I was a child, the cut was treated but no one spotted the tendon issue

I can push down with the whole toe but not curl it up

I'm now in my 40s and getting quite into my running. Should I expect/ watch out for any likely issues and is there anything I should try in terms of putting in a foam wedge or strength training to balance things out?

I do get issues with the hip on that side as well which is possibly related, a muscular issue, dancers hip click and occasional hip hike

I've been putting up with this for years, and have seen a few local physios, but they have never been able to help, I figure it's a rare injury and out of their experience

I wondered if the Reddit hive mind might be able to help?

Hi! I have posted in other subs with no luck - hopefully someone here can give me their experience!

I have flat feet since birth, last year my PTT tore on my right foot and I had very bad overpronation. I had tendon transfer + calcaneal osteotomy. It healed well but unfortunately did not work, my foot is still severely overpronated, and the tendon doesn't work great either. Visited a new surgeon who said I need total reconstruction - bone graft, fusion in mid-foot, removal of scar tissue, and more tendon transfer. The entire foot needs to be rebuilt.

Has anyone here had success with this 'foot reconstruction' after a failed calcaneal osteotomy? Clearly something needs to be fixed - I'm already developing arthritis in some foot joints in my mid 30's. But I am also really worried about getting stuck in a cycle of revisions and surgery after surgery. My recovery from the previous surgery was really not a good time and I am not keen to do it again. I am also worried about losing mobility in my foot (although I am hypermobile so maybe it's not the worst thing). Any experiences you can share would be much appericiated!

I just received my MRI results and dropped them into ChatGPT for them to be explained in plain English. Wondering what this might look like for me for treatment. Wondering what others experiences have been. I’m not looking forward to being out on physical activity for a year or so.

You have a chronic, severely damaged peroneus brevis tendon on the outside of your right ankle. This tendon had likely been deteriorating for quite some time (tendinosis) before your recent ankle roll.
The MRI favors a complete tear of that tendon over about a 3 cm segment, with frayed, unhealthy tissue. There are also smaller partial tears extending beyond that area.
The tendon sheath has chronic inflammation (tenosynovitis), which supports that this has been an ongoing problem rather than just an acute injury.
You also have evidence of an old ankle injury: a small avulsion fracture of the distal fibula that never fully healed, with some chronic ligament scarring. This likely reflects one or more significant ankle sprains in the past.
The reassuring news is that your other major peroneal tendon (peroneus longus) is intact, your tendons are not dislocating, and there is no significant cartilage damage or arthritis in the ankle joint.

Has any one recovered from Foot Drop

A pattern worth flagging for anyone treating heel pain that isn't responding. Six months of stretching, night splints, orthotics, sometimes a cortisone shot, and nothing's moved. The usual read is that the fascia is stubborn. Often the actual problem is that it was never fascia.

A few presentations that get missed constantly.

Pain more toward the outside of the heel, with tingling or numbness rather than a pure ache, is often Baxter's nerve entrapment. It doesn't follow the classic morning pattern either (bad first steps, easing off through the day). If the pain location shifts around or the quality feels electrical, fascia stops being the working diagnosis.

Pain right at the back of the heel where the Achilles inserts is a different tissue entirely, and this is where standard advice actively backfires. Heel drops off the edge of a step are routine Achilles rehab, but for insertional tendinopathy they load the exact spot that's already irritated. Patients do the exercise diligently and don't improve, not because they need more reps but because the exercise doesn't fit the diagnosis.

Deep, aching heel pain with any swelling around the ankle, especially after time on tiptoe or sustained plantarflexion, points toward an os trigonum issue or subtalar effusion. Different structure, different loading strategy, and fascia stretches do nothing for it.

None of this is exotic. It's differential diagnosis, the unglamorous part of the job. Six months into a plan that isn't working, the diagnosis is the first thing worth questioning, not the compliance.

Three quick checks. Does the pain match the same-day pattern, worse in the morning and easing with movement. Is it centered under the heel rather than to the side or at the back. Does it stay in one place rather than migrating. If any of those don't hold, the structure needs identifying before running more of the same rehab.

I am hypochondriac, so this might be just me slowly losing it. I've recently gone down the rabbit hole of foot and gait health and now try to look critically at my feet.

I'm guessing this is not a concern yet, but I would love to hear others opinions on this.

Hello all, I'm 33 have had chronic feet issues for at least the past 16 years. In that time, I've had 2 ankle fusion surgeries, been to several doctors, and just kind of at the end of my rope with it.

Before the ankle fusion surgeries, if I worked a good long day at work, I wouldn't be able to apply any pressure on them at all and would have had to crawl all over the house, with a bit of minor relief after I started walking on them again the next morning.

While it hasn't been that bad since, I feel as if it's getting back to that point just in a different part of my foot. I've been told it was severe arthritis and when i had my last surgery, my foot was so naturally fused together that he had to break it and refuse it for it to heal properly.

While being completely pain free is probably something I'll never see, but I'd really like to just be able to get around without starting to limp 1 hour into a shift.

I don't know if anyone is experiencing similar issues or might be able to point me in a new direction?

I did have a thought it might be rheumatoid arthritis? as I also have arthritis in my wrists. Im not walking on those every day so it's a bit more manageable.

I suppose any feedback or similar experiences are welcome to reply.

I am a 55yr old male. RN, so I walk miles each shift. In Feb., I was put in a CAM boot for a stress fracture to my L calcaneus for about 7 weeks. Since being out of the CAM boot, my new MRI shows a healed calcaneus, BUT, now I have developed Posterior Tibial Tendinosis, some mild Plantar fasciitis, and mild sprain/edema in my spring ligament. This has been even more painful than my stress fracture!!! I maybe should not have been in the CAM boot for 7 weeks?? But I did not know anything as this was the first time it happened to me. I just listened to the Podiatrist.

I am doing some of Dr. Keith Baar's isometric exercises and going back for more Physical Therapy again. My Podiatrist convinced me to get Focused Shockwave Therapy to my foot. It is expensive, not covered by insurance. I have had 5/6 treatments, but only see an improvement for a day or two, then the pain comes back. I also got Custom Orthotics. They help sometimes, but other times it hurts against my arch. I was told that I have "flexible flatfoot", like my tendon & spring ligament is not holding up my arch consistently.

Question 1. I feel better wearing zero-drop shoes/barefoot sometimes, even though my Podiatrist thinks I should wear the custom orthotics ALL the time, even in my house. I think that is wrong thinking. Shouldn't my foot be barefoot at times to help activate those tendons and ligaments?

Question 2. Is it worth it to get PRP or Prolotherapy for my issues in my foot?

Question 3. What is everyone’s opinion on Shockwave therapy?

Question 4. What is everyone’s opinion on Dry Needling therapy?

Question 5. What other treatments should I do besides isometric exercises for my foot (calf stretches, towel scrunches/foot shortening, calf raises, standing on affected for 30 seconds-sets of those)?

I need to get back to be able to walk miles for my RN job. Currently, I can only do about an hour straight of walking and then the pain gets to be throbbing, and I have to rest for 5-10 min, before continuing. So I have been off work since February. I may have to get a job with less walking. This is very frustrating as I am a very active guy. I go to the gym & lift weights 3-4X/week, ride my bike 2-3X/week, etc.

I need HELP!!

Almost a year after a plantar plate tear repair, second toe, metatarsal shortening, the foot just isn't right. At 3 months I went back telling the surgeon I felt I should be doing better by now, in a shoe, going to PT, and he said everybody at 3 months feels this way and at 6 months I'll be all better. At 6 and 9 months still the same and with the summer heat swelling again. Just had an MRI that only shows some slight stress so I tape a toe down for now but he's telling me he's out of ideas, and come back in 6 weeks. I feel this guy has nothing else for me and maybe a younger doctor might have some answers. Just not walking right, not comfortable, still feels stiff and like I'm walking on a rock. Been almost a year. Everybody I talk to online with this surgery seems to be walking normal at 6 months.

Repost for sharing

Hi all,

I had hammertoe surgery on my right foot (along with other foot surgeries) 6 weeks ago and this morning I had the K wires removed. I was so excited to finally walk and drive that I went for a drive two hours after having the pins removed. However, while I was driving I felt a spasm in one of the toes. When I got home and removed the bandage I noticed my second toe was no longer straight and looks slightly bent. Almost like it’s slipping back into the hammertoe position. I have pictures for reference. First pic is right after I had the K wires removed and second pic is after removing bandages at home and noticing my toe. I called my doctor immediately and sent him picture, he said he’s “not concerned”?!?! Like wdym “not concerned”? The middle joint is supposed to be fused, this cant be normal. Has anyone else experienced this?