Parents Heel pain on vault and tumbling

[tricieworld]

My 10 year old daughter has been competing for 5 years now. She just finished her XCEL Silver season and is training for L5. In 2 years my daughter has grown 10 inches and has also gained weight (due to the growth spurt - she isn't considered "overweight" at all). She has been complaining lately about her heels hurting when vaulting and floor (tumbling) - the left hurts worse than the right.
I took her to the doctor yesterday and she said that she needs to stretch it more, take an ibuprofen before practice, ice it after practice, and when it hurts - tape it. She also recommended a heel pad in her regular shoes and if I could find one, a heel pad for gymnasts for practice. I researched online and came across the Shock-Sox and the Tuli Cheetahs. Have any of you had experience with either? Which is better? What are the pros and cons, etc... One of her coaches said that she likes the Cheetahs, but has never seen the Shock Sox. Help us decide!!!

Thanks in advance!!

 

[sglemon]

No personal experience, but cheetahs is the popular choice at our gym. You would think Severs is contagious, when you see the girls in our gym. LOL

 

[SignHere]

In our gym, the girls wear cheetahs ... Never heard of shock sox.

Also, the x brace is currently the rage in our gym.

 

[bogwoppit]

Tulis work great. Shock sox are not really practical and are not reputed to work as well as Cheetahs.

 

[profmom]

Yeah, sounds like Sever's to me too. Absolutely go with the Tulis, but keep an eye on it and get a second opinion from an orthopedist if she's still hurting. She may need some time off tumbling until the pain recedes.

I've said this before -- I am not a big fan of ibuprofen before practice. Pain is meant to be a signal, and while it can be fine to work through mild Sever's, regularly dosing before practice could mask pain that indicates other low-level injuries, allowing them to develop into something more serious before anyone realizes what's going on. Curious to know what the coaches out there think of this . . .

 

[Gymdaddio]

Also, stretching can inflame it and make it worse. There was once a link on here to a very good youtube video about Sever's.

 

[tricieworld]

The did say something about Sever's but said she wasn't 100% sure and I had never heard of it. We are military and go to the base doctor and sometimes they aren't the best. We are about to change drs since my hubby is retiring this summer. I think I will order the Tuli's Cheetahs and do more research myself on Sever's. Thanks for all of your input.

 

[level9mom]

My dd had Sievers. It can be quite painful and chronic. She used Cheetah's (?) and iced. I've heard of kids getting casted for severe cases but its only a temporary fix. Eventually it will stop.

 

[NewtoGym]

Check out the xbrace. It is so helpful. I would say a third of our team girls are currently wearing them. I have personally met Dr. Josh and he is great. When my daughter forgets her xbrace she notices the difference instantly. I would def check into them! The X Brace, Arch Support for Barefoot Athletes

My 10 year old daughter has been competing for 5 years now. She just finished her XCEL Silver season and is training for L5. In 2 years my daughter has grown 10 inches and has also gained weight (due to the growth spurt - she isn't considered "overweight" at all). She has been complaining lately about her heels hurting when vaulting and floor (tumbling) - the left hurts worse than the right.
I took her to the doctor yesterday and she said that she needs to stretch it more, take an ibuprofen before practice, ice it after practice, and when it hurts - tape it. She also recommended a heel pad in her regular shoes and if I could find one, a heel pad for gymnasts for practice. I researched online and came across the Shock-Sox and the Tuli Cheetahs. Have any of you had experience with either? Which is better? What are the pros and cons, etc... One of her coaches said that she likes the Cheetahs, but has never seen the Shock Sox. Help us decide!!!

Thanks in advance!!

 

[Kiwi]

My DD developed a sore heel recently, but physio says so far it is not Severs. She had an ankle problem last year, not heels then, but sports physician recommended lots of calf stretching, which I believe is also good for these kind of heel problems as the physio recommended a lot of the same exercises she is already doing from last year. The sport physician recommended calf stretches for 30 seconds, 3 times on each leg, 3 times a day, scrunching the toes a little to activate the arch. DD does both upper and lower calf stretches, alternating days, just bending the knee to get the lower calf stretch. Her ankle problem last year happened right after a big growth spurt, I think the bones grow first leaving the muscles too short.

 

[flipperdad]

Heel pain is unfortunately very common in gymnastics, especially in the 9-12 age group. As a parent and a physio of a gymnast who had heel pain, I feel your frustration. In my opinion the key to controlling heel pain is the overall management of the gymnast. As mentioned before, stretching is very important. Freq gentle stretching of Achilles, calf and hamstrings are a must. Freq icing or ice massage to the area, ibuprofen as needed for pain and supportive shoes makes a big difference. Stay away from sandals, flip flops or barefoot activities as much as Possible. Modifying activity in/out of gym is essential. When a coach knows what is going on, he/she can limit plyometric drills so as not to exacerbate symptoms. The gymnast must follow this with great discipline and with some luck, the flare ups will be few and far between.

 

[sleeping judy]

My daughter has been having issues with just one heel when doing vault. I got her the x-brace and she has had some improvement. Who knows, I know this comes in phases and she might have just been out of the phase, but she really noticed improvement. We also ice and ibuprofen after practice when needed.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

and soon it will flip to the other heel. the body grows unevenly.

 

[sleeping judy]

Well, it's fortunate that the x-brace comes in a set of two then Would make sense that she's uneven. The girl can rock a beautiful floor or beam routine, but trips over her feet walking onto or off the floor.