The plantar fasciitis stretches with the best trial support are a seated plantar fascia stretch and a standing calf stretch. A 140-patient randomized trial (Gupta et al., 2020, Indian Journal of Orthopaedics) used a 10 second hold, 15 repeats, twice a day.
Do the seated stretch before you stand up in the morning, because first-step pain is what you want to reduce. Then give it time. Plantar fascia stretching beat calf stretching at 8 weeks (DiGiovanni et al., 2003), but by two years the groups looked alike.
Your plantar fasciitis stretch routine at a glance
| Stretch | Hold | Reps | Times per day | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seated plantar fascia stretch (toes pulled back toward the shin) | 10 seconds | 15 | 2 | Before your first steps in the morning, and once more later in the day |
| Standing wall calf stretch (back knee straight, heel down) | 10 seconds | 15 | 2 | After you are up and moving, or after a walk |
| Heel raise with a towel rolled under the toes (optional strength work) | Slow and controlled | Ask a physical therapist to set the load | Every second day | Separate from your stretching sets |
Fifteen holds of 10 seconds adds up to 150 seconds, so each stretch takes about two and a half minutes per session.
The hold and repeat numbers come from the methods section of the Gupta trial, which used one dose for both stretches. The other major trial abstracts give no hold time, so treat 10 seconds as a tested starting point.
The heel raise comes from a Danish trial where strength work was done every second day (Rathleff et al., 2015). Its abstract gives no rep count, so that cell is left to a clinician.
How to do each stretch
Seated plantar fascia stretch
- Sit in a chair and cross your sore foot over the opposite knee.
- Pull your toes back toward your shin with your hand until you feel a stretch in the arch.
- Hold for 10 seconds, release, and repeat until you reach 15.
A firm pull in the arch is the target, and sharp or burning pain means you should back off.
Standing calf stretch
- Face a wall and place your healthy leg in front of your sore one.
- Keep the back knee straight and the back heel flat on the floor.
- Bend the front knee until you feel the stretch in your Achilles tendon and calf, then hold for 10 seconds.
If you walk for exercise, our guide to stretches to do before walking covers the rest of your legs.
What the research says about stretching for plantar fasciitis
| Study | Design | n | What it compared | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DiGiovanni 2003, J Bone Joint Surg Am | Randomized trial, 8 weeks | 101 randomized, 82 followed up | Plantar fascia vs Achilles stretching, all with soft insoles and 3 weeks of celecoxib | Plantar fascia group better on worst pain (p = 0.02) and first steps in the morning (p = 0.006) |
| DiGiovanni 2006, J Bone Joint Surg Am | Two-year follow-up of the 2003 trial | 66 with complete data | The same two groups, after everyone was taught the plantar fascia stretch | No significant difference between groups for worst pain or first-step pain; 94% reported less pain |
| Rathleff 2015, Scand J Med Sci Sports | Randomized trial, 12 months | 48 | Daily stretching vs high-load strength training every second day, both with shoe inserts | Strength group 29 points lower on the Foot Function Index at 3 months; no difference at 1, 6 or 12 months |
| Gupta 2020, Indian J Orthop | Randomized trial, 12 months | 140 | Analgesics vs heat plus heel pad vs plantar fascia stretching vs calf stretching | All four groups improved by 12 months; stretching groups beat the analgesic group on heel pain |
| Siriphorn 2020, J Bodyw Mov Ther | Systematic review | 8 randomized trials | Calf stretching vs plantar fascia stretching | Moderate-quality evidence of a larger pain reduction with plantar fascia stretching |
| Guimaraes 2023, Clin Rehabil | Meta-analysis | 236 studies, 15,401 patients | Many treatments vs control | Stretching reduced short-term pain (mean difference -1.14); only shock wave therapy helped in the medium and long term |
The 2003 trial enrolled people with symptoms for at least ten months. By the two-year follow-up the groups no longer differed, though 92% of 66 patients were satisfied or satisfied with minor reservations (DiGiovanni et al., 2006).
That study had no group that skipped stretching, so it cannot tell you how many of those people would have recovered anyway.
Is strength training better than stretching for heel pain?
At 3 months the strength group had a Foot Function Index 29 points lower (95% CI 6 to 52, P = 0.016). At 1, 6 and 12 months there were no differences between groups (Rathleff et al., 2015).
You can do both. If your heel is no better by the 3 month mark, ask a physical therapist about adding the towel heel raise.
Why tight calves and heel pain go together
A matched case-control study compared 50 people with unilateral plantar fasciitis against two matched controls each. Ankle dorsiflexion of 0 degrees or less carried an odds ratio of 23.3 (95% CI 4.3 to 124.4) against more than 10 degrees (Riddle et al., 2003, Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery).
A body mass index above 30 carried 5.6, and spending most of the workday on your feet carried 3.6. The 23.3 interval is very wide and the sample is small, so it supports the logic of the calf stretch without proving it.
What stretching cannot do
Stretching will not give you a fast fix. The trials above measured outcomes at 8 weeks, 3 months and 12 months, and even Gupta’s comparison ran a full year.
Orthoses are no substitute. In a 135-person trial, prefabricated orthoses beat sham orthoses on function at 3 months (8.4 points better, P = .03), but there were no significant effects on the primary outcomes at 12 months (Landorf et al., 2006, Archives of Internal Medicine).
Our piece on the benefits of custom orthotics explains what a custom device adds.
A cortisone shot is no shortcut. A meta-analysis of 47 trials with 2,989 participants found corticosteroid injection was not more effective than placebo injection for reducing pain or improving function (Whittaker et al., 2019, BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders).
Who should be careful with these stretches
These stretches are for plantar fasciitis, which an American Family Physician review calls the most common diagnosis for heel pain, especially on the first weight-bearing steps after rest (Tu, 2018).
The same review lists look-alikes. Calcaneal stress fractures bring progressively worsening pain after more activity or a harder walking surface, and nerve entrapment brings burning, tingling or numbness. Tarsal tunnel syndrome comes from compression of the posterior tibial nerve, and Sever disease is common in children.
Stretching is not the treatment for those problems, and a clinician needs to diagnose them. Check with one before you start if any of these applies:
- Your heel pain began after a fall, a twist or another injury.
- You feel burning, tingling or numbness in the foot.
- Your pain has worsened steadily since you increased your activity.
- Both heels hurt and you also have joint pain or swelling elsewhere.
- The person with heel pain is a child or teenager.
- You have a condition that affects feeling or circulation in your feet.
The 2023 physical therapy guideline is written for nonarthritic heel pain (Koc et al., 2023), so heel pain tied to arthritis belongs with a clinician. Our overview of common foot and ankle injuries shows what else can sit behind a sore heel.
When to see a podiatrist for heel pain
Book an appointment if any of these apply:
- You have done the routine daily for 3 weeks with no improvement. In the Gupta trial, treatment was classed as failed at that point.
- You are still limited at 8 weeks, when the 2003 DiGiovanni trial re-evaluated its patients.
- Your heel hurts at night or at rest, not only on the first steps.
- The heel or ankle is visibly swollen, red or warm.
- You cannot put your full weight on the foot.
- You have a fever along with heel pain.
- You feel numbness, tingling or burning.
The night pain, weight-bearing, swelling and fever items are general red flags rather than trial endpoints, so go sooner with those.
Most people need little beyond home care. In the two-year follow-up, only 16 of 66 patients sought treatment from a clinician (DiGiovanni et al., 2006), and a 2025 review notes that most patients with heel pain improve with conservative treatment (Morancie et al., 2025).
Frequently asked questions
How long should you hold a plantar fasciitis stretch?
The Gupta randomized trial used a 10 second hold for both the plantar fascia stretch and the calf stretch, repeated 15 times per session. The abstracts of the other major trials do not give a hold time, so 10 seconds is a tested starting point rather than a proven best number.
How many times a day should you stretch for plantar fasciitis?
The Gupta trial had patients do their stretching set twice a day. The Rathleff trial used daily plantar fascia stretching in its stretch group, while its strength group trained every second day. Twice daily is the best-documented schedule for stretching, with the first set before your first steps.
Is stretching or strength training better for plantar fasciitis?
In a 48-patient trial, high-load strength training gave a Foot Function Index 29 points lower than stretching at 3 months (Rathleff et al., 2015). By 1, 6 and 12 months there were no differences between the groups. Both are reasonable, and you can combine them with a physical therapist.
How long do plantar fasciitis stretches take to work?
The trials checked outcomes at 8 weeks, 3 months and 12 months, not after a few days. In the 2003 DiGiovanni trial, the stretching advantage showed up at 8 weeks. A meta-analysis found only shock wave therapy helped in the medium and long term (Guimaraes et al., 2023).
Can plantar fasciitis go away with stretching alone?
Many people improve: in the DiGiovanni two-year follow-up, 94% of 66 patients reported less pain and only 16 sought treatment from a clinician (DiGiovanni et al., 2006). Without a no-stretch group, though, the study cannot say how much was the stretching. If you are not better after 3 weeks, see a podiatrist.
Sources
- Gupta R, et al. Comparing the Role of Different Treatment Modalities for Plantar Fasciitis: A Double Blind Randomized Controlled Trial. Indian J Orthop. 2020. PubMed.
- DiGiovanni BF, et al. Tissue-specific plantar fascia-stretching exercise enhances outcomes in patients with chronic heel pain. A prospective, randomized study. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2003. PubMed.
- DiGiovanni BF, et al. Plantar fascia-specific stretching exercise improves outcomes in patients with chronic plantar fasciitis. A prospective clinical trial with two-year follow-up. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2006. PubMed.
- Rathleff MS, et al. High-load strength training improves outcome in patients with plantar fasciitis: A randomized controlled trial with 12-month follow-up. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2015. PubMed.
- Siriphorn A, et al. Calf stretching and plantar fascia-specific stretching for plantar fasciitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Bodyw Mov Ther. 2020. PubMed.
- Guimaraes JS, et al. Effects of therapeutic interventions on pain due to plantar fasciitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clin Rehabil. 2023. PubMed.
- Riddle DL, et al. Risk factors for plantar fasciitis: a matched case-control study. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2003. PubMed.
- Landorf KB, et al. Effectiveness of foot orthoses to treat plantar fasciitis: a randomized trial. Arch Intern Med. 2006. PubMed.
- Whittaker GA, et al. Corticosteroid injection for plantar heel pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2019. PubMed.
- Tu P. Heel Pain: Diagnosis and Management. Am Fam Physician. 2018. PubMed.
- Morancie NA, et al. Heel Pain: Diagnosis and Management. Am Fam Physician. 2025. PubMed.
- Koc TA Jr, et al. Heel Pain – Plantar Fasciitis: Revision 2023. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2023. PubMed.
