Physical Therapist, Derek. My hunch is that the foot could be a compensation issue. I’m kind of grasping at straws here. It’s been something that’s been in and out for the better part of a year, since I was doing weighted hill training, sometimes on foot and sometimes on skis, for an expedition to Mount Kenya last February. The podiatrist gave me some foot pads but it’s still been in and out depending on what activity I’ve been engaging in. A few long approaches to alpine walls this summer had me limping on the left side at the end, though it always recovered by the next morning with rest.
Makes sense to move this to the injury forum. I don’t feel injured, but perhaps that’s denial. 😉 It’s affecting me enough that I’ve backed off on doing much aerobic / ME training for ski touring this winter, and am focusing on rock climbing instead. I recently reintroduced box step ups as a part of a general strength circuit, and that definitely makes my left foot feel weird after.
Sometimes rock climbing does aggravate the left foot also, particularly some torquing motions. Sometimes I can trigger acute pain that then quickly subsides.
I’m requesting a referral from my primary care doctor and also trying to get in touch with someone through the Uphill Athlete PT program, which I did not know about previously!