I don't want to argue barefoot versus shoes but shod or not, it's possible to get injured in shoes and without.
I can curl my toes up/down with no pain but the big toe is a little out of sync with the smaller toes compared to my right foot.
I'm going to follow this advice posted on here:
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As someone who was kept from racing a month of the competetive spring season as a result of metatarsalgia, I can make some suggestions. I injured my metatarsal bone running in bad slush, then I stupidly raced on it in an indoor track. The result was extreme pain, especially in the morning.
I went to a regular doctor who did not know what was going on. Later I went to another doctor who was pretty much a genius and he got my foot back in running condition after a week and a half. These are the things he made me do:
1. You need to keep as much weight off your foot for a couple of days, depending on how bad it is and how soon since you initially inkured it.
2. After this, there will probably still be pain. However (at least in my case) this is a result of inflamation caused by an overabundance of white blood cells in the area. The way to get them out (which is what you actually want to do, because they are not helping any more, they are just stuck there) is by heating your foot up in water that is just below scalding point, for about ten minutes.
3. After this, you need to wiggle each individual joint in your toes and metatarsals. This should be done such that one hand holds one bone, and the other hand holds the other bone. The hand holding the bone closer to the toes wiggles the joint, while the other hand holds the other bone still. You should do this starting from the toes and working your way back. Make sure that the joints are moving naturally (not side to side). Try to increase the range of motion in the sore area. This might be painful.
When you do this, the joints will be able to act properly, reducing the stress on the metatarsal bones, and you will start to recover.
4. Do step 3 before every run. Ice after every run. If you run especially early or late in the day, you can do it more than once, just be sure not to heat till well after your run.
5. The pain might stick around for a long time. For me, I had pain nearly 2 months. However, this was not a result of any reinjury (at least for me) it was just a slight inflamation of the past injury that would only show up every few days.
6. Take Ibuprofen
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