r/clubfoot

Hey everyone, I was curious if there are any distance runners here with a unilateral clubfoot and what your experience has been like long term with running/training. I was born with left unilateral clubfoot and had it surgically corrected at a few months old. I now have a much smaller left calf and my feet are two different sizes pretty drastically (3.4-4 sizes apart).

I’m a 26-year-old female and run longer distances. I've done a couple half marathons and have just started training for my first full marathon in November. I’m especially interested in hearing from people who’ve managed to get relatively fast despite clubfoot. I’d love to know:

• What kind of paces/times you’ve been able to reach
• Whether you deal with pain during or after runs and how you manage it
• What strength training exercises have helped you most
• What your weekly running routine looks like
• Whether you’ve found certain shoes, inserts, braces, taping methods, ankle support, etc. that help while running
• If you’ve had to modify training compared to non-clubfoot runners

As time has gone on, I've noticed myself get a bit slower with my runs, out of pure anxiousness that I shouldn't go to hard on the foot. I feel like there’s not a ton of discussion specifically around distance running with clubfoot, especially unilateral cases, so I’d really appreciate hearing other people’s experiences/advice. Thanks! :)

I recently got diagnosed with bilateral equinos and clubfoot (I can’t remember the medical name) I’m currently 22 so I’m probably in a better position than most for recovery but I am currently house bound whilst waiting for surgery due to the pain.

From what I have researched after getting my diagnosis is that if it’s caught during childhood you can relatively be fine with little to no problems, but if it’s caught later in life even after surgery it can still cause problems.

So what I want to know is for those who have had the surgery later in life how is the process? I used to be really active going out every day before the pain started to get worse and now I’m practically house bound.

Hi all, I was born with bilateral clubfoot and had both feet operated on as a baby. I’m now 29 years old and wanted to reach out to others to ask about your biggest achievements?

I recently climbed Snowdon and it was such an amazing experience. It really motivated me to see how far I can push myself physically, and it’s made me want to accomplish so much more while I’m still young and able.

I’d love to run a marathon one day, although the furthest I’ve managed so far is 15km — so maybe a half marathon is a more realistic next goal for now!

I hope this doesn’t come across as insensitive, as I know many people with clubfoot deal with pain and complications. But I also wanted to share something positive for others — especially parents of young children with clubfoot — to show that it’s absolutely possible to live a full, active life and achieve great things.

I’d love to hear what others here have accomplished :)

Hii, I (22) have clubfoot on both feed, which were treated as a child (physiotherapy/surgery etc.). I don't have alot of issues with it anymore, other than the fact that my ankles are basically immobile. Especially pointing my feet is nearly impossible for me. I can kind of move them from side to side or flex them, but even that is pretty limited.

Up until two years ago I've had alot of issues with my feet. I would usually get really bad knee and hip pain after walking like 1km. After losing weight, trainig and going on lots of walks I can now easily walk 10km at a time without major issues. In the last year I've really wanted to start getting into running, but in the past I never got further than a few hundred meters before getting bad pain in my feet and knees.

Does anybody have any experience with running, especially with immobile ankles? Or other forms of workouts? Anything you can recommend?

Thank you!!

Lisfranc on 3/25/26 surgery on 4/23/26. I'm still in my boot/NWB phase, but I have found a few things extremely helpful and I wish I had known sooner. Of note, I acknowledge and am very grateful for the privilege of being able to purchase whatever I needed, but I did get several items second hand/facebook marketplace or borrowed. Here is everything I recommend and I'll update as my recovery progresses (FYI I'm required to share these are affiliate links I make money from purchases but I don't know how else to send the exact item I liked). Sorry this is so long, but I hope it helps others. This is a LONG LONG road.

Ice Packs:

1. I used this one the most: ice packs. The large size flops nicely over your midfoot and arch to chill exactly the areas you want. If you load it up, it will stay cold (not icy but cool) overnight for early morning pain/discomfort before you are ready to re-set. i mostly used this pre-surgery and then again after my splint was removed 2 wks post-op
2. These one was particularly good right after surgery with the bulky splint in place. it would strap behind my knee: gel pack for behind the knee
3. these were CLUTCH post-op with the splint in place when you could only ice behind your knee and at your toes. i tucked these into the top of my splint on my toes and they were amazing!! toe ice packs
4. I ordered this during my pre-op stage (I had a long wait for surgery, but didn't care for it as it concentrated the cold on the bottom of my foot instead of the top where it hurt): ankle ice pack (didn't like)
5. I was lucky enough that a friend loaned me this. It would be extremely helpful for those recovering independently. I found my support people were able to fill ice packs so I didn't use it that much, but would definitely recommend if going it alone: cold therapy machine

Pillows: There is no such thing as too many.

1. This single leg pillow for the couch (see below this height wasn't enough for me): single leg elevation pillow
2. This double leg pillow for bed (helped keep the hip pain at bay from one up/one down position all night, but see below- this height wasn't enough for me): both leg elevation pillow
3. This was amazing. I purchase a huge roll and cut up several to match the same size as the 'prefab' pillow above. I ordered king sized pillow cases so they could be washed and stacked them up under the above pillows. This was alot more stable than stacking bed pillows and I found I really needed alot more height than what comes in the prefab ones above: Foam roll to cut for extra height when elevating. I also used these between my needs to sleep on my side with the wedge pillows below. if it's helpful, cut them to 18"x30" (slightly larger than the elevation pillows for stability) and these pillowcases will fit: king size pillow cases
4. This is weird but it was AMAZING. We had these dog steps already because our senior dog is aging. I would put them on the bed upside down and almost have my legs straight in the air. It went a little under my low back and relieved alot of pain there. I found I craved this position after being up for bathing/etc especially in the immediately post-op weeks. this was a LIFESAVER and huge PAIN RELIEF from the elevation: dog steps for extreme elvation after being up in the immediate post op stage
5. I had a lot of low back pain from elevating and trouble sleeping for obvious reasons. I found these wedges to be useful in two ways (I would support my low back to get my pelvis up a little and relieve that pain and then would use them to roll back against when trying to sleep on my side with my leg elevated): wedge pillows for side sleeping & back pain. probably going to keep these long term!
6. Ankle pillow: used this a TON in the pre-op, immediate post-op and later stages. Sometimes I just wanted my ankle higher than everything else. One nice thing about this for people caring for themselves is that you can velcro in the right spot while your knee is bent and then extend your leg: ankle pillow

Mobility Aids: Long story short, I recommend them ALL.

1. Crutches: this was all I could tolerate pre-op. my foot was shattered and scooters were too 'bumpy' and hurt. Any will do. I had a pair from walgreens we bought emergently the day it happened and these on the other floor of the house later when we realized this was going to be a long road: crutches

2: Scooters: I was lucky enough to borrow two of these (we kept one in the car and one in the house). I liked this brand the best (it felt 'stable' compared to the others): knee scooter. FYI the smaller/cheaper scooters are helpful if you live in a small space but I sometimes felt like the blance wasn't good and I might fall off or over going around door frames.

3. iwalk: just started using this. LIFESAVER for anyone that has to be up/doing chores/caring for others. it takes some getting used to but I felt most able-bodied with this. be careful when learning it and wear a good tall shoe on the other foot so you don't get hip pain: iwalk "prosthetic leg" or crutch replacement. you can put this on the other shoe to help with height (I think this will be good when you start weight bearing too): shoe height adjuster

4. Walker. read it will be wildly helpful when I start partial weight bearing: walker for partial weight bearing. you can add this if you want to be able to 'take a break' knee sling for walker. FYI get a bag (walker bag) for your walker for phone/water bottle etc. don't try to carry things. it's just not safe

Miscellaneous MUST HAVES:

1. Tote bag: tote bag. got this little washable thing right when it happened. Carry book, phone, water bottle (get one with a lid) and keys/wallet to/from the car and around the house. MUST HAVE.

2. MY FAVORITE THING I PURCHASED: We plugged our bedroom lamps into these and it empowered me to be able to read/etc and turn them off/on when I wanted. Probably the best thing I got: remote for lamps

Household Aids:

1. Get a shower chair. Anything will do. I used this one pre-op and again after I was cleared to get wet: shower chair. i preferred this with a washcloth in the seat so it wasn't slippery to the ones with a cushion(seems like that would feel dirty after a while)

2. I didn't wind up needing it (relatively healthy and active prior to injury, but I think it would have been VERY helpful if I didn't have good balance/strength): toilet riser. my advice: get one with handles

Hope this helps others. Cheering for you!

My wife (35 years old) has a history of talonavicular arthritis, posterior tibial tendon degeneration. Also history of talar head stress reaction (healed). She had club foot correction surgery as an infant (right).

She purchased Bondi 9 a couple months ago but is realizing they are hurting her. She will have anterior ankle pain more often than not. She is a nanny so walking, lifting, pivoting daily. Sometimes she will have pain at the navicular site- almost like a bruise type feeling. It’s at the medial mid foot- I’m assuming posterior tibial tendon pain.

I’m assuming the softness of the Bondi 9 is causing too much compression and translation at the ankle joint causing the ankle pain. Anyone have any related experience, recommendations or thoughts regarding shoes?

Somehow, we forgot our 13 month old's boots and bar for a 5 day vacation. His recovery and treatment have gone great up until this point, we have been great making sure he wears his boots and bar every time he sleeps, but 5 days missing out feels like it could be a lot. Will he be okay? Or are we at risk of the tendon tightening up too much? Should we try to find a way to get him a new set while on vacation?

I was born with bilateral talipes and have spent 23 years trying to find a shoe or boot that can help with the pain in my legs. I know everybody recommends the new balances but I’ve legit gone through 10 pairs of shoes since I met my girlfriend and that was 3 years ago on the 13th. Is there anything that is comfortable and durable?

My sister is having a baby with bilateral clubfoot. I would like to give her some baby things that will be helpful with her new baby. I am looking for recommendations for adaptable baby clothes while they are going through the casting and boots and bar process. What kind of baby products were helpful during these phases?

My wee one gets boots and bar fitted this week at 8 weeks old. Can anyone recommend the best socks? I'm in the UK.