Plantar fasciitis exercises and stretches backed by research: exactly how to do each one

Plantar fasciitis exercises and stretches are the first thing to try for heel pain. This page includes only exercises with published trial support. Each has a short video, the exact dose the study used, and what the study found. Towel curls and rolling are left out, because we found no strong trial behind them on their own.

Stretching loads the tissue, but it can’t remove tissue that has already degenerated. In the main stretching trial, 94% reported less pain or none at two years, but only 58% reported none.^[4] Dr. Efe Ozturk is a Foot and Ankle Surgeon and podiatrist. Seeing a surgeon early confirms the diagnosis and keeps the next step ready if exercises fall short.

Which plantar fasciitis exercises have research behind them?

A 2020 review of eight randomized trials found moderate-quality evidence that plantar fascia stretching eased pain more than calf stretching.^[6] The American Physical Therapy Association’s 2023 guideline recommends plantar fascia stretching, calf stretching and resistance training.^[7] In the DiGiovanni and Rathleff trials below, nobody did exercises alone. Everyone had insoles or heel cups, and DiGiovanni’s patients also took an anti-inflammatory pill for three weeks.^[4,3]

How do you do the plantar fascia stretch?

1. Sit and cross your painful foot over your other knee.
2. With the hand on that side, lay your fingers across the base of your toes, on the sole.
3. Pull your toes back toward your shin until you feel a stretch in your arch.
4. With your other hand, feel the band along your arch. It should be tight.
5. Hold for 10 seconds, then let go. Repeat 10 times.
6. Do this 3 times a day for at least 8 weeks.
7. Do the first set before your first step in the morning. Do another before standing up after a long sit.

What DiGiovanni’s trial found. It enrolled 101 people with heel pain lasting at least ten months. Those doing this stretch had less worst pain and first-step pain than those doing a calf stretch.^[1] Everyone was then taught this stretch. At two years, 66 people answered and the groups no longer differed. Overall, 77% had no activity limits and 92% were satisfied. There was no untreated group.^[4]

How do you do the calf stretches?

Both wall stretches come from Thong-On’s randomized trial of 84 people.^[2]

1. Stand facing a wall with your painful foot behind you.
2. Keep your back knee straight, bend your front knee, and keep both heels on the floor.
3. Lean forward until your calf or Achilles tendon feels tight.
4. Hold for 30 seconds. Rest 10 seconds. Repeat 3 times.
5. Do this 3 times a day for 12 weeks.

1. Stand in the same position, painful foot behind.
2. Bend both knees. Keep both heels on the floor.
3. Lean toward the wall until your calf or Achilles tendon feels tight.
4. Hold for 30 seconds. Rest 10 seconds. Repeat 3 times.
5. Do this 3 times a day for 12 weeks.

What the trials found. Thong-On’s stretching program also included the plantar fascia stretch and four weeks of physical therapy. Worst pain and morning pain fell, and it matched a strengthening program.^[2] Porter’s trial of 94 people compared a 3-minute hold, 3 times a day, with 5 sets of 20 seconds, twice a day. Neither won over four months, so choose the one you’ll keep doing.^[8]

Don’t judge at two weeks. Radford’s trial of 92 people found no significant benefit from two weeks of calf stretching, and 10 of 46 stretchers had a side effect.^[9]

How do you do the heel raise for plantar fasciitis?

1. Stand on a stair on your painful foot. Hold the rail for balance. The rail is our addition, not the trial’s.
2. Put a rolled towel under your toes, so they bend up as far as they can at the top of the raise.
3. Rise over 3 seconds. Hold 2 seconds. Lower over 3 seconds.
4. Weeks 1 and 2: 3 sets of 12. Twelve should be all you can do with good form.
5. Weeks 3 and 4: add books in a backpack. Do 4 sets of 10.
6. Week 5 to month 3: add more books. Do 5 sets of 8. Keep adding as you get stronger.
7. Do this every other day for 3 months.
8. If one leg is too hard, start on both legs.

What Rathleff’s trial found. It had 48 people with plantar fasciitis confirmed on ultrasound. At three months, this group scored 29 points better than a daily plantar fascia stretch group on a 230-point foot function scale. There was no difference at 1, 6 or 12 months. The only side effect was mild muscle soreness.^[3]

Can you do plantar fasciitis stretches in bed?

Yes, if you sit up first. We found no trial of stretching while lying in bed. What DiGiovanni’s trial used is timing: the first set came before the first step of the day.^[4] So sit on the edge of your bed, cross your foot over your knee and finish your first set before your feet touch the floor. If first-step pain is your main problem, the 2023 guideline also supports a night splint for one to three months.^[7]

How long do plantar fasciitis exercises take to work?

Plan on weeks to months. In the two-year follow-up, 62% reached their best result within six months. The authors advised moving to another treatment if six months of stretching hadn’t worked.^[4]

What if stretching hasn’t worked?

Surgery is an option once good care has failed for six months or more.^[5] Tenex and TenJet remove damaged tissue through a very small incision, under ultrasound and local anesthetic. In a Mayo Clinic series of 58 ultrasound-guided procedures of this type, average pain fell from 6.8 to 0.7 out of 10 after about 6.6 years, and 91% were rated successful. Its abstract doesn’t name the device, and it had no comparison group.^[10]

Read our guide to plantar fasciitis treatment, our article on Tenex and TenJet and our heel pain page. For an operation, see our Center for Lower Extremity Surgery (external site).

The limits. Newer studies are more cautious. In a 2023 trial of 180 adults, heel raises added nothing clinically meaningful to advice and a heel cup at 12 weeks.^[11] A 2026 review of 12 trials found stretching was not clearly better than other non-surgical care, with very low certainty.^[12]

Common questions

Do I need physical therapy, or can I do this at home?

In a randomized trial of 57 people, home plantar fascia stretching and formal physical therapy both helped, with no notable difference at any point up to a year.^[13]

Is stretching or strengthening better for plantar fasciitis?

Neither has clearly won. Heel raises led at three months in one trial, then the gap closed.^[3] In another, the two matched.^[2]

Should I roll my foot on a ball or frozen bottle?

It’s optional. In a 2026 study of 30 people, adding frozen tennis ball exercises to stretching helped more than stretching alone.^[14] That’s one small study, so rolling isn’t in this program.

When to see a Foot and Ankle Surgeon or podiatrist