By now, Peyton Manning has played in what is likely the final Super Bowl, and game, of his career. Will the hallowed quarterback have been able to overcome the disruptive Panther defense? And will his own defense be stifling enough to keep the Panthers high-octane offense under control?

It seems a distant memory now. But Manning actually lost his starting job to backup Brock Osweiler. Manning’s body actually was starting to wear down all season long.

Hip, rib, and foot injuries greatly reduced his ability to perform. The most notable, and disruptive, of these injuries was a torn plantar fascia.

That’s the tissue on the bottom of your foot that runs from your heel to the ball of your foot. And when it tears, athletes describe the sensation as similar to “walking on broken glass.”

How do You Recover from a Torn Plantar Fascia?

Unfortunately for Manning and other athletes, the best way to get better involves rest. There’s no real timeframe for recovery. It could take just a few weeks – or several months. At the pro level, athletes come back from this injury when they can perform effectively again.

For starters, you don’t have surgery to repair this injury. That’s because, in more cases than not, surgery causes more harm than good. If you search around long and hard enough, you will find a surgeon willing to operate. But that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea. You may actually end up impairing your recovery moreso than anything else.

The general way to recover involves rest. If you’re a serious athlete and want to stay in shape, you can cross-train. Swimming works well, as it puts no stress on the plantar fascia. You can also consider a stationary bike.

However, whenever you notice pain or discomfort, that means to cut back on what you’re doing. Rushing back from this injury is difficult and likely to increase your recovery time.

You should also put your shoes on as soon as you get out of bed in the morning to minimize stress on your plantar fascia. Going barefoot or wearing slippers only increases your pain. Simple exercises like toe and calf stretches done several times per day also helps. Not only does this make your ligament more flexible, but it also strengthens the muscles that support the arch of your foot.

In general, doctors say you’re 20% recovered within 2 weeks, 80% recovered in 6-8, and fully recovered at about 12 weeks. But there’s no guarantees on that.

Unfortunately, it’s one of those injuries that takes a whole lot of time to heal. And there’s not much of a way around that.