For more than 4,000 consecutive days, Alan Sotak has never missed his daily run!
In 1975, Alan Sotak started running as a young soldier in Ft. Raleigh, Kansas. He ran avidly until December 1996. On December 27, 1996, he upped the ante and started a running streak that continues to this day. For more than 4,000 consecutive days, Alan Sotak has never missed his daily run.
Alan has run approximately 13,000 miles in every kind of weather. He has braved temperatures dipping 40 below zero as well as heat indexes trumping 120; he has run all over the United States and in more than half a dozen foreign countries. In other words, nothing comes in the way of his morning run. To him, it’s as necessary as a cup of coffee is to the rest of us.
A few years ago, Alan started experiencing pain in his foot. He equates the sensation to that of pressing a thumb tack into his heel. Alan visited multiple physicians and received a variety of treatments, including injections, physical therapy and multiple sets of orthotics. Unfortunately, nothing worked. After a year of suffering, he finally decided surgery was his only hope. When he told a colleague of his plan, the friend recommended Dr. Ray Fritz of Allentown Family Foot Care.
Dr. Fritz understood Alan’s passion. He knew the runner would never miss a work out. As Alan says, “He acts as a personal guide and makes decisions based on the patient’s lifestyle.” Dr. Fritz counseled Alan on all of his options and suggested that surgery be an absolute last resort.
They began first with cortisone shots and then moved onto ultrasound wave treatments. When neither worked effectively, Dr. Fritz recommended the Anodyne Therapy System, an FDA-approved light-emitting device that speeds up the healing process. The treatment, in conjunction with custom orthotics made by Dr. Fritz, has virtually eliminated his pain. Alan feels that the Anodyne was the biggest factor in settling things down. To this day, he remains pain free.
In the words of Alan Sotak, “I just can’t speak highly enough about Dr. Fritz and his team at Allentown Family Foot Care!”
