A plantar plate ligament sprain can cause aching pain in the ball of the foot when you run. 

Plantar plate sprains are caused by excess stress applied to the ligament at the base of the toe. 

If you want to heal it and keep running, you have to decrease the stress and strain on the plantar plate, and address the root cause of the injury.

A runner with a plantar plate sprain, and tight calf muscles, had a great question: 

Does the plantar plate ligament cause tight calf muscles, or can a tight calf muscle cause a plantar plate sprain? 

Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast, we're talking about whether a plantar plate sprain causes tight calf muscles in runners, or other way around.