I'd like to ditto what Oakleaf has said.

I used to have custom orthotics to 'correct' for flat feet which my previous podiatrist thought was the cause of my foot pain. The orthotics made it possible for me to continue with my activities (at the time, tennis and step aerobics), but they never allowed me to really heal. My flat feet were not the problem either, but that's besides the point for this post.

Fast forward a year or so and the next time I got heavily into activity, (step aerobics again and weight lifting and some running) I continued to use the orthotics. Then I started to have PF pain. I self-diagnosed and basically did a lot of stretching and limited my activity. I was able to manage it and it never got debilitating. Mornings sucked though.

Then I bought a road bike and pretty much immediately stopped doing ANY impact sports for about 5 - 6 years. When I decided to get into triathlon a couple of years ago, I ended up ditching the orthotics (they were old anyway) and worked on barefoot for the running and previous foot troubles. My new podiatrist confirmed my thoughts and suggested more of the same AND a change in my everyday footwear as well. I never actually gave any thought to the PF issues, though. Now it's three years later and I never saw even the slightest twinge of PF pain even though I ramped my running from none to half-marathon distances. I strongly believe in barefoot training to strengthen the foot as an excellent aid in over-use injury prevention.

The best part? I loved how good my feet would feel after a full day of hiking with a heavy pack while everyone else was moaning and complaining. My strong feet made me so happy!

(and yes, I'm annoyed that I'll be starting from well below zero on my right foot...but I'll get there again some day...)