Why should runners sleep in boot for 5th metatarsal stress fracture?

If you get a stress fracture in the fifth metatarsal, there are a couple of reasons why you might want to sleep in a fracture walking boot. Your goal is to keep the total amount of stress applied to that stress fracture under your threshold for healing, throughout the entire 24-hour period.  Why should I sleep in a boot for a fifth metatarsal stress fracture?  Well, that is a great question and that is what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.