Running Foot Strike Guide: Is There A ‘Proper’ Foot Strike To Aim For?
If you’ve ever had a gait analysis when you go into the running store for a new pair of shoes, you’ve probably been told what your running foot strike looks like.
Perhaps you’re a heel striker, also called a rearfoot striker, like most recreational distance runners. Or, maybe the shoe fit expert told you you’re a midfoot striker, or even a forefoot striker, which is a runner that lands on the ball of the foot.
No matter which type of foot strike pattern you were told you have, you probably wondered, “Is there a proper running foot strike pattern to aim for?” In this article, we will discuss different types of running foot strike patterns and whether there’s a proper running foot strike to aim for.
What Is A Running Foot Strike Pattern?
Running foot strike, or your running foot strike pattern refers to the how and where on your foot you first land at initial contact during the running gait cycle. Initial contact is the moment when your foot first contacts the ground after it’s been up in the air in the swing phase.
Why Is Running Foot Strike Important?
It is essential to employ the correct technique when running with your feet due to two main reasons: it significantly lowers the odds of hurting yourself, and it boosts your running efficiency. Let’s look at each of these.
Proper Running Foot Strike Reduces The Risk Of Injury
Athletes who go for jogs are aware (and their bodies can physically sense) that running is an activity that has a hefty weight to it. Studies have demonstrated that when running, the body takes in a power equivalent to approximately twice to three times your body weight with each stride.
Research indicates that if you are running at an 8-minute-per-mile pace, your body goes through around 1,400 steps each mile since it is a repeating action.
Hence, it is clear that bad running form, particularly an incorrect foot strike pattern, can raise the likelihood of injury.
When you make contact with the ground as you run, you are experiencing the highest level of impact, so you need to land and position your feet correctly. The greatest force of impact occurs at the start of the walking cycle.
Therefore, it is essential to utilize the appropriate running foot strike pattern to lower the chances of injury, since this is when your body takes in the most amount of the pressure. The use of proper running foot strike also increases the running economy.
From a physics standpoint, a proper running foot landing on your arch instead of your heel or back of the foot can help save your forward energy and make running more efficient.
Heel striking is usually associated with overstriding. Your heel should make contact with the ground first when your leg is fully extended in front of you, with your body and centre of gravity positioned well behind your foot.
A large amount of energy is either lost or taken in by the ground when it acts as a braking power, slowing down the body. Instead of landing on your heel, if you land on the middle of your foot, your steps will be shorter so that your body, or centre of balance, stays right above your foot as opposed to being far behind.
This lessens the twisting force going through the articulations, and in terms of running performance, it facilitates conserving your onward impetus. Energy is not being used as liberally when on the ground, since decelerating the body’s forward motion requires “braking,” which reduces the forward progress.
How to Learn What Your Foot Strike Looks Like
Discovering methods to identify how your feet make contact with the ground while running is essential. Having this information in your running toolkit may help you:
- Learn the best ways to improve form and efficiency
- Evaluate injury risk
- Determine recovery plans after an injury
- Pick the right footwear
To figure out which parts of your feet land first when running, as well as evaluate your form, one of the simplest things to do is take a video of yourself.
Set up your phone to take a video of you using the treadmill from the rear and side, but make sure you also record your entire body from various perspectives. It is not hard to accomplish this task in an outdoor setting or get an associate who is a running companion to give a hand.
It is important to recall to keep running as usual when being filmed. Do not change your running speed, stride, or the way your feet hit the ground right now. Maybe try to forget the filming is even happening.
It is important to bear in mind that gait assessment is something done by experts, therefore you are unlikely to catch every detail when examining your gait in the comfort of your own residence. I would not suggest utilizing the treadmill at a running store for the purpose of a shoe analysis. Even if your foot is rolling inwards, that doesn’t mean you necessarily require a stability shoe. Frequently the problem is a lack of strength in the gluteal muscles, which then causes the knee and ankle to collapse inwards.
Is Heel striking Bad?
It is not necessarily wrong to land on your heels when running. The majority of runners (more than 90%) hit the ground with their heels when running, making it a common practice among runners.
It makes sense that when you walk, you put the force of your body onto your heel and then your foot follows through. When you go for a run, you are looking to exert the greatest possible amount of energy, which is usually the outcome for most runners.
It is usually claimed that heel striking while running is not effective and could be the source of harm to several body parts that have to take on the extra strain with each stride. Every time we move, our body needs to be able to handle a load that is double our body weight.
It looks like a large task, and it certainly is, so it won’t be modified just by adjusting how we strike our feet. It could potentially alter which parts of our physique are taken in.
There does not appear to be a definitive advantage of either consistently using a forefoot striking motion or a rear foot striking motion. One must consider the potential injuries that could be caused by different switching techniques due to a shift in loading among the joints, but at the same time must take into account the overall effect on the limb’s mechanics.
Types Of Running Foot Strike Patterns
The three main strides that runners use are heel contact, mid-foot touchdown, and front-of-the-foot strike.
Heel Strike Running Pattern
Runners who heel strike have the back of the foot reaching the ground first, with the heel being the part of the foot that makes contact. The ankle bends inward, causing the weight to move forward onto the bottom of the foot.
Those who hit their heel when running will find evidence of this in the form of wear and tear on the back part of their running shoes. Heel striking is the most frequent running pattern seen among joggers and is linked to taking longer strides.
A research study looking into the way runners put their feet down as they ran a half-marathon/marathon race found that nearly 90% of the 936 recreational runners struck the ground with their heels, 3.4% with the middle of their foot, 1.8% with their forefoot and 5.9% had an uneven way of landing.
Although rearfoot strikes can cause a restraint on the runner’s speed and momentum because it acts as a balancer, there are signs that recreational runners may be able to benefit from heel striking as it could help increase running efficiency.
It appears to be contradictory that midfoot striking needs more muscular energy, but this is believed to be the truth. It is less stressful for the body to land on the midfoot since it absorbs shock better, however, it requires more invigoration of the calves, quadriceps, and muscles in the feet.
Studies and assessments in writing on the subject suggest that between 30 to 75 per cent of runners sustain an injury in a year of practice, particularly if they prefer to strike with the back of their foot.
Midfoot Strike Running Pattern
Those that run with a midfoot strike have their foot in a fairly level position when it comes into contact with the ground, making contact near the arch and the centre of the foot.
Studies have shown that midfoot striking is best for long-distance runners as it preserves their forward motion by cutting down on resistance forces. The positioning of the foot is also arranged in a way that can benefit the easing of pressure on the mediolateral arch.
Placing the weight and force of impact directly above the arch of the foot when midfoot striking allows for maximum use of the arch’s shock-absorbing qualities. The arch behaves like a spring, flattening when pressure is applied to it with the foot to cushion the force of impact.
By employing a correct foot strike when you are running and landing in the middle of your foot, you are making the most of the arch’s capacity for shock absorption and decreasing the strain that is transmitted to your other joints and bones. After coming into contact and being compressed, the arch of the foot then regains its shape, reinforcing the foot in preparation for a powerful push-off.
Forefoot Strike Running Pattern
In the forefoot strike running technique, the feet will make contact with the ground behind the toes, but on the ball of the foot. It is sometimes described as running on the toes.
Forefoot running is an effective way to sprint or run a small distance, however, it carries a higher risk of Achilles tendon harm for runners of long distances since the calves and Achilles tendons must maintain a majority of the body’s weight when hitting the ground.
Pronation and Supination
Apart from the zone at the bottom of the foot where you make contact with the ground from heel to toe, the way your feet hit the ground when running can also indicate where your foot strikes from side to side. Do you make contact with the ground with the inside of the foot (pronation) or the outside part (supination)?
If you land from a jump, so that most of your body weight is on the inner side of your foot, you are pronating. It’s typical to have a certain level of pronation with the footstrike; research done on running gaits has concluded that 15 degrees are ideal.
When your arch collapses, it acts as a form of cushioning against the shock of impact. Nevertheless, overpronation is when the turning of the foot inward is more than 15 degrees.
Having an excessive inward roll of the foot while walking or running increases the chance of sustaining an injury because it causes more strain on the bones and tendons of the ankle and foot. A supinated foot is identified by the feet making contact with the outside edges when landing.
Supination generally has ties to feet that have tall arches and are rigid. Overpronation causes too much of an impact landing on the outside portion of the foot, which makes it difficult to use the arch of the foot to absorb shock and compression. Because of this, individuals are more likely to suffer an injury. Sending more power through the foot and leg can up the likelihood of getting hurt.
Should I Change My Foot Strike?
So, you’ve discovered that you’re a heel striker. You may wonder if it’s essential to change your foot strike, but it’s possible it’s not necessary. Let’s examine the scientific data first and afterwards, delve further into the matter of excessive lengthening of one’s stride. Many people will assert that there is a single optimal method for running, however, research is showing different results.
No advantages were perceived by most runners when the transition was made from striking the back of the foot to striking the middle or front of the foot.
The authors continued to suggest that a transition in the way a foot strikes the ground could bring about other injuries that a runner may not experience ordinarily, which has also been verified in other investigations.
A survey conducted in 2014 revealed similar outcomes, but in addition, it revealed that runners who usually land on their rearfoot when jogging was undergoing a process of changing to forefoot striking.
- They had to produce 20% more work in their legs when making the change
- They had an increased risk of injury to ankles and hips
- Forefoot strikers, in specific instances, may benefit from switching to a rearfoot strike
Athletes whose footfalls differ, or who modify their way of placing their feet upon landing, may discover that disparate areas of their body experience tension. What kinds of injuries typically affect the hip and knee joints for people who run with a rearfoot striking pattern, and what types of injuries might somebody who runs with a forefoot or midfoot striking pattern be prone to?
Final Thoughts on Running Foot Strike
As you carry on with your running journey, you could potentially consider strategies to remain engaged in the activity, minimize potential injuries, and make gains going forward. Eventually, if it hasn’t happened yet, it may be necessary to analyze your technique and the way you land on your feet, and make adjustments.
A 2015 research indicated that a person’s running motions have an effect on the likelihood of getting hurt. The study came to the conclusion that there is not enough proof to demonstrate that changing the running technique is required to reduce the chance of injury.
