Shoes

Running and Walking Shoes

Typically, footwear manufacturers are designing shoes to increase artificial support and reduce the rate of injuries with thicker heels and mid-soles. This approach leads to making the foot muscles weak and dysfunctional.

Elevated heels and thick soles prevent the feet’s ability to work with the knee, the hip joint and the pelvis. Many studies indicate that shoes with artificial support cause a higher impact and contribute to the foot injuries.

In addition, when the feet are not properly functioning it will contribute to knee, hip and back problems. In fact, musculoskeletal injuries including low-back, knees and feet are at all-time high than it was 40 years ago.

The foot has four parts: the heel, the arch, the ball of foot and toes. These parts are supposed to work in a coordinated fashion with knees, hip joints and pelvis to transfer the center of body weight during the running stride.

As you improve your walking and running stride it will strengthen the foot muscles naturally and eliminate the need for artificial support.

You want to use a walking and running shoe that allows your foot to flex, extend and rotate and if the shoe nose and heel areas cannot be folded completely and the foot will not be able to function properly.

You want to start with a minimalist shoe with the least artificial support to avoid injuries. As your running and walking stride becomes more efficient and you can progress to more minimal shoe (racing flats).

Here are some shoe brands to consider:  Asics Hypersprint 6, Nike LunarSpider R6, Saucony Kilkenny, XC7 Flat and Nike Zoom Forever Waffle