Gait Analysis and Shoe Selection

By Ben Riggs, a MapMyRun User

As featured in the July 2007 Newsletter

A few months back I bought a new pair of running shoes online. During my first run, around the 4 or 5-mile mark, my feet began to go numb. Not merely the bottoms of my feet, but everything, from my ankles on down. I was a little freaked out. This had never happened to me before. I cut my run short that day, figuring that my shoes merely needed to be broken in a bit more. I was back on the road a couple of days later, only to experience the same result, and when it happened a third time, the new shoes were retired for good.

I've been sidled with some nagging injuries over the past couple of years, but until recently I never considered that my shoes could be the problem. I've always assumed that since pavement is so unforgiving, injuries are simply part of the running game. I've dealt with achilles and back pain in the past, as well as a reoccurring knee injury that has sidelined me for long stints at a time.

Recently, I attended a Team In Training event with my girlfriend at Roadrunner Sports in San Diego. Roadrunner is one of many retailers that provide free gait analysis in their stores. I decided to go through their shoe fitting process to see if it would indeed make a difference. It was a quick and painless operation:

First, you answer a few simple questions: height, weight, number of miles per week, injuries, etc. After a couple of measurements of your foot are taken, you will be asked to walk across a rubber sensor on the floor, one foot at a time, taking your normal walking stride. The sensor is hooked-up to a computer, and the computer to a monitor that in this case was directly overhead. Immediately after striding across the sensor, a color image renders on the screen that illustrates the manner in which your foot hit the ground. You are able to see both the shape of each foot and their pressure displacement. I was surprised to see how high my arches were, and the technician pointed out that much of my weight falls toward the outside of my feet because of this lack of arch-support. This 'underpronation' or 'supination' was made even clearer with the slow motion video of my feet running on the treadmill that followed. It was staggering to see just how dramatically I roll my feet outward when I run. An easy way to test your pronation angle at home is to simply look at your training shoes: while 'supinators' will wear the outer edge of their shoe faster, 'overpronators' will wear the inner edge of their shoes more quickly. Typically, 'overpronators' feet are flat.

The technician gave me a list of 3 different shoes I should try. I questioned him as to why he'd listed my size as an 11, as I've always worn a 10.5. He explained that a running shoe should have a bit of wiggle room. I was surprised to know that this simple mistake was indeed the cause of my numb feet as well as my charming black toenails.

After only a handful of runs in my new shoes, I am re-energized. I can say with certainty that the extra time and money was well worth it: I haven't had any issues with knee, achilles, or back pain since I've started running in my new shoes and inserts. The extra room and extra support was exactly what my feet needed. I would absolutely recommend gait analysis and a professional fitting to anyone experiencing pain or even minor discomfort from running.