Pronation in running

You may have heard the term 'pronation' mentioned at the local running club or shoe shop, usually with a grimace. But don’t be too alarmed; pronation is not necessarily a bad thing, but a required part of running comfortably and an integral part of your running gait.

Your running gait is simply the cycle between when your foot first hits the ground through to the next time the same foot hits the ground again.

This cycle is split into five stages:

• Stance: When your foot first strikes the running surface.

• Loading: When your heel touches (strikes) the running surface to the time your forefoot touches the running surface.

• Mid-stance: Your heel starts to lift, and the forefoot flexes.

• Toe off: Your foot leaves the running surface.

• Swing: When your foot leaves the ground and touches again.

Pronation when running
Pronation is a slight inward rolling of the foot, usually occurring at the heel strike or sometimes during the mid-stance phase of your running gait. The heel makes initial contact with the running surface and instantaneously, the joint between the leg and foot is unlocked. This allows the foot to turn away from the body; the forefoot lifts higher than the heel and turns the sole of the foot outwards. This action simply allows the foot to adapt to the running surface, and to a point, absorb impact. The foot is able to transfer some of the downward force that running creates to the running surface; reducing the risk of injury.

Overpronation when running
This occurs when the foot rolls too far inwards. The foot enters the loading phase in a position that allows it to make contact with the running surface earlier than normal. Then quite commonly the medial (big toe) side of the foot stays in contact with the running surface for longer than a normally pronating food would. The consequence of overpronation is that the foot can’t absorb the impact of the heel strike efficiently or adapt to the running surface in a controlled way and this is when injuries can occur.

Prolonged overpronation when running
This can lead to internal rotation of the lower leg putting extra stress on the ankle, knee, hip and pelvis, and may lead to associated injuries in these areas. The situation can be further aggravated by a delay in the foot’s ability to act as a rigid lever. This simply means losing the ability to propel the body forward at maximum efficiency. As a result, the runner may need to recruit power from other areas of the body to achieve maximum forward propulsion and thereby increasing the risk of injury to other areas of the body.

Solution to overpronation when running
Motion control or structure cushioning sports shoes are designed to reduce the total amount of pronation in the foot during the loading phase and can also reduce the speed the foot is able to pronate. Most running shoes incorporate a design that does not allow the medial (big toe) side of the shoe to compress as much as the lateral (little toe) side. This makes it much harder for the foot to pronate.

However, if a shoe doesn’t offer enough control there are other options such as custom-moulded footbeds or orthotics. These are both excellent solutions, as long as the person who’s making them is experienced and the orthotics produced are running specific. They have to be running-specific because the type of foot motions required to move you forwards are different to those required to move you sideways, so the type of solution for running and tennis, for example, may differ slightly.

Due to the fine line between normal pronation (which is integral to your running cycle) and overpronation, a running gait analysis is the best way to understand if your running style is putting you at risk of injury. This service is now available at many specialised running shops. The value of a comprehensive assessment is vital for the footwear or orthotics to be custom fitted to the foot thus limiting the factors that may lead to an injury.