Shopping for athletic shoes can be a very daunting task, especially with the endless options of shoes to be found in stores. However, there is a science to athletic shoes, so you can find a pair that’s best for you and decrease your chances of foot injuries with a few basics.
Before buying sports shoes, you should know what type of foot you have. Of course, there are subtle differences in everyone’s feet, but in general, there are three main types of feet, and therefore sports shoes are made for each of these types of feet.
Foot Types:
1. Neutral foot: A neutral foot has a medium arch, which allows the pressure and force of running to be evenly distributed throughout the foot. Also, a neutral foot has an adequate amount of pronation, a movement that occurs during weight bearing where the bottom of the arch moves toward the ground. Therefore, the arch becomes lower and the foot is more flexible in a pronated state. Since a neutral foot has the necessary amount of pronation, this foot is flexible enough to absorb the pressure of running and walking and adapt to changes in terrain. Also, a neutral foot has an adequate amount of supination. Supination is a movement of the foot where the arch of the foot rotates off the ground creating a higher arch and a more rigid foot. With an adequate amount of supination, a neutral foot is stiff enough to push off the ground without causing injury. The recommended shoes for a neutral foot type are stability shoes.
2. Overpronated/flexible foot: This type of foot has a very low or flat arch, which increases pressure on the inside of the foot and on the big toe when walking or running. This usually results in increased thickness of the skin on the inside of the big toe and ball of the foot. Also, this type of foot is more flexible than a neutral foot. In the pronated position, the foot is not stiff enough to push off the ground. Since an overpronated foot is a more flexible foot, motion control running shoes are recommended for this foot type.
3. Overshouldered/stiff foot: A overshouldered foot has a very high arch, which increases pressure throughout the heel, outside of the foot, and ball of the foot. Compared to an overpronated foot, an oversupinated foot is stiff and cannot absorb the forces applied to the foot than other foot types. A type of foot on supinated/stiff foot benefits more from a running shoe with cushioning.
Types of shoes:
1. Motion control shoes: This type of shoe 레플리카 is best for patients with excessive pronation or flat arches. The back of the shoe that covers the heel is known as the heel counter. The heel counter in a motion control shoe is rigid to prevent excessive pronation that occurs in a flexible foot. Additionally, the outline and shape of the bottom of the motion control shoe is straight and wide in the forefoot. This shape is also designed to improve stability, like having a wide wheelbase in a car.
To try a motion control shoe, hold the heel in your hand and squeeze the heel. The heel counter should not deform with the compression of your hand.
Another way to test movement control is to grab the front of the shoe with one hand and the back of the shoe with the second hand and rotate the shoe. The shoe must not deform with the twisting movement. The final test to determine the amount of movement in the shoe is to fold the front and back of the shoe like a book. The curve of the shoe should be at the ball of the foot where the foot lifts off the ground during activity and should not bend in the middle of the shoe.