Should you change your foot strike pattern? Hamill & Gruber, 2017.

On this episode, Brodie summarizes a paper by Hamill & Gruber titled:  Is changing footstrike pattern beneficial to runners?

This is a hot topic for a lot of runners, coaches and health professionals alike, and while this paper may not come to a conclusive statement, it does help bring us up-to-date with the current literature. The verdict might surprise you.

Changing from a heel striker to a forefoot striker has been proposed for decades. The arguments for such a change follows several theories including:

1. Changing to a forefoot strike help running economy.
2. Changing to a forefoot strike reduces ground reaction forces.
3. Changing to a forefoot strike lowers your risk of injuries.

This paper read by Brodie systematically covers all of these theories and highlights the available evidence to see if their claims hold true. 

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