Unfortunately, the farther back you land on your heel, the more the front of your foot lifts up (increased dorsiflexion), the more the knee-joint extends and straightens out. The big problem here is the foot ends up wrestling too much with the ground (i.e. low cadence) and pushes the foot outside its neutral range of tolerance as compared with forefoot running, which naturally minimizes ground-contact time (i.e. higher cadence). Read more here about why heel strike running is the most damaging style of running and why forefoot running will always be the safer way to run!
Bretta Riches
"I believe the forefoot strike is the engine of endurance running..."
BSc Neurobiology; MSc Biomechanics candidate, ultra minimalist runner & founder of RunForefoot. I was a heel striker, always injured. I was inspired by the great Tirunesh Dibaba to try forefoot running. Now, I'm injury free. This is why I launched Run Forefoot, to advocate the health & performance benefits of forefoot running and to raise awareness on the dangers of heel striking, because the world needs to know.
BSc Neurobiology; MSc Biomechanics candidate, ultra minimalist runner & founder of RunForefoot. I was a heel striker, always injured. I was inspired by the great Tirunesh Dibaba to try forefoot running. Now, I'm injury free. This is why I launched Run Forefoot, to advocate the health & performance benefits of forefoot running and to raise awareness on the dangers of heel striking, because the world needs to know.
Latest posts by Bretta Riches (see all)
- What Running Style is Best for Your Knees? Forefoot Running NOT Heel Strike Running - 02/05/2024
- Heel Strike Running Causes Bone Pain - 29/04/2024
- Heel Strike Running Causes Slipped Discs - 25/04/2024