How Do You Get Rid of Heel Strike When Running

The best, most fastest way that’s on recording for reliably correcting your heel strike to a forefoot strike (see here what a proper forefoot strike looks like) is to do more running  in minimalist shoes, or even better, do a little barefoot running because the sensory input, or enhanced feel of the ground, is the only way to enable your neuromuscular system to coordinate groups of muscles and reflexes that keeps you from landing on your heels, and guides your foot to land forefoot-first.

Running barefoot (above left) or in barefoot-like running shoes, also known as minimalist shoes (above right) are the best tools for teaching you to avoid heel strike, and land with a forefoot strike. This is because our mechanics are most directly influenced by ground-feel at the feet whereby the full feel of the ground enhances our reflexive responses to encourage the involvement of softer, lighter forefoot strike over a heel strike, while making our feet stronger than ever!

The Science is Settled that Barefoot Running Leads to the Quickest Improvements in Running Form

Barefoot running was found to do a better job at making you enforce a more stable, consistent and proper forefoot strike as compared with running in thick cushioned running shoes ( Douad et al. 2012; Lieberman et al. 2010; Robbins & Hanna 1987).

  • Barefoot running delivers a constant flow of sensory input (ground-feel) which allows the brain to sustain foot strike monitoring for extended periods, whereby when you run barefoot, your instinct is always to avoid heel strike, and there’s little counter-evidence against this.

In contrast, unrelenting suppression of ground-feel with thick shoe cushioning results in frequent foot strike errors, while causing the foot to rush down too forcefully, producing a greater downward force.

Why Cushioned Running Shoes Cause Injuries
The thicker the underfoot cushioning, the harder to the foot slams into the ground in efforts to push through all the compressiable materails to reach the ground. .Thick cushioned running shoes also increases ground-contact time, causing the foot to grapple longer with the ground, which also forces the muscles and ligaments to work harder to try and stabilize the foot. At the same time, these shoes are often too narrow and inflexible, countering the natural shape and expansion of the foot, leading to an abnormally narrow and weak foot. All in all, despite all the advancements in running shoe technology, there’s nothing about these shoes that proves they provide reliable protection against harmful impacts.

If you don’t want to take the barefoot path,  correcting mechanical problems can be also simplified by spending more time running in, barefoot simulated footwear (minimalist shoes), shown below:

Best Barefoot Shoe Brands
Minimalist shoes are designed to mimic the feel of being barefoot. They do this by having a thin, completely flat sole that keeps your foot level with the ground, while allowing your feet to feel the ground to a great extent. Plus, the absence of a raised cushioned heel inches your forefoot strike in the right direction by enabling you to avoid making initial contact on the heel. Not to mention, the wide and flexible fit of a minimalist shoe provides a more natural environment that allows your foot to function, bend, flex and expand normally.

2. Forefoot Running on Hard Surfaces

Properly maintaining a forefoot strike seems to thrive on harder surfaces, such as pavement, whereas softer surfaces, such as grass may threaten your ability to land forefooted properly. Additionally, running barefoot or in barefoot like running shoes, improves the ability to notice foot strike patterns on harder surfaces.

Forefoot Running Tips

Because landing on the heel hurts on pavement, barefoot or pure minimalist shod runners develop a better ability to stay off their heel at touchdown. Other work has found that running, especially when barefoot, on pavement optimally refreshes the forefoot strike as compared with running on mats, or cushioned surfaces.

3. Ankle Plantar Flexion

Ankle plantar flexion means that the toes do not point up upon and at touchdown.

Running barefoot or in zero drop running shoes encourages ankle plantar flexion at touchdown, resulting in an accurate forefoot strike landing (Giandolini et al., 2013; Lohman et al., 2011).

Natural Running Tips
To maintain forefoot strike, passively keep the toes pointed straight, not up or down upon touchdown.

By fully relaxing your forefoot via ankle plantar flexion, augments a forefoot strike and prevents shin muscle-burnout as compared with ankle dorsiflexion.

4. Knee Flexion

It is easier to apply the forefoot strike when the knee is slightly bent (flexed) at touchdown because increased knee flexion increases cadence and reduces stride duration by preventing the swing leg from extending too far ahead of the center mass (Fleming et al. 2015).

Tips for Running on Forefoot
Adding a slight bend to your knee at initial contact will help you land on your forefoot.

A long line of evidence found that barefoot runners have greater knee flexion at touchdown, suggesting that greater knee flexion sharpens forefoot strike response time during running.

The Take Home Message

Employing these 4 strategies will shape and optimize the perfect forefoot strike landing to your advantage! And always remember that the ability to maintain forefoot strike without errors occurs best with less shoe materials.


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More From Run Forefoot:

Barefoot Running Benefits

Best Shoes for Forefoot Strike

What is Proprioception

Tips from Pose Running


References:

De Wit, B., De Clercq, D., & Aerts, P. (2000). Biomechanical analysis of stance phase during barefoot and shod running. Journal of Biomechanics, 33, 269–278.

Fleming et al. Acute response to barefoot running in habitually shod males. Hum Move Sci, 2015;42:27-37.

Lieberman, D. E., Venkadesan, M., Werbel, W. A., Daoud, A., D’Andrea, S., Davis, I., et al (2010). Foot strike patterns and collision forces in habitually barefoot versus shod runners. Nature, 463, 531–535.

Perl, D. P., Daoud, A. I., & Lieberman, D. E. (2012). Effects of footwear and strike type on running economy. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 44, 1335–1343.

Robbins, S. E., & Hanna, A. M. (1987). Running-related injury prevention through barefoot adaptations. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 19, 148–156.


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P.S. Don't forget to check out the Run Forefoot Facebook Page, it's a terrific place to ask questions about forefoot running, barefoot running and injury. I'm always happy to help!

5 Comments

  1. I don’t think the title of your article matches the content lol. Just kidding, mainly because I had some doubts after reading the article.

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