Scientifically-backed solutions to resolve your running injuries.
Because of the high injury rates, many injured heel strike runners are looking to forefoot running because consistent with the research, forefoot running naturally engages additional mechanical outputs that do a better job at sustainably reducing net forces not just on the shins, but also the knees, hips and lower back than heel strike running.
What can a runner do to protect their knees? Research shows that heel striking and wearing a knee brace are the two biggest contributors to chronic knee pain and injury! As it turns out, heel strike running or running with a knee brace pushes many aspects of your stride mechanics out of neutral range, resulting in excessive impact on the shin and knee! This is why a knee brace is an imperfect solution because it comes with a heavy burden, whereas forefoot running is seen as a net positive, promoting reliable impact protection and more controlled stride mechanics necessary to preventing knee injury.
Another reason heel strike running is self-defeating is because there are too many negative forces at work on the foot-ankle complex which a lot of ankle injuries stem from as compared with forefoot running.
Barefoot running actually prevents shin splints, overall, by enhancing the proper forefoot strike that’s more stable and less impact-intensive. However, temporary shin splints may arise in newbie barefoot runners simply because their leg strength is unconditioned, but the shin splints will fully resolve as soon as the legs adapt to the new running condition.
One of the many ways barefoot running prevents shin splints is by making the foot better at holding more firm during stance, which prevents straining misalignments of the shin.
Copyright © 2025 | WordPress Theme by MH Themes