Let’s talk about gait analysis

We walk.

Well, most of us do, every day of our lives.

(Yes, we the lucky ones who take walking for granted)

Some of us run.

So walking (& by extension, running) are kind of obvious, right?

You just put one foot in front of the other, right?

Well, yes and no, especially where running is concerned.

If you’ve ever checked the wear and tear on the soles of your shoes – running or otherwise – you might have noticed that after a while the sole is not evenly worn down.

And that is due to your gait.

How you walk, and whether you place your foot evenly.

Whether you pronate or supinate.

Yikes, do I hear you exclaim?

WHAT does that mean and how on earth do I check my gait?

“…gait analysis is a method for identifying biomechanical abnormalities in the gait cycle, or in other words, it’s a tool used to assess the way in which you walk and run. It can be beneficial in that it can identify any overactive or underactive muscles in the feet, which could lead to potential injuries and inefficiencies in the future.“

Pronation refers to the way in which your foot rolls inwards as it strikes the floor. It’s your body’s way of distributing impact, and a natural part of the gait cycle. Understanding your pronation type is important for selecting the right type of running shoe and ultimately could help you to avoid injury.

Thanks forbes.com.

If you have wondered about the way you walk and/or run, or if you are feel that perhaps you aren’t walking (or running) at maximum efficiency, then the simplest way to find out is to get your gait analysed, professionally.

Quick disclaimer

If your feet actually hurt while running and/or walking, then you need to see a doctor, not a sports expert. But you’re all sensible people, and actually don’t need to be reminded of such basics, I’m sure 😛

Quick disclaimer #2.

I am a running influencer in Delhi for ASICS. And I got my gait analysis done at an ASICS store.

But I want to make one thing crystal clear.

ASICS has never once suggested that I write or post or comment on anything at all. They give me a totally free rein, so this gait analysis was done entirely by choice.

I’ll admit to being a tad worried before doing the analysis, thinking that perhaps I might have a problem that i didn’t know about, and that the shoes I have would be all wrong for me…typical overthinking, but there you go!

As it turns out, I’m pretty normal in the gait department, which was good to know, but it was a useful exercise.

For those of you reading this who live in the Delhi NCR region, I went to the store in the Mall of India in NOIDA, where there is a static analysis as well as a special treadmill.

I’d had a static analysis done once before, but never the treadmill analysis, which was very interesting and informative. I saw a close up of myself running on camera for the first time – and was surprised at the way I do run, but that’s neither here nor there. I suspect I just have an award style.

First the static.

Next up, the treadmill test.

For this, you wear special shoes, also with sensors attached, like so:

As you run, you can watch yourself on the screen:

It turns out that my current shoes – Gel Nimbus 20 & 21 – are perfect for my running style, but that didn’t stop me asking to try on the fab new Metaride.

Just because!

A big thank you to Amit & all the lovely guys in the store, who took the time to explain everything and put up with all my questions 🙂

I’m adding here a couple of links to articles which I found useful:

https://www.asics.com/ie/en-ie/running-advice/foot-mapping-and-gait-analysis-how-it-can-improve-your-running-efficiency/

https://www.runnersneed.com/expert-advice/gear-guides/gait-analysis.html