Barefoot Running Injuries

Barbell back squats have always been a staple exercise in every bodybuilder, powerlifter and athlete’s workout regimen. Squats not only help build size to your legs but they also have other added benefits such as improved flexibility and an increase in testosterone and growth hormone production. There are many different techniques to help improve your squat such as the width of your stance or the direction your toes are pointing. But the one technique that seems to be getting the most attention is whether squatting barefoot is more beneficial in activating more muscles in the lower limbs versus squatting wearing an athletic shoe. The following study focuses on the activation of 8 lower limb muscles during a barbell back squat while barefoot and in an athletic shoe. Researchers of this study hypothesize that the barefoot condition will produce more muscle activation in comparison to the athletic shoe condition.

The study will be a single-centered, crossover, randomized control trial which will aim to determine which foot condition, barefoot or shod, allows for best performance of the SEBT. The dependent variable is reach distance. The independent variable is the differing foot conditions, barefoot versus shod. The SEBT will produce continuous, ratio data measured in centimeters. A quantitative primary research approach will be used as quantitative measurements allow for statistical comparison between variables, which will allow the hypothesis to be accepted or rejected (Barker et al., 2016). 1:1 block randomization will be used in this study, with participant being randomly assigned to either barefoot or shod first groups of equal sizes using the crossover design. Randomization

Trimble writes that people have been runner without shoes longer than they have with shoes. He says that people have evolved for running. In the essay Trimble quotes a journal that reveals the fact that there is no evidence that would suggest running without shoes is dangerous. In fact, the opposite is true. It is manmade ground that is causing the difficulty for runners. A new shoe was made called the Springbuck, which takes that into consideration in its design

The objective for this case study is to give in detail the evaluation process of medial tibial stress syndrome, including treatment plan and progress. Medial tibial stress syndrome is a pathology common in sports that require a lot of running. It occurs when overuse and repetitive stresses are placed on the tibia. Some differential diagnosis are stress fracture, and entrapment of the superficial peroneal nerve. Treatment for this pathology are ulrasound, cold whirlpool and electric stimulation. The uniqueness of this case is how long the athlete had been experiencing pain before bringing it tot the attention

For runners, the repeated running cycle of bouncing on the back of the feet results in muscle fatigue, which may lead to higher forces being applied to the the attachment of fascia (outer covering of muscle) to bone, and finally the bone itself.

Jason Hodde, Jeff Robbins, Norm Yarger, and Karl King each personally emailed me with insightful information on running-related injuries. The listserve is such a great interactive source of information. Who better to learn from but the runners themselves? They are the ones who have to cope with the injuries. Any amount of personal experience through trial and error is better advice than book knowledge. This is the reason why so many runners advise that running-related injuries should be taken to a doctor who has running experience because he will be more inclined to look to rectify the cause of the injury instead of resorting to surgery.

New York Time’s article “A Sprained Ankle May Have Lifelong Consequences”, written by Gretchen Reynolds describes the harsh reality of ankle injuries, explaining that they could possibly affect movement for the rest of the injured person’s life. People tend to address ankle injuries as something that will heal on their own and never be a problem again, but the studies discussed in this article show different results. Ankles are very easily damaged and will heal within a few weeks without serious medical treatment, which is why I believe that people brush off ankle injuries. The first study discussed in the article, facilitated by Dr. Hubbard-Turner, talks about college-aged men and women who were tested by wearing a pedometer for a week to

Individuals who have experienced ankle sprains account for a high percentage of clinician referrals and emergency room visits annually. Specifically, lateral ankle sprains, are one of the most common injuries athletes and individuals who are recreationally active sustain. According to Hale, Fergus, Axmacher, and Kiser (2014), “researchers have estimated that approximately 25,000 ankle sprains occur each

Talks about the ways that barefoot running is not a substantiated to prevent running injuries and that it does reduce injuries in a measure rate in runners. But that barefoot running should be assessed on an athlete- specific basis to determine whether barefoot running will be beneficial. The article also goes into the controversy of whether barefoot/ minimalist running promotes healing, increase performance and decreases injury rates. The article talks about the biomechanical and kinematic aspects of barefoot running and the difference in barefoot runner as the article compare it to the shod runners. The article has a discussion section about how kinematic variables in barefoot running is different in strike patterns compare to biomechanical. The article also mention running injuries like joint and muscle overuse, preexisting injuries, improper footwear that are common running injuries. As well as patellofemoral pain syndrome, tibial stress fractures. In the article Barefoot running, Does It Prevent Injuries? talks about the most obvious of potential injuries while running barefoot like stone, glass nails and thorns, puncture injuries predispose for the runner to develop an infection and temperature extremes can cause burns or frostbites but it said that adapting to barefoot running must be done slowly because runners typically ear shoes with very thick midsole will take longer to safely adapt to barefoot running

Stress fractures account for approximately twenty percent of athletic injuries, with eighty percent of stress fractures occurring in the lower leg. Stress fractures in the lower extremity are common injuries among individuals who participate in endurance, high load-bearing activities (2). The incidence of these injuries has risen due to earlier and longer participation in sports (3). Stress fractures occur when repetitive mechanical load exceeds the biological capacity of bone, causing micro-damage (1). This rate exceeds the rate at which bone can repair itself, requiring recognition and management of risk factors (2). The initial stage of bone failure is typically called a stress reaction. If the repetitive loading continues, the stress reaction can form into a true stress fracture (3).

When it comes to extreme sports, most people picture things that can cause massive and sometimes fatal injuries. However, as a soccer player, I can tell you that not all extreme sports have to be life risking tricks and stunts. Our team and others like us, all have a lot of battle wounds each season and even though we aren’t risking life and limb on the field, we are still in jeopardy of our own brand of injuries that can make it impossible to play the sport we love.

shin splints, stress fractures and runners knee. So often we look at the “runners body” in pictures

The participants of this study were five males and five females who were healthy, recreational runners. A recreational runner was defined as someone who ran at least 16 km each week for at least 6 months (Hanson, Berg, Deka, Meendering, & Ryan, 2011, p. 402). Four experimental conditions were examined in this study: “1) barefoot on treadmill, 2) shod on treadmill, 3) barefoot overground, and 4) shod overground” (Hanson et al., 2011, p. 401). Each participant was tested in a laboratory setting two times. The first test was a VO2max test while wearing running shoes. The second time was to test the conditions using a 2x2 design; 2

Foot injuries are very common in athletics as well as in everyday life. It’s very debilitating to have a foot injury since we use our feet in all of our daily activities. Research published in "Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise” indicates that the average adult takes between 5,000 to 7,000 steps a day. Some sports require the most dedicated athletes spend multiple hours a day pounding their feet on the turf or pavement. Most injuries that occur in the foot require a person to try and stay off of it or completely immobilize it. Since this is very difficult for a person to do, a large percentage of foot injuries often have a very high chance of reoccurring. The severity of some injuries that can be deceiving as well. Often times a nagging pain is ignored and eventually becomes a much bigger problem.

Participating in basketball begins with picking which basketball shoes to wear. The purpose of a sports shoe is to improve performance or reduce the risk of injury (Fong, Hong & Li, 2007). While playing the game of basketball I’ve realized it is a sport that involves different types of shoes which help improve jumping, landing, cutting and much more. Basketball has its positives and negatives for every age group; it has good health benefits, but it also consists of moderate to high risk lower body injuries to the lower back, legs and ankles. There are different types of basketball shoes which consist of high tops, mid tops, low cuts, cushioned shoes, non-cushioned shoes, and other different combinations. The high tops basketball shoe will have a collar that goes above the ankle like a sleeve. The mid tops basketball shoe covers slightly above the ankle, but lower than high tops. The low cut basketball shoes don’t have a collar at all and they don’t cover the ankle. Shoes also vary by weight and outsole traction. Through my knowledge picking the shoe to wear is solely on your preference. Whatever shoe that you choose will have different advantages or disadvantages to them. The purpose of this literature review is to explore the variety of effects specific shoe types have on basketball athletes.