Modified track shoes and their effect on the EMG activity of calf muscles

Abstract

Although track and field spike shoes are crafted for runners, these shoes are not designed for regular walking. With such shoes, runners may eventually encounter serious chronic injuries such as plantar fasciitis, shin splints, achilles tendinitis, chondromalacia, and iliotibial band syndrome. To address this problem, a modified spike shoe was tested and compared to a regular spike shoe. The modification consists of adding a removable heel to the shoe sole in order to reduce the flexion of the foot and properly level the foot for walking. Nine healthy participants performed walking drills at 2 and 3 mph, using the original and the modified shoes. Electromyography (EMG) measurements were used to evaluate muscle activities. Participants also rated their discomfort on a 0-10 scale. Results show that the use of modified shoes resulted in a reduction of 22% and 24.25% EMG activity for the tibialis and gastrocnemius muscles, respectively. Comfort ratings increased by an average of 2.7, 2.6, 3.9, and 4.2 points at the knees, calves, ankles, and feet, respectively.

Effectiveness of Foot Biomechanical Orthoses to Relieve Patients Suffering from PlantarFasciitis: Is the Reduction of Pain Related to Change in Neural Strategy?

“…If the literature reports that foot orthoses affect frequency components of muscle activity in the lower extremity during running or walking in subjects without the disease [60, 61] or with chronic ankle instability [62], few findings were devoted to record electromyographic parameters of limb and foot in individuals with plantar fasciitis . Cheung et al described that intense muscle contraction of the plantar flexor muscles increases the risk of developing symptom of pain related to the disease [63].…”

Work boot design affects the way workers walk: A systematic review of the literature

“…Although boot shaft stiffness appears to play a role in regulating the amount of muscle activation required to stabilise a joint, the influence of changes in proprioception caused by variations in boot shaft stiffness is less clear (Müller et al, 2012;Noé et al, 2009). Research consistently shows that when the demand placed on the lower limb is increased, muscle activity increased (Blackburn et al, 2003;Greensword et al, 2012;Mika et al, 2012;Nigg et al, 2006;Romkes et al, 2006). Similarly, when the demand placed on the lower limb is reduced, perhaps as a result of increased mechanical support provided by a boot, muscle activity is likely to decrease.…”

Effects of nail softness and stiffness with distance running shoes on ground reaction forces and vertical loading rates in male elite long-distance runners with pronated feet

“…The main function of spiked shoes is to increase friction force between the shoe and the track, to improve propulsion during running [ 6 ]. There is information in the literature [ 7 ] that competitive long-distance runners (5000 or 10,000 m) wear spike running shoes approximately three hours during daily training and four days a week [ 7 ]. Compared to regular running shoes, spike shoes have less cushioning and a thinner heel to reduce the mass of the shoe [ 8 ].…”

“…However, while spike running shoes have benefits in terms of propulsion, they also produce negative side effects with regards to an increased injury risk. The traditional or single-stiffness spike running shoe has been designed for runners with neutral feet who run on the forefoot in plantar flexed position [ 7 ]. Yet, single-stiffness spike shoes appear not to be well-suited for runners with pronated feet because they cannot counteract the mechanical malalignment caused by foot excessive pronation during running.…”