Understanding pronation, Overpronation, under-pronation and neutral pronation:
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.
Pronation is the natural inwards rolling movement of the foot during the footstrike which occurs as weight is transferred from the heel through to the forefoot. This neutral gait is the most natural, and bio-mechanically efficient type of footstrike.
Overpronation occurs where the foot rolls inwards excessively, placing excessive wear on the medial side of the foot, destabilising it and causing it to absorb shock less efficiently. This impacts negatively on the runner’s bio mechanical alignment and efficiency, in particular impacting on the hips, knees and ankles and increasing the risk of injury.
Under pronation or supination is less common and is the insufficient inward rolling of the foot on landing, both destabilising the foot and preventing it from absorbing shock efficiently. This tends to affect runners with high arches and tight Achilles tendons, who are at increased risk of injury…
There are three pronation types:
OVERPRONATION:
Around 70% of the population overpronate, so this is by far the most common pronation type amongst runners. As the foot is planted it rolls inward excessively, transferring weight to the inner edge instead of centering it on the ball of the foot. It’s usually seen in runners with low arches or flat feet.
UNDERPRONATION:
Sometimes called supination, this is when the outer side of the foot strikes the ground at a steeper than normal angle with little or no movement inward, causing a jarring effect, and a large transmission of shock through the lower leg. It’s usually seen in runners with high arches.
NEUTRAL:
Neutral pronation occurs when the foot lands on the outer edge and then rolls inward in a controlled manner, distributing weight evenly and helping to absorb shock. On push off, there is an even distribution of pressure from the front of the foot.
