Pronation – the inward movement of the foot upon impact with the ground – has a PR problem. For years, many of us have created a negative, dispiriting association with this word, believing it to be something that needs correction. It’s about time that we step out of the dark ages, and rekindle our relationship in a positive way with this perfectly natural and healthy movement.
Pronation plays a vital part in decelerating us safely towards the ground. Your foot would typically land on the outer edge of the shoe and then be required to pronate to allow the shoe to level out across its width. Without this movement, your foot would remain stiff and inflexible and is highly likely to unleash a whole new range of biomechanical issues, including shin splints, plantar fasciitis, or even a stress fracture. To experience what it’s like not to pronate, just try to run round the block running on the sides of your shoes – then make your own decision whether a world without pronation is a better thing.
So why is pronation seen as a dirty word? Surely, we should be embracing and celebrating this natural movement rather than treating it as something we should be mourning over. To add to the confusion, we have the question about ‘over-pronating’. What if the foot rolls past its healthy borders of pronation – is this likely to cause problems?
Truth be told, there is no certainty that over-pronation causes the many running-related injuries it has been claimed to. And there’s certainly no guarantee that investing in a new pair of motion-control shoes will work, either. Fresh-off-the-press and highly controversial new research is suggesting that pronation cannot be judged as to when it becomes ‘over pronation’. Many runners can and do run with moderate-to-excessive pronation – MR columnist and marathon man Steve Way, for example – without any cause for concern.
We’re entering new times where some health professionals and running shops have to rethink their relationship with the word pronation in order to start giving their clients more reliable, up-to-date performance advice and running shoe recommendation. My belief? Let’s start at the hips and work our way down.
