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Handbook of Human Motion pp 1–16Cite as

Running Shoes: Injury Protection and Performance Enhancement

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Abstract

In addition to being possibly the most frequently performed sport in the world, running is associated with a high incidence of overuse injuries. Running shoes can modify the load imposed on the runner’s body by changing the interface between the biological system and the running surface. The key shoe design features that can affect biomechanical loading are the compression and bending stiffness of the midsole and the medial support elements. These features can also affect the energy consumption of the runner, which is key to running performance. In general, no footwear design feature is able to reduce the load in the entire leg. Instead, what can be achieved is a shift of the loading from distal to more proximal regions of the limb, or vice versa, often by shifting the point of force application of the ground reaction force. Distance-running performance is strongly diminished by increases in the mass of footwear; however, this can be negated to some extent when the additional mass is due to the presence of cushioning materials, which can reduce impact costs in heel–toe runners. Future research in this field needs to identify more clearly the biomechanical risk factors associated with running-related injuries. Based on this, recommendations with respect to individually optimal footwear can be made with greater confidence. This will be essential for successful implementation of customized footwear within the running-shoe market.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Biomechanics and Orthopedics, German Sport University, Cologne, Germany

    Steffen Willwacher

  2. Institute of Functional Diagnostics, Cologne, Germany

    Steffen Willwacher

Authors
  1. Steffen Willwacher
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Steffen Willwacher .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Motion & More, Barcelona, Spain

    Bertram Müller

  2. Klinik für Orthopädie und Unfallchirurgi, Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany

    Sebastian I. Wolf

  3. Institut for Biomechanics und Orthopedic, German Sport University Cologne, Cologne, Germany

    Gert-Peter Brueggemann

  4. Houston, Texas, USA

    Zhigang Deng

  5. ACRISP, FedUniversity, Cremorne, New South Wales, Australia

    Andrew McIntosh

  6. Wilmington, Delaware, USA

    Freeman Miller

  7. Research, C-Motion, Inc., Germantown, Maryland, USA

    William Scott Selbie

Section Editor information

  1. Institute of Biomechanics and Orthopaedics, German Sport University Cologne, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, 50933, Köln, Germany

    Gert-Peter Brüggemann

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Willwacher, S. (2017). Running Shoes: Injury Protection and Performance Enhancement. In: Müller, B., et al. Handbook of Human Motion. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-30808-1_121-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-30808-1_121-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-30808-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-30808-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference EngineeringReference Module Computer Science and Engineering

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