Pronation of the foot

Composed of three cardinal plane components: subtalar eversion, ankle dorsiflexion, and forefoot abduction,[1][2] these three distinct motions of the foot occur simultaneously during the pronation phase.Hintermann states, "Compensatory overpronation may occur for anatomical reasons, such as a tibia vara of 10 degrees or more, forefoot varus, leg length discrepancy, ligamentous laxity, or because of muscular weakness or tightness in the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles.After conducting a study at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Maggie Boozer suggests that people with higher arches tend to pronate to a greater degree.[9] To complicate matters, one study done by Hylton Menz at the University of Western Sydney-Macarthur suggests that the methods for measuring arch height and determining whether someone is "flat-footed" or "high-arched" are unreliable.Overpronation is usually associated with many overuse injuries in running, including medial tibial stress syndrome,[13] or shin splints, and knee pain.Orthotics are the most effective treatment for symptoms that develop from biomechanics within the body such as overpronation, resulting in either great improvement or complete healing of the injury in about half the cases.A studies investigations show that this is connected to a large torsional movement between forefoot and rearfoot which can be influenced by the shoe sole construction, with the heel pitch placing the foot into a slightly plantar flexed position, which can result in increased pronation during the pre-swing phase.According to researchers at the Biomechanics Laboratory of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, "The least amount of pronation takes place when running barefoot.