The Phases of the Gait Cycle:
- Stance Phase begins when the heel of the forward limb makes contact with the ground and ends when the toe of the same limb leaves the ground.
- Heel Strike: heel of front foot touches the ground
- Mid Stance: foot is flat on the ground and the weight of the body is directly over the supporting limb.
- Toe Off: Only the big toe of the forward limb is in contact with the ground.
- Swing Phase foot is no longer in contact with the groundand free to move.
- Acceleration the swinging limb catches up to and passes the torso.
- Deceleration the forward movement of the limb is slowed down to position the foot for heel strike.
Why we observe your gait:
A ‘normal’ gait cycle reduces direct impact over weight bearing joints, such as the lower spine, hip, knee, ankle and foot. If one or more of these areas are painful or stiff, the gait cycle will change to minimise use of these areas, leading to overloading of otherwise healthy joints. When performing our biomechanincal analysis using walking and running we can asess the impacts and properly recommend a footwear and orthotic solution to meet your needs, help reduce risk or provide prevention to potential injuries and muscle fatigue.
At Fleet Feet Orlando, all of our customers receive video gait analysis which allows us to properly assess the type of shoe each person needs based on the level of staiblty or cushion for their biomechanical needs. We do not recommend specific shoe brands but instead focus on footwear control categories. There is no cost and no appointment necessary for all our fit sessions as we this all part of the professional services we offer to all our customers and 100% a part of FITLOSOPHY.
