Running Gait Assessments
Keeping you on the road and trails, not on the sidelines.
A running gait assessment provides a detailed look at your running biomechanics, technique and movement patterns. We assess stride mechanics, cadence, strength, posture and control to identify inefficiencies, overload patterns and injury risks factors.
Our running gait assessments include:
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90minute, 1-on-1 assessment with an experienced physiotherapist
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Comprehensive running specific musculoskeletal screening
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Running gait analysis with full report provided to you
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Individualised strength program
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Education and advice to help you understand your running mechanics and achieve your goals.
Ideal for injured runners or those looking to optimise performance and prevent reoccuring niggles.
How the session runs...
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We'll start your Running Gait Assessment with a quick talk about your running history, any injuries or underlying medical factors and your current goals for running.
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If you collect your running metric data, e.g from your Garmin watch, we'll also look over and discuss these findings (e.g. cadence, heart rate, ground contact time, vertical oscillation etc).
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We'll then take you through some joint range of motion testing, muscular strength and endurance testing, functional movement patterns and then have you running outside to record your running gait.
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Then we'll come back inside and discuss all the findings, how it relates to your presenting concern (injury or performance) and provide you with a personalised program to enhance your running performance.
What the research says...
Did you know that:
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Up to 80% of runners can experience a running related injury each year!
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The soleus muscle (calf) is the primary contributor to both support and propulsion during running and can reach peak forces between 6.5-8 times your body weight when running (Dorn, T. 2012).
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Patella tendon forces during running typically reach over 4 times your body weight and faster speeds and specific jumping tasks can push this well beyond 6 times your body weight (Wilson, J. 2014 and Zhang, X. 2024).
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Downhill running (-6degree gradient) leads to a 35% increase in patellofemoral joint stress whereas, uphill running (+6degree gradient) can reduce cumulative damage by over 20% (Van Hooren, B. 2024).
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Downhill running (-6degree gradient) reduced Achilles Tendon strain by 35% whereas uphill running (+6degree gradient) increases strain by over 45% (Van Hooren, B. 2024).