HUMAN MOVEMENT
BIOMECHANICS
AND GAIT
WELCOME
The Gait Guys bring what has long been needed to the medical, manual therapy, athletic coaching, and personal training professions, as well as the shoe industry: enough knowledge and experience to clarify the truths and dispel the myths that exist regarding gait, biomechanics and human movement. There is so much more to this site than just these topics. Welcome to our passion and enjoy the journey with us.
The 2011 Running Event, Austin Texas. The Gait Guys launch their new program.
AUSTIN, Texas - It's been called the four most important days in the running business. For four days, the Austin Convention Center and the Hilton Austin will host well over one thousand running specialty vendors and business leaders to The Running Event(R) (www.therunningevent.com). It's the first opportunity for retailers to see the latest footwear, apparel and accessories for fall 2012.
The conference portion of The Running Event on Dec. 7 and 8 focuses on retailer education, sales training and business growth, featuring speakers such as Gene Marks, columnist for Businessweek, Forbes and The New York Times; a panel discussion with representatives from Fleet Feet, Naperville Running and Salt Lake Running Co.; and Dr. Shawn Allen and Dr. Ivo Waerlop, founders of The Gait Guys.
The Expo runs from Dec. 8 to 10, and with over 200 exhibitors is the largest in the show's six-year history.
The Gait Guys and Shoe Fit. Coming to your neighbourhood store soon !
Starting at its conference in December, the IRRA will join biomechanical experts Drs. Shawn Allen and Ivo Warlop (known as The Gait Guys) to educate sales associates and shop owners in a three-level certification process. They'll teach them about anatomy, foot types and biomechanics, and how they relate to shoe sizing and fit, with the goal of creating an industry standard and helping runners avoid injury.
What it means for you: Over time, every running store employee will be more educated about the foot and biomechanics. When you're away from home and need shoes, you'll be able to find a local IRRA-certified store you can trust.
-Jene Shaw, Editor, Triathlete Magazine
Begin looking for certifications in early 2012. Contact thegaitguys@gmail.com for more information. Look out for more from The Gait Guys in upcoming issues of Triathlete.
Thanks to the great editor at Triathlete magazine……. Jene Shaw
The Gait Guys speak. Jan 14th, 2012
49th Annual Track and Field Clinic
January 14th, 2012
ITCCCA: The Illinois Track and Cross Country Coaches Association have asked Dr. Shawn Allen and Coach Chris Korfist to present their newest training techniques and philosophies at this years event. Video cases, research materials and insights into the "how and why" of what they do and what has made them an unstoppable team in speed training. If you are an Illinois coach, we hope to see you there. If you thought their work last year was good, wait til you see what they have in store this year !
Register for the 49th January Clinic
Saturday January 14th, 2012
Oak Park-River Forest High School
We were recently asked by Kara Thom to write a brief description of the perfect running shoe for the blog "Innovation for Endurance". Here is an excerpt of what we offered them when that asked us "What is the perfect running shoe ?"
Shawn Allen and Ivo Waerlop, The Gait Guys:
"The perfect shoe is one that blends seamlessly with your unique biomechanics without creating a conflict between the foot and shoe. It should complement your strengths yet be as comfortable as a bedroom slipper. The shoe should not attempt to alter the natural playing field, meaning, that the heel and forefoot shoe be relatively on the same plane. The closer the forefoot and heel are to the same plane of function, the fewer the compensations from your foot's natural biomechanics. The perfect shoe should have some cushion, but not too much. Studies show excessive EVA foam in a shoe can increase impact forces due to biomechanical changes. The perfect shoe should not attempt to control the foot, for that will weaken the foot's intrinsic strength. Thus, part of finding "the perfect shoe" entails realizing your foot's deficits and limitations. Shoe fit is a science and an art. Because no two feet are the same, there is no perfect shoe for all foot types. There are multiple foot types all based off of 4 primary parameters: rear foot varus, rear foot valgus, forefoot varus and forefoot valgus. Throw in some anomalies, old injuries, variations in length and height of the arches, some variations in joint flexibility and functional control as well as some weaknesses and you can see why the algorithm for the perfect shoe spreads pretty wide pretty fast."