Sometimes, we feel the pain or discomfort when running or walking, and we are unaware of the real reason. But, we can see other runners, cyclists are happy and enjoying what they are doing. And, this is where gait analysis comes in.
Gait analysis is essential to check the factors that can produce high stress in our joints and muscles when moving. It is vital to help you analyze your movement patterns, such as walking or running.
With Gait analysis, you will understand how the structural problems on your feet can affect your health.
At Evergreen Rehab and Wellness, we have certified Kinesiologists who will perform the gait analysis and give you an in-depth analysis of your walking and running patterns and how they can affect your health.
What is Gait Analysis?
In gait analysis, the human motion is studied in detail with the help of the instruments that are observed by a health practitioner. They measure the movement of the body and the activity of the muscles. With the help of gait analysis, the individuals are tested to check their ability to walk.
It is mostly used in sports to help athletes to run or walk comfortably and it also diagnoses the issues in the body movement of the people who have faced injuries. If you are facing any issue in your musculoskeletal, nervous, and cardiorespiratory system then you should go for a gait analysis. Or if you are an athlete and facing a disorder while running then you also need a gait analyst so that you can fulfill your aspiration in the future.
Want to book an appointment at Evergreen Clinic? Call us at 604-449-5859 or 604-498-5859 to find the best solution. We will help you to enjoy a painless and healthy lifestyle.
Who can benefit from Gait Analysis?
Gait analysis for everyone, especially that each one of us has a unique or walking style. If you want to improve your performance or give yourself comfortable shoes to support your movement, gait analysis is right for you.
Performing a gait assessment is not only for runners or athletes. It can also help individuals who are suffering from the following conditions:
- Chronic knee pain
- Lower back pain
- Hip pain
- Heel pain
- Plantar fasciitis
- Shin splints (medial tibial stress syndrome)
- Recurrent ankle sprains or with chronic ankle instability
- Lower-extremity bursitis
- Pain when walking or running
Gait analysis also plays a vital for individuals who use custom orthotics.
Why Gait Analysis is Important?
It is very important to walk for average recommendations for every individual. But most people do not pay attention to it even when they know that walking is the fundamental way of moving from one place to the other. Due to this negligence, people face many disorders like they fail to get a quality life as well as they suffer from injuries. You can suffer from short or long-term disorders regarding your health if you do not pay attention to your gait.
There may be some people that continue walking with unusual patterns and they even not get any signs of the gait disorder. This may be a result of an injury that patients have an unusual way of walking, and they may get some serious issues after some time. It means that you can face issues in your musculoskeletal (pain or injury), nervous (depression or loss of personal independence), and cardiorespiratory system. This is where the importance of gait analysis comes into the picture. In this method, an individual is examined by his/her walk and running style. In this way, different results are derived like the cause of the pain or injury, etc. At the end of this section, it can be said that gait analysis is very important to diagnose, prevent or remove the different health disorders.
Benefits of Gait Analysis
Gait analysis will not only reveal abnormalities in locomotion patterns but also in body mechanics. The biomechanics must be well-documented to provide an objective picture of gait. An example includes the characteristics of stride length, knee angle, pronation or supination, transfer of weight on the front foot, center of gravity, body size, and walking speed.
Gait analysis provides valuable information on how to avoid injuries. For example, if runners know their gait cycle and other factors that affect it, they can avoid injuries. They can also strengthen their body mechanics and improve their running speed. It has shown that runners who adopt a balanced running style and include gait analysis in training are less likely to have knee pain and injury. Also, they are more efficient at maintaining their running style.
As mentioned earlier, gait assessment is not only for runners. It can be for everyone. It can help you with the following:
- Identify strength or mobility issues that cause the pain. It helps us to find out the core of your pain.
- Find out if your footwear contributes to the pain, and if it is a yes, we will help you find the right one. It can also help us determine if you need insoles or custom orthotics.
- Improve your running or walking techniques to avoid injuries.
- We will provide you with a custom treatment plan such as exercises to correct any dysfunction.
At Evergreen Rehab and Wellness, we provide you an in-depth understanding of how you move. We make sure that you will undergo a thorough assessment and functional movement screening.
Gait analysis provides answers on the root cause of your pain and how you can avoid injuries. So, don't live with discomfort and pain. Also, do not wait and risk yourself from getting an injury - it's time for gait assessment.
Contact Us
At Evergreen Rehab and Wellness, our main goal is to help you get back to the things you love doing and to live a healthy and pain-free life. We provide Kinesiology in Coquitlam, Surrey, and surrounding areas. If you have any questions about our services, feel free to get in touch!
Call our Coquitlam clinic at 604-449-5859 or our Surrey clinic at 604-498-5859. You can also email us at [email protected].