adizero f50 Yohji Yamamoto

Japanese fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto and adidas have created the Yohji Yamamoto adizero f50, a new limited edition soccer boot . The lightweight boot (165g) , has a lion’s face and was inspired by the spiritual lion-dog guards that defended the grounds of Japanese emperors. This weekend the boots will be worn by David Alaba (FC Bayern Munich and Austria )and Lucas Moura ( Paris Saint-Germain , Brazil). There are only 2,000 pairs of the Yohji Yamamoto adizero f50 boots available globally from Monday, October 28. and can be purchased in selected adidas retail outlets,

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Pronation is not the primary cause of injury in novice runners: New Study

There is a popular belief moderate foot pronation i.e. the inward roll of the foot during the stance phase of gait can if left uncontrolled increase the risk of injury among novice runners. Hence much focus is placed on controlling middle range motion of the subtalar joint by restricting prontal plane eversion after heel strike with both shoes and shoe inserts. A new Danish study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine has revealed after a one-year epidemiological observational prospective cohort study of 927 novice runners, pronation may not be the cause of patho mechanics. Participants had their “foot posture” i.e. the degree to which their foot pronates or supinates, measured and classified as “highly supinated” (n=53), “supinated” (n=369), “neutral” (n=1292), “pronated” (n=122) , or “highly pronated ” (n=18), with a foot posture index. The subjects were then asked to commence a running routine, using a “neutral” shoe and to use global positioning system watch to quantify the running distance in every training session. Runners were required to report on any injuries they experienced. For the purpose of the study an injury was defined as “any musculoskeletal complaint of the lower extremity or back caused by running, which restricted the amount of running for at least one week.” The 927 participants ran a total of 326,803 km over the course of the year. .A total of 252 participants sustained a running-related injury. Of these, 63 were bilateral injuries. Compared with a neutral foot posture, no significant body mass index-adjusted cumulative risk differences (RD) were found after 250 km of running for highly supinated feet (RD=11.0% (−10% to 32.1%), p=0.30), supinated feet (RD=−1.4% (−8.4% to 5.5%), p=0.69), pronated feet (RD=−8.1% (−17.6% to 1.3%), p=0.09) and highly pronated feet (RD=9.8% (−19.3% to 38.8%), p=0.51). In addition, the incidence-rate difference/1000 km of running, revealed that pronators had a significantly lower number of injuries/1000 km of running of −0.37 (−0.03 to −0.70), p=0.03 than neutrals. The results of the study show there were no significant injury-risk differences after 250 km of running between a “highly supinated” and a “neutral” foot and pronators had a much lower rate of injury per 1,000 km of running than those with neutral feet. Researchers are still left scratching their heads to know what this actually means but the results do indicate pronating feet in healthy subjects are not necessary a predictor of injury.

Reference
Nielsen R O, Buist I, Parner E T, Nohr E A, Sørensen H., Lind M, and Rasmussen S 2013 Foot pronation is not associated with increased injury risk in novice runners wearing a neutral shoe: a 1-year prospective cohort study Br J Sports Med bjsports-2013-092202Published Online First: 13 June 2013 doi:10.1136/bjsports-2013-092202.

Podolinguism: Sportshoes 'r us: New Research

New research from University of Brighton suggests the kind of shoe sportsmen choose to wear has more to do with their personality then by serendipidy. Dr Christopher Morriss-Roberts, senior lecturer in the School of Health Professions, interviewed a group of sportsmen from different disciplines and sexualities. The group included professional and semi-professional, from rugby, tennis, body building, football, squash and gymnastics. The focus group discussed their sporting lives, bodies, why they wore the sports shoes they did, and how they read messages into the shoes that other men wore. Transpired shoes chosen by the athletes had specific meaning to them and collectively sent clear message to others. Highly coloured (bright colourways) footwear for example was generally regarded as signalling the wearer was masculine, cocky and highly skilled. More modest sportsmen wore black or neutral coloured sporting footwear in order not to attract unwanted attention from aggressors. In contrast all-white sport shoes were considered ultra macho and worn by direct and aggressive types. Morriss-Roberts believes shoes communicate much about our personality and has called this podo-linguistics. Although only a small study has been published in Podiatry Now, the author intends to develop the concept with further research.

Footnote

It is well documented shoes play a major role in youth/gang cultures. To the educated eye these depict rank and status within the group. In football, Sir Alec Ferguson often critised the choice of his and other players footwear reminding younger players that bright colourways attract unwanted attention from opponents. Players who dared to wear the ligher coloured boots when they were first introduced faced open and loud derision from opposing supporters with derogatory remarks on their skill and sexuality .

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Shoes 'r' Us