How to know if you have a gait problem and how to fix it

Correct and incorrect gait

With a correct gait, the spine is straight, the head, shoulders and pelvis are almost motionless, the arms move in time with the walk. Body weight smoothly moves from foot to foot, stride width does not exceed two foot lengths. With each step, some muscles relax, others contract, alternating. In total, more than 200 muscles are involved in walking.

If the normal walking mechanism is disturbed, the desired muscle does not turn on in time, and its antagonist does not relax. Muscle balance is impaired. As a result, muscle spasms, tension, pain appear, some muscles are shortened and other muscles are weakened. You can try to correct this imbalance with massages, chiropractor or osteopath, but the problem will return quickly. After all, after the session, you will again reproduce the same motor errors that brought you to a specialist.

Some Causes of Abnormal Gait

One of the most common types of gait disorders is the dormant gluteus maximus muscle. She has to stabilize her pelvis when she walks, but she doesn't. A whole cascade of muscle imbalances and characteristic pain occurs. The instability of the pelvis is accompanied by weakness of the rectus abdominis muscles, the large and middle gluteus muscles, shortening of the piriformis, lumbar-iliac, square psoas muscles, oblique muscles of the abdomen and rectus femoris. The function of the hip joint is disrupted, it begins to collapse and hurt, because it is on it that the load is redistributed.

The task of the gluteus maximus muscle is to push the leg forward when striding. Look at the photos of runners, they run with a straight body, without shifting the center of gravity forward, due to the strength of the gluteal muscles.

If at each step the gluteus muscle pushes the leg forward, then not only the butt will become more beautiful, but also:

the pelvis will be stable, it will not change tilt, tilt to the sides or twist;
the load will go away from the hip joints, they will cease to collapse and hurt;
the step will become freer, and the gait will be lighter and more beautiful.

Conversely, if the gluteus maximus is not doing its job, then:

the lumbar-iliac and rectus femoris are gradually shortened, the step becomes heavy;
the square muscle of the lower back is shortened or overstrained;
the extensors of the back are overstrained, since the lumbar spine is actively involved in the step;
the pelvis becomes unstable;
there are pains in the lower back, hip joints, knees.

Abnormal gait options

1. With each step, the pelvis tilts forward, there is a deflection in the lower back.

2. With each step, the pelvis twists left and right.

3. With each step, the weight is transferred to the hip joint, the pelvis is twisted.

4. Shuffling gait, feet dragging along the ground with each step.

Exercise to help correct gait

What do we do with the "sleeping" gluteal muscles? It is necessary to start working with the shortened lumbosacral muscles and muscles of the anterior surface of the thigh: make them functionally long. Stretch, in simple terms. This will align the pelvis and allow the gluteus muscle to engage in daily activities.

Better to start with a preparatory exercise. We will stretch the left iliac and rectus femoris muscles.

Stand on exactly two legs, take the right one back, the left one should remain vertical in line with the body. Place your right leg on your toes and straighten at the knee, without moving the pelvis anywhere relative to the body. Already at this moment, you can feel the tension on the front of the thigh, in front of the hip joint or slightly inside. Then at this position and it is necessary to stop for now.

Please note that the pelvis should not go behind the abducted leg. If this happens, then you just bend in the lower back and the exercise is useless. As you no longer feel the tension in your thigh, move your leg further and further.

In order for the gluteus muscle to participate in walking, the thigh must be stretched approximately the length of a wide stride. For running - a little more.

If you perform this exercise for a week or two, you will notice that the step becomes freer, longer, there is a desire to "turn on" the gluteal muscles.

Prophylaxis

Even if nothing hurts, you can also incorporate this exercise into your workout routine. It is used in one form or another in many activities. For example, in yoga this is the well-known virabhadrasana I. Pay attention to how it should be performed in order to obtain a therapeutic effect to improve gait.

To remind the body of the correct movement pattern, sometimes do this: put a stick by your hips, grab it with your hands and walk like that for 5-10 minutes. Your gait is fine if walking with a stick is as easy as walking without it.

And don't forget about another great way: walking with a book on your head.