A study by a university laboratory revealed that there are cases of hip joint failure in so-called "thick sole shoes" that have high repulsive force and are one of the factors that make good records in marathons and relay road races. I did.

In response to this situation, the track and field clubs of universities are moving to review training.

More than 4 years since the appearance of "Platform shoes"

"Platform shoes" are shoes that are characterized by high repulsive force such as embedded carbon fiber plates.



Since Nike went on sale in 2017, development competition has intensified, including domestic manufacturers, and it has been used by many top players in Japan and overseas and has set a good record one after another.

The laboratory of Professor Shun Torii of Waseda University School of Sport Sciences conducted a questionnaire survey of long-distance athletes from high school to business teams from May to October last year.



As a result, out of 408 male athletes who have used platform shoes, 21 cases, actually 2.3 times, were the answers that "the hip joint broke down while using shoes" compared to when they did not use shoes. It turned out that it had increased to.

In this year's Hakone Ekiden, while some teams were not able to prepare their strength due to stress fractures in the part called "sacrum" near the hip joint, strength training suitable for thick-soled shoes was introduced from last spring. Aoyama Gakuin University, which had been there, won the overall championship at the new record time of the tournament.



About four years after the appearance of "platform shoes," which have high resilience and are one of the factors that set a good record, the way of training is about to change drastically.

What are the factors that set a good record?

What are the factors that make "platform shoes" a good record?



One is the correction of foam with high repulsive force.


Athletes such as Kenya and Ethiopia, who are strong on long distances on land, have a slightly forward leaning body, and their legs kicking back are strong enough to hit their hips.



These kicking movements are supplemented by the repulsive force of platform shoes, and it is believed that the overall time has shortened at a stretch as the form has become closer to players such as Kenya and Ethiopia.

Another factor that set a good record is the ability to use the repulsive force of platform shoes for more demanding training.



By being able to practice at a faster pace than the previous settings, it seems that it also had the effect of removing the psychological barrier to the players' time.



On the other hand, research in a university laboratory has revealed that the use of platform shoes in the last few years seems to have led to a failure in a specific part.

Shun Torii, a professor and doctor at Waseda University's Faculty of Sport Sciences, who is familiar with sports medicine, feels that the number of failures around the hip joint has increased compared to 10 or 20 years ago while examining athletes. I did.



Last year, a questionnaire conducted in the laboratory provided data to support the impression.

In conventional shoes, the impact of landing was absorbed by the part below the knee, and the symptom of "Shin Splint", which causes inflammation around the shin, has plagued runners.



However, as the speed of running on platform shoes increased, the impact on the foot increased, so Professor Torii thinks that the impact is coming to the vicinity of the hip joint in the upper part of the foot.

Professor Torii


"Because you can run even when you are tired due to the effect of shoes, you can run even when the foam is disturbed and the impact is easily transmitted to the hip joint. As a result, you may get injured. In addition, junior high school students and high school students who do not have enough muscles

can



use it. "Young athletes have less muscle mass and bone density. It is better to use it when the muscles are not tired." Should be considered. "

"Thick bottom" training promoted by Aoyama Gakuin University

Aoyama Gakuin University, which won the overall championship in this year's Hakone Ekiden at a new record time, has been incorporating training for platform shoes since last spring, saying that "the part that breaks down has changed".


That is "outer training" that trains the outer muscles.

Aoyama Gakuin University, which won the overall victory in the Hakone Ekiden for the first time in 2015, became a strong school by a method called "Aotore", which is a training to train the inner muscles of the inner body and stabilize the trunk.



Unlike the "blue training" that you do while applying a load with your own weight, the newly introduced "outer training" mainly trains the muscles of the lower body using equipment such as barbells.



Shuichi Nakano, a physical trainer at Aoyama Gakuin University since 2014, devised a menu such as squats using barbells weighing 30 to 50 kg, which long-distance runners do not normally use.

Mr. Nakano


"Thick sole shoes land from a high waist position, so it is necessary to support them with the" quadriceps muscle "on the front side of the thigh and the" denmus muscle "of the buttocks so that the area around the hip joint does not wobble. There was a risk

of



failure, but Susumu Hara, director of Aoyama Gakuin University, said that "mochi is a mochi shop" and took in the opinions of trainers who are more familiar with muscles.

Director Hara


"Platform shoes are'magic'shoes that can naturally correct foam. On the other hand, there is a risk of injury. Now, we are in a transitional period, such as training methods, reinforcement exercises and care. I think that the instructor's thinking must change in order to create a teaching style that suits the times. "

["Good record" created by platform shoes]

Since the platform shoes were put on the market in 2017, the time for marathons and relay road races has shortened significantly.



The Japanese record for the men's marathon was 2 hours 6 minutes 16 seconds set by Toshinari Takaoka at the 2002 Chicago Marathon, but when Yuta Shitara breaks 5 seconds for the first time in 16 years at the 2018 Tokyo Marathon. , Suguru Osako will set a time of 2 hours and 5 minutes at both the Chicago Marathon and the Tokyo Marathon that year, and will update it further.

And at the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon last year, Kengo Suzuki set a time of 2 hours 4 minutes 56 seconds, which was the first time in the 2 hours 4 minutes range, and the Japanese record was set four times in just about 4 years since the appearance of platform shoes. rice field.

According to several track and field leaders, when using platform shoes,


▼ 5000 meters is 15 seconds,


▼ 10000 meters is 30 seconds,


▼ half marathon is 1 minute,


▼ marathon is 2 minutes, and the


time is shortened. It means that you can do it.

Even in the New Year's Hakone Ekiden, all the section records from the 1st ward to the 10th ward were set by platform shoes in this race, and Yasuyuki Watanabe's flower 2nd ward time of Waseda University who was active in the 90's was 10th. The appearance of the race is changing at once, such as being out of the service area.



Regarding platform shoes, the World Athletics Federation has revised the regulations so that it cannot be used in track events, while limiting the thickness of the soles, saying that "the integrity of sports is threatened by technology".