Has anyone ever told you, you overpronate when you walk or run? Perhaps you heard this from a coach or a friend or a family member. Maybe you've already suffered foot and ankle problems resulting from this condition.

Today, I'll discuss what overpronation is, what causes it, how can negatively affect your feet and body and how it's treated.

What Is Overpronation?

When we walk or run, we all pronate. The arch goes down as your hips go in. It's a natural part of moving. It's the inward rolling movement of the foot as it propels forward. It helps us to absorb shock and maintain our balance. When our feet roll in too much, that's overpronation. The arch of our flattens out more than it should, putting a lot of stress on our muscles, tendons, and ligaments in our feet and in our legs. That's why people who walk or run frequently are more prone to having foot and ankle and other physical problems like knee, hip, and even lower back pain.

What Causes Overpronation?

The most common cause of overpronation is having low arches or flat feet. When you have this foot type, you naturally roll your feet inward more than those with higher arches. 

But there are other causes too.

  • Tight Calf Muscles- when your calf muscles are too tight in the back it limits the ankle motion and forces your foot to overpronate as you try to go forward.
  • Weight Gain can increase the pressure on your feet making overpronation worse. For example, it's not uncommon for pregnant women to experience foot pain due to increased overpronation. Hormonal changes can add to the problem by causing the feet to flatten out more and elongate requiring longer shoes.
  • Other Medical Conditions such as Posterior Tibial Tendon Dysfunction or Charcot foot can also cause or make overpronation worse.
  • Wearing Improper Footwear during high-impact activities can make overpronation worse.

How To Tell If You Overpronate?

  • At the office will watch you walk, check your shoes for uneven wear.
  • We also have a gait analyzer that will show us visually how you walk and where the pressures fall.
  • how to tell if you overpronateYou can also do a simple test at home to identify your foot type. Wet your foot and step onto a piece of paper. Compare your footprint to the chart. If you have flat feet, you're likely an overpronator.
  • You can also inspect the bottom of your shoes for wear patterns. Overpronators will wear down the inside of their soles more than other people.

Foot, Ankle, and Medical Issues Caused by Overpronation

  • Plantar Fasciitis and Achilles Tendonitis-overpronation is a common cause of these conditions because they add more strain to the plantar fascia and Achilles tendon.
  • Bunions and Hammertoes - overpronation can also cause the big toe to move toward the little toe causing bunions and hammertoes to occur over time.
  • Ankle, Shin, Hip, and Lower Back Pain - overpronation doesn't just affect the feet, but these structures as well. The constant inner rotation can cause pain in all of them and stress fractures in the shins as well.

    Athletes with overpronation are at increased risk for these conditions due to repetitive motion and higher-impact activities.

Treatment of Overpronation

Getting treatment is essential to prevent overpronation from causing injury and chronic issues. Fortunately, it's not hard to treat overpronation. The goal is to prevent your feet from rolling inward as much as possible when you're active.

When you come into the office, I'll take various factors into account when coming up with a plan to treat it for your level of activity, lifestyle, and severity of the condition. This information will help me determine what type of devices you need.

  • Custom orthotics or over-the-counter arch supports may be necessary. In milder cases, over-the-counter supports can work, but moderate to severe overpronation will require custom orthotics. These devices are designed specifically for your foot, to provide optimal support and realign your foot bones as you walk.
  • Taping your feet-when you first come into the office, I'll tape your feet to reduce the pain to help me identify additional treatment options and just what kind of battle it's going to be to fight your feet. You can even tape your feet at home using a product called Quick Tape.
  • Arizona Brace - if I diagnose you with posterior tibial tendonitis, I'll provide you with an Arizona Brace to improve alignment and reduce strain on the foot and the ankle.
  • Stretching Your Calf Muscles - because tight calf muscles worsen overpronation I'll give you stretching exercises to reduce the effects of this problem. In addition to wall stretches, I'll advise you to use an Achilles splint to allow you to stretch more effectively when you're sitting and watching a TV program.
  • Strengthening Exercises can also help you build arch support naturally. Towel curls are one method to help with this.
  • Buy shoes designed for your sport that provide adequate support and motion control are critical in treating overpronation.

Will Overpronation Require Surgery?

Unfortunately, a few conditions caused by overpronation can lead to foot conditions that may require surgery such as advanced bunions, hammertoes, or posterior tibial tendonitis. We always try to treat these conditions conservatively first.

How to Prevent Overpronation

Taking steps to prevent overpronation from taking its toll on the body is key. Many of the treatments to stop overpronation are essential to preventing the conditions I spoke about earlier. If you have flat feet or overpronate, you can do several things on your own. But if you do experience pain, be sure to see a podiatrist.

  • Buy over-the-counter inserts such as Redi-thotics or Power Steps to replace the inserts that come with your shoes. These will provide greater support.
  • Tight calf muscles? If you've been told you have tight calf muscles follow the stretching protocol I discussed earlier.
  • Maintain a healthy weight to minimize stress on your feet.
  • Young children who fall frequently should be assessed - even pediatric patients can benefit from treatment for flat feet and overpronation.
  • Wear custom orthotics consistently if you have them and replace them at five years.

Overpronation doesn't have to disrupt your life. With the right treatment plan and preventive care, you can reduce discomfort, restore alignment, and get back to moving comfortably and confidently in the activities that you love to do today.

Dr. Rion Berg
Connect with me
A podiatrist in North Seattle treating families for over 40 years.