The Importance of MSK Podiatry in Sport
The Importance of MSK Podiatry in Sport: Building Stronger Foundations for Performance and Recovery
Every athlete knows that performance doesn’t just come from strength, speed, or skill it’s built on a foundation of movement efficiency, stability, and balance. Yet, for many sportspeople, the most important structure in that foundation often gets overlooked: the feet and lower limbs.
At Gait and Rehab, we specialise in Musculoskeletal (MSK) Podiatry, a branch of podiatry that focuses on how your muscles, bones, and joints interact during movement. Our role is to understand your biomechanics, identify areas of dysfunction or overload, and help restore balance and efficiency - whether you’re running 10Ks, tackling in rugby, or taking powerful shots on goal.
What Is MSK Podiatry and Why Athletes Need It
MSK Podiatry is the study and treatment of how the lower limb functions, from the hips down to the toes. It bridges the gap between biomechanics, rehabilitation, and performance.
A podiatrist trained in MSK care looks at how forces travel through the body when you move how your feet absorb impact, how your ankles stabilise, how your knees and hips compensate, and how your gait affects everything above.
Think of the feet as the foundation of a house. If the base is uneven or unstable, small cracks appear over time — in the walls, the windows, the ceiling. In the body, those “cracks” show up as pain, tightness, and injury. MSK podiatry helps correct the base before those problems escalate.
The Critical Role of the Foot in Athletic Performance
Your feet are engineering masterpieces. Each foot contains 26 bones, 33 joints, and over 100 muscles, ligaments, and tendons, working seamlessly to absorb shock, propel you forward, and adapt to different surfaces.
During sport, these structures are placed under extreme load:
Running: Each footstrike can generate forces of up to 2–3 times your body weight.
Football and rugby: Sudden acceleration, deceleration, and side-stepping require instant stability and power transfer.
Jumping sports: Landings produce compressive forces that challenge not just the foot but also the knees and hips.
When that load distribution becomes uneven — due to muscle weakness, poor footwear, tight calves, or biomechanical misalignment — injury risk rises sharply. That’s where podiatric analysis becomes invaluable.
Understanding Biomechanics and Gait Analysis for Sports
Biomechanics refers to how your body moves. Gait analysis, one of the cornerstones of MSK podiatry, allows us to break down that movement into measurable components.
At Gait and Rehab, we use Footscan and pressure mapping technology to track how your feet interact with the ground during every step. It measures things like:
Pressure distribution (which areas take the most load)
Timing (how long each part of the foot stays in contact)
Symmetry (differences between left and right)
Force curves (how efficiently you push off)
By understanding these factors, we can identify inefficiencies and compensations that often underlie common sports injuries.
Common Sports Injuries Treated with MSK Podiatry
1. Rugby
Rugby demands agility, stability, and immense power — often under unpredictable conditions. Common injuries we see include:
Ankle sprains from sudden changes in direction or uneven ground.
Turf toe, a strain of the big toe joint caused by excessive hyperextension.
Metatarsal fractures or stress injuries from repetitive impact.
Achilles tendinopathy, often due to powerful push-offs and limited ankle mobility.
2. Football
Footballers face repetitive twisting, sprinting, and striking motions, a perfect recipe for overload. Frequent problems include:
Plantar fasciitis, the classic heel pain caused by microtears in the plantar fascia.
Shin splints, often linked to overpronation or calf tightness.
Nail trauma or ingrowing nails, due to tight boots and repeated impact.
Patellofemoral pain (knee discomfort), often secondary to poor foot alignment.
3. Running
Runners face a unique challenge: repetition. Small inefficiencies magnify over thousands of steps, leading to:
Stress fractures, especially in the metatarsals and tibia.
IT band and knee pain, related to poor hip control or pronation.
Achilles tendinopathy and calf strain, often from tight posterior chains.
Metatarsalgia, or forefoot pain from overload under the ball of the foot.
Across all these sports, the underlying cause is often biomechanical imbalance, one muscle overworking while another underperforms, or one joint taking more load than it should.
How MSK Podiatry Helps Athletes Recover and Perform Better
At Gait and Rehab, we take a comprehensive, evidence-based approach to assessment and treatment. Our process typically includes:
1. Detailed History and Assessment
We start by understanding your sporting background, training load, injury history, and goals. Whether you’re aiming to return to play, manage chronic pain, or improve performance, this forms the foundation of your plan.
2. Advanced Gait Analysis
Using our Footscanner technology, we capture real-time data as you walk or run. This allows us to visualise load patterns and identify asymmetries invisible to the naked eye. We can often detect subtle issues — like delayed pronation or restricted toe-off, that cause recurring pain or reduced performance.
3. Musculoskeletal Screening
We assess flexibility, strength, joint range, and control from the hips down. A weak glute or tight calf can dramatically alter how the foot functions. Identifying these relationships allows us to target the true source of dysfunction.
4. Individualised Treatment Plan
Based on your findings, we may recommend:
Custom 3D-printed orthotics to optimise foot mechanics and redistribute load.
Targeted rehabilitation programmes to strengthen key muscle groups and restore balance.
Shockwave Therapy to stimulate tissue repair and break chronic pain cycles.
Laser Therapy to reduce inflammation and enhance recovery.
Footwear advice, helping you choose boots or trainers that complement your biomechanics rather than fight against them.
5. Prevention and Performance Optimisation
Our goal isn’t just recovery, it’s prevention and performance. We help you build resilience by addressing the small details: how you warm up, how you load your training, and how your footwear interacts with your natural movement pattern.
Supporting Local Rugby and Football Clubs in Knowle
We are proud to support local rugby and football clubs throughout Knowle, Dorridge, Solihull, Balsall Common and the wider West Midlands. Many players come to us not just when they’re injured, but proactively — for screening, orthotic fittings, and ongoing support during the season.
Our clinic also welcomes runners, triathletes, and recreational gym-goers who simply want to move without pain. MSK Podiatry isn’t just for professionals, it’s for anyone who values staying active and preventing setbacks.
Why MSK Podiatry Matters for Every Athlete
Foot pain or discomfort is rarely just a “foot problem.” The foot is the body’s foundation — and when that foundation isn’t stable, every structure above compensates. Over time, that compensation leads to fatigue, altered performance, and chronic injury.
By addressing biomechanics early, MSK podiatry can:
Reduce injury recurrence
Enhance athletic performance
Improve efficiency and endurance
Prevent long-term degenerative changes in the joints
Support overall body alignment and balance
In essence, MSK podiatry keeps athletes on their feet — literally and figuratively.
The Gait and Rehab Approach to Sports Podiatry
At Gait and Rehab, we blend clinical precision with a genuine passion for helping people move better. Every assessment is personal and detailed — no generic templates or one-size-fits-all orthotics.
We take the time to explain what’s happening, why it’s happening, and how you can take control of your recovery. It’s about partnership — between patient, podiatrist, and the wider healthcare or coaching team.
Our clinic features:
3D-printed custom orthotics
Individualised rehabilitation via Physitrack
Collaboration with physiotherapists, trainers, and local clubs
Whether you’re returning from injury, managing a chronic issue, or chasing a new personal best, our aim is the same, to keep you active, confident, and pain-free.
Ready to Strengthen Your Foundation?
Your performance begins from the ground up. Don’t wait until pain stops you doing what you love.
Book your comprehensive MSK Podiatry Assessment at Gait and Rehab in Knowle today. Call us on 01564 314614 or book online here.
