It’s a terrific tool for developing stress fractures in the foot.
Among other such terrific things!
I think the boxing equivalent would be to tie your hands behind your back in order to improve your punching power.
Why is it any of these things?
Not forgetting long term achilles pain and calf tightness
You want the foot to preflex (dorsi flex/pre tense your big toe) before it hits the ground but you only want it to happen slightly. If you try and flex it to hard it will have no give in it (on gound contact) and your tendons etc will not be able to absorb any of the force. This force has to be absorbed by something - overloading other systems that would usually only absorb a small amount of the force (bones/tendons that usually play a minor/combined role etc suddenly have to deal with a lot more than they are designed for).
From looking at this photo i can’t tell if the device is rigid or not but if it is my next comment is how do you expect to develop tripple extension if your foot is held in a dorsi-flexed position all the time?
Dorsi flexing the foot before ground contact maybe one of many aspect of good sprinting form but you can coach these things safely without gimics that may lead to injury. Beware of marketing hype.
i have seen this product years ago.it is simply an elastic material rapped around the ankle with a lace running from the elastic to your shoe.also i have used it as a test many many years ago and personally i think its not bad.
it does not restrict you @ all.it allows full extension and the tension can be increse or decreased simply.even for drills it can be very useful.with time you can teach then slowly get out of using it.
don’t run it down unless you have seen it or tried it.i am the first to admitt that sprinting is pure natural and these gimmics are useless but in some cases such gimmics can be useful!
It’s not rigid at all - fully elastic and flexible. I have had great results with similar devices. I’v used them to create a small amount resistance so that the athlete becomes consciencly aware of the actions of their ankles during drills as well as there running stride. Realistically, the tension isn’t going to force the foot into a different position but it will provide enough resistance to remind the athlete about correct mechanics!
Replace the lace with a 2cm wide elastic band. We use it doing ankle/shin drills on grass in flats.
That´s y we love this site so much !!
I used it, caused major lowr limb tightness, I beleive due to restricted movement.