What’s All the Flap About Flip-Flops?
that seek to offer comfort features. Deep heel
cups, medial arch support and even metatarsal
support can be found in the footbeds of these
sandals.
STUDIES HAVE SHOWN
Doctoral student Justin Shroyer, under the
supervision of Dr. Wendi Weimar, Associate
professor of Biomechanics, conducted a gait
study comparing walking in flip-flops to
walking in athletic shoes at Auburn University
in Alabama. His research showed that when
wearing flip-flops people take shorter strides.
“We had people wear both flip-flops and
tennis shoes and we measured the stride length
and ankle angle using Kinematics”. Shroyer
comments that the study showed “there is an
increased ankle angle (in the sagittal plane at
dorsiflexion) due to the heel hitting the ground
with less vertical force than when the same
walkers wore athletic shoes. When wearing
flop-flops, the study participants did not bring
their toes up as much during the leg’s swing
phase, resulting in a larger ankle angle and
shorter stride length, possibly because they
tended to grip the flip-flops with their toes.”
The study found that wearing thong-style flip-
flops can result in sore feet, ankles and legs.
"Similar to other types of fashion and lifestyle footwear
that is recognized as injurious to the foot, the flip-flop
seems to be here to stay no matter what anyone says."
20
Pedorthic Footcare Association | www.pedorthics.org