What a Physical Therapist Looks for During a Running Gait Analysis
If you have ever had knee pain flare up at mile four of every run, or felt one hip tighten at a specific pace, or noticed that your right shoe wears out faster than your left, your body is sending a message. A running gait analysis is how a physical therapist translates that message into something actionable.
At Victory Performance and Physical Therapy in Mar Vista, gait analysis is not a gadget demonstration. It is a clinical assessment that connects how you move to why you hurt, and it is one of the most valuable tools we use to help runners improve both their durability and their performance.
What Is a Running Gait Analysis?
A running gait analysis is a structured observation of how you run, typically captured on video and reviewed in slow motion from multiple angles. A physical therapist looks at the mechanics of your stride from the ground up, examining how your foot contacts the surface, how your hips and pelvis move, what your trunk does, and how your arms contribute to the overall pattern.
The goal is not to turn you into a textbook runner. Running mechanics vary significantly between individuals, and not every deviation from an ideal pattern causes injury. The goal is to identify the specific movement faults that are loading your tissues beyond what they can handle, or limiting the efficiency of your stride.
At Victory, gait analysis is always integrated into a broader evaluation. We also assess hip strength, ankle mobility, single-leg stability, and training history, because the way you run is shaped by all of those factors.
What Does a Physical Therapist Actually Look For?
Here is what we examine during a running gait assessment and why each factor matters.
Cadence and Step Rate
Cadence is the number of steps you take per minute. Most recreational runners land somewhere between 150 and 165 steps per minute. Research shows that simply increasing step rate can meaningfully reduce the forces acting on the knee and hip.
A landmark study published in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise found that increasing step rate by ten percent reduced knee joint loading and hip internal rotation, two of the primary mechanical contributors to overuse injuries. (Heiderscheit et al., 2011, Med Sci Sports Exerc. View on PubMed)
Many runners with knee pain are actually running with a step rate that is too low, meaning each stride is too long and the foot lands too far in front of the body. This single adjustment, gradually applied, often produces noticeable improvement.
Foot Strike Pattern
Where your foot contacts the ground matters, but not in the all-or-nothing way it is often presented online. A heel strike is not automatically bad. A forefoot strike is not automatically good. The position of your foot relative to your center of mass is what actually determines loading.
We look at how far in front of your hips your foot is landing with each step. Overstriding, which is landing the foot well ahead of the body, creates a braking force with every stride. It increases impact and loads the knee and shin more than necessary.
Hip Drop and Pelvic Control
One of the most clinically significant things we look at is what happens at your pelvis when you are on one leg. Ideally, the pelvis stays relatively level through each stride. When the hip abductors and glutes are weak, the pelvis drops on the opposite side as the foot hits the ground.
This pelvic drop, called a Trendelenburg pattern, increases the demand on the IT band, shifts force toward the inner knee, and can contribute to a cascade of issues including runner's knee, IT band syndrome, and low back pain.
A systematic review and meta-analysis published in Gait and Posture found that runners with patellofemoral pain demonstrated significant differences in hip biomechanics compared to healthy runners, and that targeted interventions addressing those mechanics produced meaningful improvements in both pain and function. (Neal et al., 2016, Gait Posture. View on PubMed)
Trunk Position and Forward Lean
Runners sometimes neglect the role of the upper body in injury development. Excessive forward trunk lean, lateral trunk sway, or arms crossing the midline of the body all affect how force is distributed through the lower extremity.
A slightly forward trunk lean is efficient and can reduce impact. Too much forward lean compresses the lumbar spine. Too little, or a backward trunk lean, increases braking forces. We look at trunk position in relation to foot strike and hip extension.
Arm Swing
The arms balance the legs. When arm swing is asymmetrical, or when the arms cross the body's midline, the lower body compensates with rotation that increases torsional stress on the hips and knees. For runners dealing with hip flexor pain or lateral knee pain, arm swing correction is often part of the solution.
Who Should Get a Running Gait Analysis?
Gait analysis is useful for runners in several situations:
Recurring injury. If the same injury keeps returning despite treatment, the movement pattern driving it has not been addressed. Gait analysis finds it.
New pain during training. Pain that develops as you increase mileage often signals that your mechanics are not efficient enough to handle the added load. Identifying and correcting the problem early prevents it from becoming a serious injury.
Performance plateau. Inefficient mechanics waste energy. If your pace has stalled despite consistent training, improving your gait economy can help you run faster with the same effort.
Returning from injury. Before ramping mileage back up after an injury, knowing whether you have developed compensatory patterns during the recovery period can prevent re-injury.
Running your first long race. Runners training for their first half marathon or marathon are putting more cumulative load on their bodies than they have before. A gait assessment before that build begins is one of the smartest investments you can make.
Are you training around Mar Vista or Culver City and want to know how your mechanics are affecting your running? Our Doctors of Physical Therapy can assess your gait and connect what you see on video to what you feel on the road.
Call today: 424-543-4336
Can You Actually Change How You Run?
Yes. Running mechanics are trainable. Research published in Clinical Biomechanics showed that mirror gait retraining, where runners receive real-time visual feedback on their form, produced significant improvements in hip mechanics and reduced knee joint loading. Those improvements were maintained at a six-month follow-up. (Willy et al., 2012, Clin Biomech. View on PubMed)
The key is gradual implementation. Changing mechanics suddenly and dramatically can cause new problems as different tissues experience unfamiliar load. At Victory, gait cues are introduced one at a time and practiced first at low speeds, then progressively integrated into normal training.
Common cues we use include:
Running taller (reduces forward lean and improves hip extension)
Shortening stride length and increasing step rate
Landing with the foot closer to under the hips
Focusing on a soft, quiet landing
Keeping arms at ninety degrees and driving the elbows back
Gait Analysis and the Local Running Environment
The Westside running landscape puts specific demands on mechanics.
The Culver City Stairs and Baldwin Hills climbs. Uphill running strengthens the glutes and calves but also demands strong hip drive and ankle stiffness. Downhill sections require hip control and eccentric loading capacity. If your mechanics have not been assessed, downhill running on these routes can be particularly hard on the IT band and knee.
The Ballona Creek bike path. This is one of the best long-run surfaces in the area, relatively flat and consistent. It is excellent for practicing gait changes at comfortable paces before applying them to more varied terrain.
San Vicente Boulevard. The tree-lined median of San Vicente is a Los Angeles running staple. The surface is softer than asphalt, which reduces impact loading, but the slight cambered edges can cause issues for runners with hip weakness or asymmetrical mechanics over many miles.
What Nina Found Out About Her Running
Nina came to Victory Performance while training for her first half marathon and worked with CJ on improving her mobility and strength.
"I've been working with CJ to improve my mobility and strength while training for my first half marathon, and he's been amazing. Super knowledgeable, encouraging, and genuinely invested in my progress. I've gained so much confidence thanks to his support and expertise."
Understanding how she was moving helped her train with more intention and reach the starting line feeling genuinely ready.
Is a Gait Analysis Just for Injured Runners?
This is one of the most common misconceptions we hear. Many runners assume physical therapy is only for people who are already hurt.
Gait analysis is, in many ways, most valuable before an injury develops. Identifying the mechanical fault before it accumulates into tissue damage means you never have to deal with the injury at all. For runners building toward a goal race, being proactive about mechanics is one of the most effective injury prevention strategies available.
Even runners with years of experience and no current pain often find that a gait assessment reveals subtle inefficiencies they were not aware of. Those inefficiencies might not have caused pain yet, but they were slowly limiting performance.
People Also Ask About Running Gait Analysis
Do I need to be injured to get a running gait analysis?
No. Many runners benefit from gait analysis as a performance and injury prevention tool, even when they feel completely fine. It is especially useful during a training build when load is increasing.
What equipment is used during a running gait analysis?
At Victory, we use video capture from multiple angles and review the footage in slow motion. We also use Vald force plates and dynamometer technology to assess hip and knee strength. Hip and ankle mobility, as well as single-leg stability also help us build a complete picture.
How long does a gait analysis take?
As part of a full evaluation at Victory Performance and Physical Therapy, the running assessment is typically integrated into the appointment. If you come in specifically for a gait assessment, plan for about 60 minutes.
Will changing my running form cause new injuries?
It can if changes are introduced too quickly. We always apply gait modifications gradually and monitor closely. Sudden dramatic form changes shift load to unprepared tissues. The transition is managed carefully.
See What Your Running Actually Looks Like
Understanding your mechanics is one of the highest-value things you can do as a runner, whether you are chasing a PR, training for your first race, or trying to figure out why the same injury keeps coming back.
If you are a runner in Mar Vista, Culver City, or anywhere on the Westside of Los Angeles, Victory Performance and Physical Therapy can give you a clear, evidence-based picture of how you move and what to do about it.
Book your evaluation today.
📞 Call: 424-543-4336