👣 This image, for me, highlights things overlooked in biomechanics and in particular the movement involved in the biomechanics we are trying to observe. This affects our understanding and choices we make in therapy. 🤔
👣 You see it looks here as though you are observing an internally rotated pair of legs as highlighted by the big red arrows. Internal tibial torsion and femoral anteversion (also internal rotation for all intents and purposes).
👣 However you should try this at home. When you turn your feet in like this, in relation to the rest of your foot which way does your talus bone rotate? And therefore which way does your tibia also rotate? And your femur?
👣 If you are scratching your head because it’s not obvious… and potentially even conflicting… you might be right. Your leg is facing inwards (deemed internal rotation), despite this it is actually rotatING externally. In this position your talus points more forward than the rest of your foot; externally rotating. Your tibia follows the talus so it too is pushing back in the direction of external rotation. The talus rotating externally means that this is representative of a supinating foot shape, meaning that turning your feet in will supinate the foot (which is why some foot ‘experts’ might ask you to simply turn your feet straight to supinate that pronated foot of yours 🙄).
👣 A femur cannot rotate internally if your foot is supinating … it’s not physically possible and so in this position your femur is externally rotating too.
👣 Your leg is IN but rotating OUT… 🤯
👣 Actual internally rotating femurs have a very different impact on the foot, causing it to pronate, turn out and that’s what we call hip external rotation!
👣 So while this looks like these leg bones are internally rotating, the direction of movement is actually one of external rotation at each segment. It begins to create a supinating leg shape, perhaps as a strategy to get out of it’s current plight. It’s the difference between appreciating movement in the closed upright chain and observing fixed positions of anatomy.
👣 One thing’s for sure simply turning these feet straight without addressing the mechanics is not ❌ going to help.
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