The effects of minimalist footwear on stability, change of direction, and power production: a randomized crossover trial

Prior research indicates that minimalist footwear (MFW) enhances foot strength. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of MFW on lacrosse athletes’ ability to stabilize, change direction, and produce power. It was hypothesized that that athletes wearing MFW will have an enhanced ability to stabilize, change direction, and produce power. Eighteen male athletes participated in a randomized crossover design, alternating between MFW and regular shoes (RS). The protocol included a warm-up, Biodex Balance Assessment (BA), 5-10-5 pro-agility test (PA), modified T-Test (MTT), vertical jump (VJ), and maximal velocity trap-bar deadlift (DL). A paired-sample T-test was used. No significant differences were found in the PA, MTT, or the DL. Significant differences in the BA included time MFW (43.44 ± 12.34 seconds) vs. time RS (158.28 ± 170.82 seconds) (p = 0.04, ES = 0.28), forward MFW (47.33 ± 23.89) vs. forward RS (62.94 ± 17.18) (p = 0.03, ES = 0.34), forward left MFW (56.94 ± 17.35) vs. forward left RS (45.17 ± 17.52) (p = 0.02, ES = 0.30).VJ peak force showed significant differences between MFW and RS trials for the right foot: trial 1 in MFW (1031.26 ± 145.33 N) and in RS (1009.91 ± 148.99 N) (p = 0.048), trial 2 in MFW (1026.96 ± 146.21 N) and in RS (979.99 ± 152.34 N) (p = 0.035). For the DL, the MFW group produced more force and had a quicker time to peak force from both the right and left leg during both trials compared to the RS group. In conclusion, the differences in peak force during the VJ and the DL, but no differences in the PA and MTT, indicate that the effects of MFW may be more prominent during activities that require power production and not a change of direction.