When wearing her SpringBoost B-train kicks, Girlawhirl's heels are positioned slightly lower than the rest of her foot. The sneakers come with three different insoles for graduated training; they position her heels at 1, 3 and 5 degree declines. Having her heels lower actually made Girlawhirl feel as if she were standing taller and the 1-degree position is a great way to get acclimated to dorsiflexion training. As she progresses to the deeper declines, the muscle recruitment in her legs will increase, upping the intensity of her workouts and really sculpting her calves, thighs and glutes.

Training with her heel lower than the ball of her foot works Girlawhirl's leg muscles in a different way. Research has shown that not only will she get faster, Girlawhirl's muscles will also become more powerful and she'll be able to jump higher as well. And even though it hasn't been proven (yet), Girlawhirl and several other people she knows who train with SpringBoost sneakers found that shin splints were less of a problem when they ran in them.

There's another version, the SpringBoost Motion that comes with neutral and 2-degree insoles and is designed for less aggressive athletes. Girlawhirl found them both at blissworld.com.

The full line, which includes sneakers for walking, training, volleyball and more along with lots of information on DORSI Technology™ is available at springboost.com.

Tiffany Davidson is a personal trainer based in Weston, CT and the owner of Femme Fatale Fitness. Tiffany advises consulting a physician or health care professional before performing any of the exercises described on these pages or beginning any exercise program. The information herein is not intended to be diagnostic or prescriptive.

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