In the National Football League’s My Cause My Cleats campaign, NFL players are able to show their passions beyond the game and represent a cause that is important to them through customized cleats. Following the game, the cleats are auctioned off to raise money for chosen organizations. 2021 marks the 6th consecutive season that this campaign has been running. According to a news release from late November 2021, Nyheim Hines, the running back for the Indianapolis Colts, chose to support the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) with his cleats. As a 2021 MDA National Spokesperson, and family member of numerous people with limb-girdle muscular dystrophy (LGMD), this cause is very close to Hines’ heart.
Nyheim Hines
On December 5, 2021, the Indianapolis Colts took on the Houston Texans, winning in an extraordinary 31-0 game. During the game, Nyheim Hines wore his MDA cleats. This is not the first time that Hines has participated in fundraising for the MDA. In addition to creating public service announcements (PSAs), Hines has joined Instagram live events and gaming communities.
The cause is especially important to him as he has three family members with LGMD: his mother, uncle, and grandmother. He explains that his efforts support the MDA, which seeks to innovate potential therapies and support muscular dystrophy-related research endeavors. According to Hines, the MDA has contributed to:
the approvals of 14 new treatments that are transforming the lives of people with neuromuscular diseases
just over the course of the last few years. His cleats were bright green to honor the Shamrocks campaign, a prior fundraising campaign for the MDA. On the cleats was also #TogetherWeFight and a QR code which, when scanned, shares Hines’ family’s story and why he is so passionate about working with the MDA.
If you’d like to learn more about Hines’ story and his connection to LGMD and the Muscular Dystrophy Association, take a look at this video.
Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy (LGMD)
Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy (LGMD) is one of the many forms of muscular dystrophy. There are also varied forms of LGMD, each characterized by different gene mutations associated with muscular repair and maintenance. Those with LGMD experience progressive weakness and muscle mass loss in the proximal muscles. Altogether, this disease most often affects the thighs, upper arms, pelvis, and shoulders. Symptoms associated with LGMD include:
- Scapular winging (shoulder blades protruding from the back)
- Abnormal gait
- Difficulty running
- A need to use arm muscles to stand from a squatting or sitting position
- Lordosis (an abnormally curved lower back)
- Scoliosis (abnormal spinal curvature)
- Postural changes
- Calf muscle hypertrophy
- Joint stiffness and restricted movement
- Cardiomyopathy