Abstract
Objective: Running economy (RE) is a performance variable for distance runners. It can be affected by parameters such as equipment, running technique and surface. It has been shown that substantial mechanical energy will return by shoe integrated and that energy could be stored in the Muscle Tendon Units (MTU). The purpose was to investigate the influence of three difference heel positions induced by insoles on lower limb muscular activity and VO2 and RE (performance variable) changes during steady state running. It was hypothesized that with decreasing heel spring a linear increase in RE would be observed.
Methods: Fifteen healthy trained male runners were tested on a treadmill submaximal pace while surface electromyography (EMG) from nine muscles of leg and thigh, the VO2 by spirometry and kinematics by 2D video camera was measured. Subjects had to run in three insoles Up Heel (UH) (14 mm heel spring), Flat insole/Heel (FH) and negative spring (DH) (Down Heel) (forefoot 5 mm higher). Data were analyzed with a repeated- measures ANOVA for significant differences between shoe insoles (p<0.05).
Results: Ankle kinematics was systematically altered in response to the inserts (expected) by VO2 and running economy was not changed. It was shown that not all subject followed the implied changes so when looking at 10 responders a higher activity for Tibialis Anterior (TA) was shown.
Conclusion: It was concluded that heel spring potentially changes energy exchange in the triceps-surae while changes in muscle coordination may compensate for these improvements. RE is related to many factors such as running style and individually properties.
Methods: Fifteen healthy trained male runners were tested on a treadmill submaximal pace while surface electromyography (EMG) from nine muscles of leg and thigh, the VO2 by spirometry and kinematics by 2D video camera was measured. Subjects had to run in three insoles Up Heel (UH) (14 mm heel spring), Flat insole/Heel (FH) and negative spring (DH) (Down Heel) (forefoot 5 mm higher). Data were analyzed with a repeated- measures ANOVA for significant differences between shoe insoles (p<0.05).
Results: Ankle kinematics was systematically altered in response to the inserts (expected) by VO2 and running economy was not changed. It was shown that not all subject followed the implied changes so when looking at 10 responders a higher activity for Tibialis Anterior (TA) was shown.
Conclusion: It was concluded that heel spring potentially changes energy exchange in the triceps-surae while changes in muscle coordination may compensate for these improvements. RE is related to many factors such as running style and individually properties.
Keywords
Running Economy Heel Positions Insoles Muscular Activity Muscle Tendon Units (MTU)
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© 2022, Journal of Motor Control and Learning. This open-access article is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 (CC BY-NC 4.0) International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which allows for the copying and redistribution of the material only for noncommercial purposes, provided that the original work is properly cited.