Background: Repetitive loading with high impact forces are considered as a primary risk factor for overuse injuries. Cushion was proposed in running surface and shoe manufacturing to reduce impact forces and prevent injuries in running.
Research question: To investigate the effects of treadmill cushion and running speed on plantar force and metabolic energy consumption in treadmill running.
Methods: Plantar force data and metabolic data were collected for 20 men during running at 8 km/h and 10 km/h on the treadmill with and without cushion. Two-way ANOVAs with repeated measures were performed to determine the treadmill effects and the speed effects.
Results: Participants significantly decreased peak plantar force on the fore foot at both 10 km/h (P = 0.001) and 8 km/h (P = 0.001) and peak plantar force on the mid foot only at 10 km/h (P = 0.011) while running on the treadmill with cushion compared to the treadmill without cushion. The reduction of peak plantar force at 10 km/h was greater than that at 8 km/h while running on the treadmill with cushion. Participants significantly increased metabolic energy consumption while running on the treadmill with cushion compared to the treadmill without cushion (P = 0.007).
Significance: Running on the treadmill with cushion significantly decreased plantar force on the fore foot and mid foot, and increased metabolic energy consumption. Running on the treadmill with cushion may be a useful method in the prevention of fore foot injuries and increasing exercise effects.
Keywords: Biomechanics; Oxygen consumption; Running speed; Treadmill cushion.
Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.