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The Effect of Foot Strike Pattern on Achilles Tendon Load During Running

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Abstract

In this study we compared Achilles tendon loading parameters during barefoot running among females with different foot strike patterns using open-source computer muscle modeling software to provide dynamic simulations of running. Muscle forces of the gastrocnemius and soleus were estimated from experimental data collected in a motion capture laboratory during barefoot running for 11 runners utilizing a rearfoot strike (RFS) and 8 runners utilizing a non-RFS (NRFS) pattern. Our results show that peak Achilles tendon force occurred earlier in stance phase (p = 0.007), which contributed to a 15% increase in average Achilles tendon loading rate among participants adopting a NRFS pattern (p = 0.06). Stance time, step length, and the estimated number of steps per mile were similar between groups. However, runners with a NRFS pattern experienced 11% greater Achilles tendon impulse each step (p = 0.05) and nearly significantly greater Achilles tendon impulse per mile run (p = 0.06). This difference equates to an additional 47.7 body weights for each mile run with a NRFS pattern. Runners considering a NRFS pattern may want to account for these novel stressors and adapt training programs accordingly.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to acknowledge the valuable insight of Kris O’Connor, PhD from the Department of Human Kinetics at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Dian Hong, PhD from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse regarding the methods of musculoskeletal modeling with our laboratory data.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. La Crosse Institute for Movement Science, Department of Health Professions—Physical Therapy Program, University of Wisconsin—La Crosse, La Crosse, WI, USA

    Thomas Almonroeder & Thomas W. Kernozek

  2. Department of Physical Therapy, East Carolina University, 600 Moye Blvd, Greenville, NC, 27834, USA

    John D. Willson

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  1. Thomas Almonroeder
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Correspondence to John D. Willson.

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Associate Editor Michael R. Torry oversaw the review of this article.

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Almonroeder, T., Willson, J.D. & Kernozek, T.W. The Effect of Foot Strike Pattern on Achilles Tendon Load During Running. Ann Biomed Eng 41, 1758–1766 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-013-0819-1

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