Training and Injury Prevention Platform for Sports
Facebook
Luxembourg Institute of Health

RRI4 - End of recruitment

The Sports Medicine Research Laboratory (LIH) has launched a new large study on running. This study is the first to investigate the running technique and the risk of injury in a cohort of over 800 runners! This is one of the largest groups of runners observed over a period of several months. The aim of the study is to identify the influence of the damping properties of the running shoes, the body weight, as well as the running technique on the risk of injury.

The recruitment phase is completed now. More than 870 participants were included in the study. The latter will finish at the end of July 2018. The study conclusions will be available on this site by the end of the year.

Access the TIPPS Application

In collaboration with
Ministère des Sports
COSL
Centre Médical Olympique Luxembourgeois

Adaptation of running pattern to the drop of standard cushioned shoes: A randomised controlled trial with a 6-month follow-up

Malisoux L1, Gette P2, Chambon N3, Urhausen A4, Theisen D2.

1 Luxembourg Institute of Health, Sports Medicine Research Laboratory, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, Luxembourg. Electronic address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

2 Luxembourg Institute of Health, Sports Medicine Research Laboratory, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, Luxembourg.

3 Decathlon, Movement Sciences Laboratory, Villeneuve d'Asq, France.

4 Luxembourg Institute of Health, Sports Medicine Research Laboratory, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, Luxembourg; Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, Sports Clinic, Luxembourg; International University of Health, Exercise and Sports (LUNEX), Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, Luxembourg.

OBJECTIVES:

While several cross-sectional studies have investigated the acute effects of shoe drop on running biomechanics, the long-term consequences are currently unknown. This study aimed to investigate if the drop of standard cushioned shoes induces specific adaptations in running technique over a six-month period in leisure-time runners.

DESIGN:

Double-blinded randomised controlled trial.

METHODS:

The participants (n=59) received a pair of shoes with a heel-to-toe drop of 10mm (D10), 6mm (D6) or 0mm (D0) and were followed-up regarding running training over 6 months or 500km, whichever came first. Spatio-temporal variables and kinematics (foot/ground, ankle and knee joint angles) were investigated while running at preferred speed on a treadmill before and after the follow-up.

RESULTS:

The participants ran 332±178km in the study shoes between pre- and post-tests. There was no shoe version by time interaction for any of the spatio-temporal variables nor for lower limb angles at initial ground contact. A small but significant shoe drop effect was found for knee abduction at mid-stance (p=0.032), as it decreased for the D0 version (-0.3±3.1 vs. -1.3±2.6°) while it increased for the D6 (0.3±2.7 vs. 1.3±3.1°) and D10 version (-0.2±3.2 vs. 0.5±3.1°). However, none of the pairwise comparisons was significant in the post-hoc analysis.

CONCLUSIONS:

Apart from knee abduction at mid-stance, no specific adaptation in spatio-temporal variables and kinematics was found between the three shoe versions during this 6-month follow-up. Thus, shoe drop of standard cushioned shoes does not seem to influence running biomechanics in the long term.

 

Copyright © 2017 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

KEYWORDS: Biomechanics; Foot strike pattern; Longitudinal study; Running kinematics; Running shoes; Running technique

Link to Pubmed Article