Effects of longitudinal bending stiffness on joint range of motion and peak angle velocity during the stance phase of running

Abstract

Running has become one of the most popular sports because of its low cost and ease of joining. Longitudinal bending stiffness (LBS) is a footwear property that plays a vital role in runners’ athletic performance. A total of 16 healthy male recreational runners (running time ≥ 6 months, weekly running distance ≥ 10 km) were recruited for this study. After warming up and getting familiar with the experimental environment, the subjects wore three types of LBS running shoes (shoe 1: 2.7 Nm/rad, shoe 2: 5.0 Nm/rad, shoe 3: 8.6 Nm/rad) in random order and ran at a speed of 10km/h. The Visual3D three-dimensional motion analysis software was used to analyze the joint angles of the hip, knee, ankle, and metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joints during the running stance period, and the joint range of motion (ROM) and peak angle velocity were further obtained. This study found that ankle and knee ROM and peak angle velocity were significantly greater than S1 when wearing S2 and S3. MTP joint ROM and peak angle velocity were significantly smaller than S2 and/or S1 when wearing S3. This provides a basis for understanding how LBS affects lower limb joint ROM and peak angle velocity. It also provides suggestions for recreational runners on the choice of running shoes.