Influence of Prolonged Running and Training on Tibial Acceleration and Movement Quality in Novice Runners.

CONTEXT Changes in lower limb loading and movement quality after prolonged running and training periods might influence injury risks in runners. OBJECTIVES To assess (1) the effects of a single prolonged run and a 3-week running training program on peak tibial acceleration (PTA) during running and Functional Movement Screen (FMS) criterion tests, and (2) the relationship between running volume during the 3-week training program and changes in PTA and FMS scores after training. DESIGN Case series. SETTING Research laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS Ten novice runners (age = 27 ± 7 years) with 15 ± 14 months of running experience, who ran on average 19.6 ± 4.8 km per week at a preferred pace of 7:05 ± 1:30 minutes per km. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S) Participants completed a 30-minute submaximal prolonged treadmill run and 3-week training program with 25% increases in weekly running volume. Peak tibial acceleration and the deep-squat and active straight-leg-raise criterion FMS test scores were assessed before and after the prolonged run at enrollment and after the training program (ie, 3 testing sessions). RESULTS No differences in PTA or FMS scores were observed among the 3 testing times. Although the changes in PTA (r = 0.57) and FMS aggregate score (r = 0.15) were not significantly correlated with training volume, training volume explained 32% of the variance in the PTA change from before to after training. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest that tibial acceleration and movement quality were not influenced by a single submaximal effort prolonged run or a 3-week training period. However, novice runners who have a greater increase in running volume might be more susceptible to training-related changes in tibial acceleration than those whose running volume is less.