A Qualitative Analysis Of Running In The 1970's
Introduction: A Qualitative Analysis of Running
In the 1970's, thousands of people took to the road with a new trend of exercise----running. It was fairly easy; just put one foot in front of the other as fast as you can and go as far as you can. Feel the burn in your chest? The sweat trickling down your face? The throb in your knees as your foot pounds into the ground with every step? Well then, you're exercising! You're running! Since then, running has become a dominant factor in sports and fitness; a factor so prevalent that the number of musculoskeletal injuries due to running has also increased over the last quarter century. These chronic injuries are usually due to overuse, improper training techniques, or a combination of the …show more content…
The stance phase constitutes approximately 40% of the running gait cycle, depending on the velocity of the runner. Moreover, it consists of initial contact of the heel with the ground, the shifting of the body's weight, and bringing the toe off the ground; therefore, the stance phase can be divided into two subphases, absorption and propulsion, which are separated by midstance. The swing phase, approximately 60% of the gait cycle, begins with the toe leaving the ground, the lower extremity decelerating upward, and then accelerating downward. This phase is also divided into two subphases, initial swing and terminal swing, which are separated by midswing. Figure 1 below shows the breakdown of the running gait …show more content…
Table 1 depicts the joint motions during running based on visual examples such as Figure 2 (Northrip, et al, 1979).
Hall (1999) notes that muscle is the only tissue capable of developing tension; when a muscle crossing a joint develops tension, it produces a pulling force on the bone to which it is attached, thereby creating torque. It is the net torque on a joint that creates movement of the body segment. Hence, it is important to understand the significance of which muscles are utilized during an activity. Improper training and stretching techniques often lead to musculoskeletal injuries. By knowing which muscles are used during an activity, strength training and flexibility exercises can be implemented into a training program, thereby decreasing the chance of
In the 1970's, thousands of people took to the road with a new trend of exercise----running. It was fairly easy; just put one foot in front of the other as fast as you can and go as far as you can. Feel the burn in your chest? The sweat trickling down your face? The throb in your knees as your foot pounds into the ground with every step? Well then, you're exercising! You're running! Since then, running has become a dominant factor in sports and fitness; a factor so prevalent that the number of musculoskeletal injuries due to running has also increased over the last quarter century. These chronic injuries are usually due to overuse, improper training techniques, or a combination of the …show more content…
The stance phase constitutes approximately 40% of the running gait cycle, depending on the velocity of the runner. Moreover, it consists of initial contact of the heel with the ground, the shifting of the body's weight, and bringing the toe off the ground; therefore, the stance phase can be divided into two subphases, absorption and propulsion, which are separated by midstance. The swing phase, approximately 60% of the gait cycle, begins with the toe leaving the ground, the lower extremity decelerating upward, and then accelerating downward. This phase is also divided into two subphases, initial swing and terminal swing, which are separated by midswing. Figure 1 below shows the breakdown of the running gait …show more content…
Table 1 depicts the joint motions during running based on visual examples such as Figure 2 (Northrip, et al, 1979).
Hall (1999) notes that muscle is the only tissue capable of developing tension; when a muscle crossing a joint develops tension, it produces a pulling force on the bone to which it is attached, thereby creating torque. It is the net torque on a joint that creates movement of the body segment. Hence, it is important to understand the significance of which muscles are utilized during an activity. Improper training and stretching techniques often lead to musculoskeletal injuries. By knowing which muscles are used during an activity, strength training and flexibility exercises can be implemented into a training program, thereby decreasing the chance of