THREE-DIMENSIONAL ACCELERATION DURING RUNNING IN TRAINED ATHLETES AND UNTRAINED SUBJECTS

Abstract

The present study aimed to evaluate the three-dimensional (30) accelerations during running in trained athletes compared to untrained subjects. Ten endurance-trained male athletes and 10 untrained male subjects wore a 3D accelerometer at the L3 level and ran on a 400-m track at three different speeds. The acceleration amplitude was calculated for each direction from the acceleration time series for 10 strides. Additionally, the positive and negative peak values of vertical and anterior-posterior accelerations were calculated. Analysis of covariance tests showed a significant difference between athletes and untrained subjects in the vertical acceleration amplitude. Significant interaction effects were found for upward acceleration and forward-backward acceleration ratio. These results suggest that athletes have characteristic patterns in the vertical acceleration and forward-backward acceleration ratio.