The effect of running speed on joint coupling coordination and its variability in recreational runners

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of speed on coordination and its variability in running gait using vector coding analysis. Lower extremity kinematic data were collected for thirteen recreational runners while running at three different speeds in random order: preferred speed, 15% faster and 15% lower than preferred speed. A dynamical systems approach, using vector coding and circular statistics, were used to quantify coordination and its variability for selected hip-knee and knee-ankle joint couplings. The influence of running speed was calculated from the continuous data sets of the running cycle, allowing for the identification of time percentages where differences existed. Results indicate that increases in running speed produced moderate alterations in the frequency of movement patterns which were not enough to alter classification of coordination. No effects of speed on coordination variability were observed. This study has demonstrated that coordination and coordination variability is generally stable in the range of +/- 15% around of preferred speed in recreational runners.