CBT Running Assessment

Running assessment results from the Chocolate Box Training Session - 12 April 2018

Session:
400m running sample taken at/or around a self selected estimated race pace for the UTA event in May. Comprised of 2 x 200m with a 10 second break with increasing pace.
Surface: Grass
Intensity: Low
Limitations: Very small sample of running which may give false readings (eg running on a camber or uneven part of the grass track. Not "real" race conditions and no hills.
Future tests: Longer samples done on the trails to simulate real conditions. Use fully loaded race pack and check the influence the extra weight has on the legs. Normal ranges are each kilogram added is equivalent to 3-5kg under foot (Ground Reaction Force).

Main findings:
All runners generally had low cadence and high contact times (All in the 270-310ms range). This was likely due to the speeds run but they are on the very upper end of the scale of normal. Our aim is to generally try and keep contact times below 250ms (pending speed). The best runners tend to have contact times below 200ms. By improving cadence and contact times, runners can apply less total load to the legs and generally become more efficient with less braking forces applied. 

Initial Peak Accelerations (IPA) varied only a little in this run and all came roughly in normal ranges. High IPA values are associated with sudden forces and our goal is to keep these down on long slow runs. There was one runner who had a significant variation in this and I would encourage another few samples in order to see if this is a problem or just evident on this run (ie running on uneven surfaces).

Ground reaction forces were all generally high in terms of absolute numbers. When looking at these forces, there is no strict rule as to what is regarded as "too high" or "optimal" as speed again has an influence. However, in terms of conversion, 1750 N (newtons) of force per stride is the equivalent of just under 180kg (178.6kg). Just by reducing this number by 10%, one can appreciate how much better the legs will feel over 22, 50 or 100kms. One runner (and I might hold some bias here as I have seen her before and we have worked on this), had an amazingly low average of 1108N (about 2 x body weight). Most other runners came in at 2.36 x - 2.45x body weight. 

Here are some of the graphs without the names attached. If you have any questions on how to improved this or how to interpret the scores, please don't hesitate to contact me for a chat. There are many more details to go through and consider and I look forward to discussing this at the next session.

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