Difference in the running biomechanics between preschoolers and adults

Background: High vertical loading rate is associated with a variety of running-related musculoskeletal injuries. There is evidence supporting that non-rearfoot footstrike pattern, greater cadence, and shorter stride length may reduce the vertical loading rate. These features appear to be common among preschoolers, who seem to experience lower running injury incidence, leading to a debate whether adults should accordingly modify their running form. Objective: This study sought to compare the running biomechanics between preschoolers and adults. Methods: Ten preschoolers (4.2 ± 1.6 years) and ten adults (35.1 ± 9.5 years) were recruited and ran overground with their usual shoes at a self-selected speed. Vertical average and vertical instantaneous loading rate were calculated based on the kinetic data. Footstrike pattern and spatiotemporal parameters were collected using a motion capture system. Results: There was no difference in normalized vertical average loading rate (p = 0.48), vertical instantaneous loading rate (p = 0.48), running speed (p = 0.85), and footstrike pattern (p = 0.29) between the two groups. Preschoolers demonstrated greater cadence (p < 0.001) and shorter normalized stride length (p = 0.01). Conclusion: By comparing the kinetic and kinematic parameters between children and adults, our findings do not support the notion that adults should modify their running biomechanics according to the running characteristics in preschoolers for a lower injury risk.