Factors Associated With Self-Selected Step Rates Between Collegiate and High School Cross Country Runners

Introduction: Cross country is a popular high school and collegiate sport with a high rate of running-related injuries (RRI). Among high school runners, higher step rates have been associated with greater running experience and decreased body height, and lower step rates have been prospectively associated with increased risk of shin RRI. These associations have not been reported in collegiate cross country runners. The purpose of this study was to compare step rates between collegiate and high school cross country runners. Secondary objectives included determining if step rates in collegiate runners were related to experience and anthropometric variables, and whether their self-selected step rates were prospectively related to lower extremity RRI. Materials and methods: Twenty-nine NCAA Division III collegiate cross country runners (13 females, mean ± SD age 19.7 ± 1.3 years) completed a survey and ran at their self-selected speed. Step rate was assessed with Polar RCX5 wristwatches and S3+ Stride Sensors™ on the first day of the season. Runners were followed during the season for occurrence of time-loss lower extremity RRI. A cohort of 68 high school runners was used for comparison of step rates at their self-selected speeds. Results: Collegiate runners' self-selected step rates (177.1 ± 7.2 spm [steps per minute]) were higher than high school runners' (171.3 ± 8.3 spm) (p = 0.01). Collegiate runners ran at higher self-selected speeds (4.6 ± 0.5 m/s) than the high school runners (3.8 ± 0.5 m/s) (p < 0.001). A lower percentage of collegiate runners ran at ≤166 spm than high school runners. Body mass was negatively correlated with step rate in collegiate runners. During the season, 41.3% of collegiate runners experienced lower extremity RRI. Step rates for collegiate runners who did not experience RRI (178.9 ± 7.7 spm) were not significantly higher than runners who did experience RRI (174.5 ± 5.7 spm) (p = 0.10). Discussion: Higher step rates were found in collegiate than high school runners, but the difference was partially explained by higher self-selected running speeds. Thus, variations in step rate between high school and collegiate runners may be expected based on experience, speed, and body mass.