Running Gait Training Improves Outcomes at United States Air Force Basic Military Training

The aim is to investigate the impact of large-group, motor learning-based running gait training on injury risk in United States Air Force (USAF) Basic Military Training (BMT).

A prospective quasi-experimental program evaluation is used.

Medical providers taught running gait form to groups of trainees in the first week of training of BMT from August 2020 to March 2021. The main outcome measures included risk ratio of reported injuries, removal from training because of injury, and separation from service because of injury.

Of BMT trainees, 2,205 underwent group, motor learning-based running gait training; this was compared with two intake groups (nA = 3,941 and nB = 2,041) who were only given introductions to sports medicine staff in a classroom setting. Reported pain complaints increased (χ2 = 27.4A and 20.83B, P < .001). Risk ratios for more severe injuries necessitating time out of training or separation from USAF were reduced, although these were statistically not significant (13%, P = .48 and 22%, P = .29, respectively). Leadership implemented gait training across BMT, and data from the following 8 weeks of intake (n = 6,223) demonstrated similar trends in increases in patient reports of pain (χ2 = 67.25, P < .001) but significantly reduced risk ratios of removal from training (32%, χ2 = 16.35, P < .001) or separation (32%, χ2 = 12.54, P < .001).

While not previously shown to mitigate injury, large-group, running gait training was associated with a significant reduction in injury severity defined by training delays and separation from service in USAF BMT.