The Fallacy of Single Trials: The Need for Multiple Trials in Assessing Running Economy Responses in Advanced
Zach B Barrons1, Victor Rodrigo-Carranza2,3, Montgomery Bertschy2
1Integrative Locomotion Laboratory, Department of Kinesiology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, USA. zbarrons@umass.edu.
Abstract:
In the quest to uncover the underlying mechanisms responsible for the performance-enhancing benefits imparted by advanced footwear technology (AFT), footwear researchers are employing an individual-level approach. In doing so, they hope to unveil individual-specific responses to AFT otherwise masked by a group-level approach. Classifying an individual's response on the basis of running economy (RE) is a logical strategy given that the intended purpose of AFT is to enhance performance; however, caution should be taken when doing so. Metabolic measurement devices are far from perfect, and given the known errors associated with metabolic measurements we would like to reiterate a suggestion first made 40 years ago: when seeking to quantify the interindividual variability of improvement in RE associated with running in AFT, the best practice is to rely on a minimum of two same-day measurements of RE.
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