Meeting Abstract
Arm-swing during running aids to counteract the torque associated with leg oscillation. The benefits of arm-swing during running on even surfaces are well established and include energy minimization and balance. In addition, arm movements are used to maintain balance during asymmetric movements. The “roughness” of a surface likely influences both the energy required to run and the requirements to maintain balance. However, we know little about how arm-swing is modulated while running over uneven terrain. Therefore, the goal of the proposed project is to understand the role of arm-swing during running over uneven terrain. Runners were fitted with two small inertial sensors attached to the torso and hips to measure footfall and shoulder and hip rotations. Subjects were filmed while running over an approximately 25m course consisting of smooth, uneven, and smooth sections to examine differences in arm-swing. Preliminary results show that both the magnitude of shoulder rotation and the phase of shoulder rotation with respect to hip rotation is more variable when running over uneven compared to smooth terrain. This suggests that arm swing contributes to stability while running over uneven terrain.
