Difference of walking plantar loadings in experienced and novice long-distance runners

Purpose: Long-distance running has been a global popularity, and differences may be observed in runners of experience. This study was aimed to evaluate the differences in plantar loading between experienced long-distance runners and novice runners during walking. The hypotheses were that smaller load in the middle of the forefoot and the stable foot balance would be observed in experienced runners during walking. Methods: Twenty-five participants were recruited as the experienced runners group (ten: frequency ≥ 4 times/week and distance ≥ 40 km/week, for over 1 year) and the novice group (fifteen: frequency ≤ 2 times/week and distance ≤ 10 km/week, for less than 1 year). Results: The peak Meta loading showed that the novice runners were significantly larger than the experienced runners (p ≤ .001). The occurring time of peak Meta loading was significantly delayed compared to the experienced runners (p = .050). Peak Foot balance was higher in the novice runners group (p ≤ 0.001). Conclusions: This study highlighted the findings of the potential differences of plantar pressures and foot functional parameters during walking in experienced runners and novice runners, specifically the contact duration of phases during stance, toes functions and medial-lateral loading shifting (foot balance) and metatarsals (central forefoot) offloading.