Matthew W. Bundle

The biological limits to running speed are imposed from the ground up

Running speed is limited by a mechanical interaction between the stance and swing phases of the stride. Here, we tested whether stance phase limitations are imposed by ground force maximums or foot-ground contact time minimums. We selected one-legged hopping and backward running as experimental contrasts to forward running and had seven athletic subjects complete progressive discontinuous treadmill tests to failure to determine their top speeds in each of the three gaits. Vertical ground reaction forces [in body weights (W(b))] and periods of ground force application (T(c); s) were measured using a custom, high-speed force treadmill. At top speed, we found that both the stance-averaged (F(avg)) and peak (F(peak)) vertical forces applied to the treadmill surface during one-legged hopping exceeded those applied during forward running by more than one-half of the bodys weight (F(avg) = 2.71 +/- 0.15 vs. 2.08 +/- 0.07 W(b); F(peak) = 4.20 +/- 0.24 vs. 3.62 +/- 0.24 W(b); means +/- SE) and that hopping periods of force application were significantly longer (T(c) = 0.160 +/- 0.006 vs. 0.108 +/- 0.004 s). Next, we found that the periods of ground force application at top backward and forward running speeds were nearly identical, agreeing to within an average of 0.006 s (T(c) = 0.116 +/- 0.004 vs. 0.110 +/- 0.005 s). We conclude that the stance phase limit to running speed is imposed not by the maximum forces that the limbs can apply to the ground but rather by the minimum time needed to apply the large, mass-specific forces necessary.

The fastest runner on artificial legs: different limbs, similar function?

The recent competitive successes of a bilateral, transtibial amputee sprint runner who races with modern running prostheses has triggered an international controversy regarding the relative function provided by his artificial limbs. Here, we conducted three tests of functional similarity between this amputee sprinter and competitive male runners with intact limbs: the metabolic cost of running, sprinting endurance, and running mechanics. Metabolic and mechanical data, respectively, were acquired via indirect calorimetry and ground reaction force measurements during constant-speed, level treadmill running. First, we found that the mean gross metabolic cost of transport of our amputee sprint subject (174.9 ml O(2)*kg(-1)*km(-1); speeds: 2.5-4.1 m/s) was only 3.8% lower than mean values for intact-limb elite distance runners and 6.7% lower than for subelite distance runners but 17% lower than for intact-limb 400-m specialists [210.6 (SD 13.2) ml O(2)*kg(-1)*km(-1)]. Second, the speeds that our amputee sprinter maintained for six all-out, constant-speed trials to failure (speeds: 6.6-10.8 m/s; durations: 2-90 s) were within 2.2 (SD 0.6)% of those predicted for intact-limb sprinters. Third, at sprinting speeds of 8.0, 9.0, and 10.0 m/s, our amputee subject had longer foot-ground contact times [+14.7 (SD 4.2)%], shorter aerial [-26.4 (SD 9.9)%] and swing times [-15.2 (SD 6.9)%], and lower stance-averaged vertical forces [-19.3 (SD 3.1)%] than intact-limb sprinters [top speeds = 10.8 vs. 10.8 (SD 0.6) m/s]. We conclude that running on modern, lower-limb sprinting prostheses appears to be physiologically similar but mechanically different from running with intact limbs.

Point: Artificial limbs do make artificially fast running speeds possible

#### Overview. Three mechanical variables constrain the speeds of human runners: 1 ) how quickly the limbs can be repositioned for successive steps, 2 ) the forward distance the body travels while the foot is in contact with the ground, and 3 ) how much force the limbs can apply to the ground in

High metabolic rates in running birds

The ability to increase metabolic rate during locomotion has been important in the structural evolution and evolutionary success of both birds and mammals. Greater endurance capabilities are conferred directly by greater maximal metabolic rates, which vary between species. These maximal rates are known for many mammals but have not been determined for birds. We have measured oxygen consumption in a large flightless bird, the rhea, Rhea americana , while it was running on an inclined treadmill, and find an upper limit to aerobic metabolism that is 36 times greater than the minimum resting rate, a factorial increase exceeding that reported for nearly all mammals.

Sprint exercise performance: does metabolic power matter?

Prevailing physiological paradigms explain both sprint and endurance exercise performance in terms of the availability of metabolic energy. However, for all-out efforts of 60 s or less, the prevailing view is no longer viable. Contemporary evidence indicates that sprinting performance is determined by musculoskeletal force application, with a duration dependency explained by the intrinsically rapid rates at which skeletal muscle fatigues in vivo.