Interferência cognitiva-motora na corrida: efeitos sobre a cinemática de corredores e não corredores

Abstract

Cognitive-motor interference refers to the impact cognitive tasks can have on the execution of the involved motor activity. In running sports, for example, practitioners are continuously exposed to secondary cognitive tasks, where attention is divided, potentially altering movement biomechanics significantly. Here, we aim to investigate how a condition of cognitive interference affects the running of both practitioners and non-practitioners of this sport. Our main objective is to determine whether cognitive-motor interference modifies the running kinematics in individuals with different levels of experience. The study involved 15 runners (experienced runners, aged 31.9 ± 5.3 years, body mass 72.3 ± 7.9 kg, height 1.70 ± 0.05 m) and 15 non-runners (without regular running experience, aged 23.9 ± 2.6 years, body mass 77.5 ± 9.1 kg, height 1.74 ± 0.05 m). Participants performed treadmill running sessions, with and without cognitive-motor interference. In the interference session, participants responded to a Stroop task with congruent and incongruent words and colors while running. Each running session followed a randomized sequence protocol, with fixed speeds of 7, 9, and 11 km/h, with kinematic data collection. Our main findings include: (i) similar treadmill running kinematics between runners and non-runners; (ii) consistent effects of speed on running kinematics, with differences between runners and non-runners observed sporadically for the ankle; and (iii) effects of dual-task condition on specific variables and instances of the running cycle, mainly at the ankle, suggesting an effect of dual-task on foot positioning on the treadmill, which seems to increase with speed. As a conclusion, we understand that a cognitive-motor interference condition based on the Stroop task has few effects on the kinematics of runners with different levels of experience, suggesting a more detailed evaluation of ankle kinematics. Practically, this suggests that environmental conditions may not significantly affect running technique during biomechanical assessments in the laboratory.