The Ergogenic Effect of Elastic Therapeutic Tape on Stride and Step Length in Fatigued Runners

doi:10.1016/j.jcm.2014.09.003

Journal of Chiropractic Medicine

Volume 13, Issue 4, December 2014, Pages 221-229

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcm.2014.09.003 Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective

The purpose of this study was to determine if elastic therapeutic tape placed on anterior lower limbs would affect stride and step length in fatigued runners’ gait.

Methods

Forty-two healthy participants were equally divided into a kinesiology tape group (Rocktape) and a no-tape control group. Participants in both groups underwent a baseline running gait test at 6 mph without tape. After this, participants engaged in an exhaustive lower body fatigue protocol until they reached maximal volitional exhaustion. Participants were then randomized to 1 of 2 interventions: (1) Experimental group, which had kinesiology tape placed under tension on the anterior aspect of their lower limbs bilaterally from the upper thigh to just below the patella, or (2) Control group, which did not receive taping. All participants then engaged in a similar 6-mph running gait postanalysis. Participant’s gait was analyzed for 90 seconds during each test iteration. Researchers used a 2-way repeated-measures analysis of variance considering fatigue (prefatigue, postfatigue) and group (tape, no-tape) as subject factors.

Results

After the fatigue protocol, the no-tape group demonstrated a significant decrease in step length of 14.2 mm (P = .041) and stride length of 29.4 mm (P = .043). The kinesiology tape group did not demonstrate a significant decline in these gait parameters.

Conclusions

In this preliminary study, placing elastic therapeutic tape over the anterior lower limbs demonstrated short-term preservation of runner step length and stride length in a fatigued state.

Introduction

Fatigue occurs with strenuous physical exertion.1, 2 Physiological fatigue can be caused by central and peripheral mechanisms, with peripheral mechanisms being more critical in motivated athletes.² Four sites that have been shown to be most involved in peripheral fatigue development are impairment of metabolic energy supply, contractile mechanisms, excitation-contraction coupling, and sarcolemma excitability.3, 4, 5

Ergogenic aids may be capable of aiding fatigued runners perform. Ergogenics aids may be mechanical (eg, elastic therapeutic tape/kinesiology tape), nutritional, psychologic, and/or pharmacologic.

Elastic therapeutic taping, sometimes referred to as kinesiology taping, is a supportive aid that is often used by trainers, therapists, and physicians to address conditions in athletes and patients (eg, one brand is Rocktape). The Rocktape brand has made 4 claims about its product: that it increases kinesthetic awareness through cutaneous afferent stimulation; reduces pain by relieving pressure on pain receptors due to the tape’s ability to lift the epidermis; improves fluid dynamics, which reduces edema; and improves the athletes’ form.⁶ Furthermore, the company claims that “[R]ocktape can help athletes improve form and decrease fatigue through better blood flow.”⁷ However, the impact Rocktape has on athlete fatigue and whether modification in blood flow is the reason remain unproven.

Three systematic reviews have demonstrated there is a lack of high-quality evidence that kinesiology tape can be used to treat musculoskeletal conditions.8, 9, 10 Limited kinesiology taping studies focusing specifically on athletes with musculoskeletal injuries have been generated.11, 12, 13 In addition, studies focused on the capability of kinesiology tape to act as an ergogenic aid and improve athletic performance are also limited12, 14, 15, 16; and thus, further research is warranted because of the popularity of kinesiology tape. Two review articles found that conclusive evidence did not exist to support the use of kinesiology tape at improving athletic performance but that kinesiology tape did not cause any negative effects on performance.17, 18 One of the 2 articles further went on to point out that there were some small but interesting case studies supporting the use of kinesiology tape for athletes.¹⁸ However, because of the possibility of bias, they suggested that larger, more well-controlled studies were needed.¹⁸

It has been recommended that kinesiology tape should be placed on the posterior and anterior aspect of the lower limbs for runners.¹⁹ However, the impact of taping the anterior and posterior aspect of the lower limbs, individually or collectively, has not been adequately studied.

To date, there have been no published studies to assess step and stride length in fatigued runners with and without elastic therapeutic tape. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to determine if step length and stride length would be preserved better in a fatigued state for those who have been taped anteriorly compared with those with no elastic therapeutic tape.

Section snippets

Methods

This study was reviewed and approved by the Texas Chiropractic College Institutional Review Board for human subjects in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. All subjects were provided a written and oral explanation of the study procedures prior to participation. This trial was registered with the University hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trials Registry, trial no. UMIN000014662.

Results

Table 1 illustrates the grouped attributes of participants after their last successfully completed level of the fatigue protocol. Participants randomized to the experimental group demonstrated a higher level of performance during their exhaustive test than participants in the control group. This was shown by the experimental group completing more stages of the exhaustive test and thus reaching higher mean kilopond cycle ergometer resistance settings. In addition, the experimental group

Discussion

The implications of this study suggest that elastic therapeutic taping of the anterior thigh aids runner performance in a fatigued state. In this study, step length and stride length were preserved; the duration and full benefit of this protective ability warrant further review.

One hypothesis for the mechanism of action was that the tape might have had a “rubber band”–like action that could help fatigued runners pull their trail lower limb anteriorly due to the elasticity of the tape. Skeletal

Conclusion

The preliminary findings of this experiment showed that placing elastic therapeutic tape on the anterior aspect of the lower limbs from the upper thigh to just below the patella showed short-term protection from declines in step length and stride length of fatigued runners.

Funding Sources and Conflicts of Interest

This research project was supported by a grant from the Rocktape company. No conflicts of interest were reported by the authors for this study.

References (0)

Cited by (10)

Acute effect of inhibitory kinesio-tape of the upper trapezius on lower trapezius muscle excitation in healthy shoulders
2021, Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies
Citation Excerpt :
Kinesio-tape (KT) is an elastic adhesive tape that is routinely used by therapists, clinicians, and athletes in an effort to improve performance and reduce injury risk (Drouin et al., 2013; Ward et al., 2014).
Shoulder pain increases excitation of the upper trapezius (UT) and reduces excitation in the lower trapezius (LT). Despite inconclusive evidence, kinesio-tape (KT) is often used to modify muscular excitation within the UT and/or LT to help correct alterations in scapular position and motion associated with shoulder pain/injury. The objective of the current study was to determine if inhibitory KT to the UT acutely increases LT excitation and if load alters the magnitude of change in the excitation observed.
Twenty-two (N = 22, 11 female) individuals with healthy shoulders (24 ± 3 years) completed 10 repetitions of an arm elevation task during 3 taping conditions (no-tape, experimental KT, sham KT) and 2 loading conditions (no load and loaded). Whole-muscle (mean grid) and spatial distribution (grid row) of LT excitation (root mean squared; RMS) was measured using a single high-density surface electromyography 32-electrode grid. Results: There was a main effect for loading condition on whole-muscle LT RMS, F (1, 19) = 38.038, p < .001, partial η² = 0.667. Whole-muscle LT RMS was significantly higher in the loaded condition (0.055 V ±0 .005) compared to the no-load condition (0.038 V ±0 .004). No effect of tape condition was observed on whole-muscle or spatial distribution of RMS.
Our findings suggest that inhibitory KT to the UT does not alter whole-muscle excitation or shift the distribution of excitation within the LT during a repeated arm elevation task in healthy shoulders.
Effect of two Dynamic Tape™ applications on the electromyographic activity of the gluteus medius and functional performance in women: A randomized, controlled, clinical trial
2021, Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies
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A recent review (Reneker et al., 2018) points to the lack of convincing evidence that KT (the most studied bandage) improves sports performance skills. Moreover, to date, limited evidence supports its use for increasing muscle strength (Christou 2004; Fukui et al., 2017; Kim et al., 2015) for ensuring joint stability (Christou 2004; Hosp et al., 2017; Kim et al., 2015) and for improving lower limb athletic performance (Ward et al., 2014). It should be noted, however, that the effect of functional bandages has been investigated almost exclusively when they are applied to the knee and ankle muscles.
Dynamic Tape™ (DT) is a biomechanical tape that is used to directly manage load, modify movement patterns, and assist functioning. However, no studies have evaluated its effectiveness in increasing gluteus medius (GM) muscle activation and improving functional performance.
To investigate the effect of two forms of DT applications on the electromyographic (EMG) activity of the GM muscle and lower limb functional performance.
Thirty-three, healthy, recreationally active women were randomly assigned into two groups: 1) submitted to the DT application on GM muscle that adhered to the stretching method for Kinesio Tape® application (KG, n = 17) and 2) submitted to the DT application on GM muscle that adhered to the stretching method suggested for DT (DG, n = 16). The EMG evaluation of GM was performed at rest, in maximum voluntary isometric contraction, and in the single-leg squat, drop landing, and jump landing + maximum vertical jump tests. Functional performance was evaluated using the triple hop test and the 6-m timed hop test.
No significant changes in GM activation or functional performance were found, regardless of the stretching method used. No significant intergroup differences were observed (α = 5%).
DT did not increase GM activation in functional activities, and it did not improve functional performance in the lower limbs in healthy women, regardless of the form of application used.
Effectiveness of kinesiology tape on sports performance abilities in athletes: A systematic review
2018, Physical Therapy in Sport
Citation Excerpt :
Since the development of Kinesiotape®, there have been many similarly developed dynamic elastic adhesive tapes, collectively known as kinesiology tape. Kinesiology tapes are used for a range of reasons including to: improve blood flow (Woodward, Unnithan, & Hopkins, 2015), reduce pain (Lee, Yi, & Lee, 2016), prevent injuries (Woodward et al., 2015), facilitate recovery (Woodward et al., 2015), expand range of motion or flexibility (Farquharson & Greig, 2015; Lee et al., 2016), increase strength, add stability (Kim, Lee, Kim, & Lee, 2015) and enhance several other measures of athletic performance (Kinesio University, 2016; Ward et al., 2014). Despite the widespread publicity and use by athletes, there is limited research evidence to support the use of KT for these reasons (Nunes et al., 2015).
Establish the effectiveness of kinesiology tape (KT) on sports performance abilities compared to that of other tapes or no tape with consideration to the application methodology, timeframe, and outcome measurement.
PubMed, Embase, and PEDro databases were systematically searched. The following inclusion criteria were applied: 1) participants were healthy athletes, 2) compared any brand of dynamic KT to other types of tape (sham or therapeutic) and/or no tape, 3) measured some construct of functional sports performance, 4) involved randomization. The PEDro scale was used to grade the risk of bias.
Fifteen studies met the inclusion criteria with PEDro scores ranging from 3 to 8 of 10 points. The sports performance abilities included: ball skills; power squats; cycling; dynamic balance; jumping (vertical and horizontal); agility; sprint speed; and distance running with 193 comparisons between KT and other tapes or no tape at a variety of timeframes after application. In total, eleven comparisons demonstrated significant effects: 2 in favor of KT, 8 in favor of Mulligan's tape, and one in favor of no tape.
There is a lack of compelling evidence to support the use of KT to enhance the sports performance abilities based on this review.
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Efficiency of high velocity low amplitude (HVLA) lumbosacral manipulation on running time and jumping distance: Comparison with sham manipulation in amateur soccer players
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Original ArticleThe Ergogenic Effect of Elastic Therapeutic Tape on Stride and Step Length in Fatigued Runners

Abstract

Objective

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Introduction

Section snippets

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion

Funding Sources and Conflicts of Interest

Original Article
The Ergogenic Effect of Elastic Therapeutic Tape on Stride and Step Length in Fatigued Runners