An Investigation of the Relation Between the 30 Meter Running Time and the Femoral Volume Fraction in the Thigh

Abstract

Leg components are thought to be a related to speed. Only a limited number of studies have, however, examined the interaction between speed and bone size. In this study, we examined the relationship between the time taken by football players to run thirty meters and the fraction which the femur forms compared to the entire thigh region. Data collected from thirty male football players of average age 17.3 (between 16-19 years old) were analyzed. First we detected the thirty meter running times and then we estimated the volume fraction of the femur to the entire thigh region using stereological methods on magnetic resonance images. Our data showed that there was a highly negative relationship between the 30 meter running times and the volume fraction of the bone to the thigh region. Thus, 30 meter running time decreases as the fraction of the bone to the thigh region increases. In other words, speed increases as the fraction of bone volume increases. Our data indicate that selecting sportsman whose femoral volume fractions are high will provide a significant benefit to enhancing performance in those branches of sports which require speed. Moreover, we concluded that training which can increase the bone volume fraction should be practiced when an increase in speed is desired and that the changes in the fraction of thigh region components should be monitored during these trainings. (Biol.Sport 26:369-378, 2008)