Strengthening the Forces Put the Shortest up Front

August 6, 2024 - Defence Stories

Q: I’m 6 feet 4 inches tall and I do regular rucksack marches to stay fighting fit. I believe in leadership by example, and so I try to lead all our unit marches. At a recent injury prevention briefing, we were told it was safer to have the shortest personnel lead unit marches/runs. Could you explain why having taller personnel lead marches/runs puts shorter personnel at increased risk of injury? Marching Mackenzie

A: Dear Marching Mackenzie: thank you for your commitment to remaining operationally ready. Many leaders use rucksack marching and running as part of their unit fitness programs. While these activities are very effective, they need to be done carefully to protect your personnel from injury.

Thanks to injury prevention research, scientists know that recruits who are shorter than their peers and tend to run or march at the back of the group are at higher risk of injury. Why? When taller recruits set the march or run pace, the shorter personnel are forced to over-stride to keep up. 

Over-striding significantly alters a person’s marching and running biomechanics and this puts them at higher risk of injury. When you over-stride, your lead foot lands too far in front of your centre of gravity. As a result, you land harder on your heel, with a straighter knee. Both these biomechanical changes reduce your body’s ability to absorb the impact forces that are generated with each stride- and the more impact force the body has to absorb, the greater the risk of injury.

One of the most serious injuries seen in personnel who over-stride is stress fractures most commonly in the pelvis, femurs, lower legs and feet. These injuries can significantly disrupt training and render personnel non-deployable. Some of these fractures take several months to heal and, in some cases, may result in permanent disability.

Reducing the risk of these injuries can be achieved with two simple strategies. First: have the shortest personnel lead all marches/runs. This will shorten everyone’s stride and will not increase the risk of injury to taller personnel. Second: allow your personnel not to march in step. This allows everyone to set their own stride length. Both strategies are very effective, cost nothing to implement, and have no negative impact on unit fitness.

Bottom line: Over-striding increases the risk of potentially serious injury to your personnel. This can be avoided by something as simple as ensuring your shortest personnel lead all unit marches/runs or allowing your personnel not to march/run in step. It is amazing how doing something so small can have such a positive impact. Smart exercise is good medicine! 

Dr. Darrell Menard OMM MD, Dip Sport Med

Dr. Menard is the Surgeon General’s specialist advisor in sports medicine and has worked extensively with athletes from multiple sports. As part of the Strengthening the Forces team he works on injury prevention and promoting active living.

Strengthening the Forces (#STF) is CAF/DND’s healthy lifestyles promotion program providing expert information, skills and tools for promoting and improving CAF members’ health and well-being.