Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are part of a team interested in identifying risk factors for injuries specifically among high school cross country runners. This fall, we are starting a project to determine how changes in running mileage, sleep, stress, and fatigue influence injury risk.
The results of this study will help us determine the following:
- What is a safe progression of running mileage is among high school runners to reduce injury risk?
- How do sleep and well-being (stress, fatigue) influence running injury risk?
- How participation in other sports and prior injury may influence running injury risk
To accommodate the on-going pandemic, no in-person interaction is required to participate in the study.
Please contact the study coordinator, Mikel Joachim, MS, with any questions at joachim@ortho.wisc.edu or 608-890-4261
Information for Parents:
The athletic director at your child’s school has reviewed this study and agreed that the school can participate. Your child’s participation in the study (or not) will have no impact on their eligibility to participate in WIAA events.
If your child is under 18, we require your consent for them to participate. Participation includes one pre-season survey and a daily survey throughout the season.
The pre-season survey includes questions regarding:
- Current and prior sport participation
- Prior injuries and surgeries
- Dietary and nutritional habits
- Current quality of life
The daily survey will be texted or emailed to your child and should take < 2 minutes to complete. The daily survey includes questions regarding:
- Running mileage, duration, and intensity
- Prior night’s sleep duration and quality
- Current levels of stress and fatigue
- Injuries they are currently experiencing
The athletic trainer at your child’s school will also report injuries. We are interested in injuries your child self-reports and injuries from the athletic trainer to gain information regarding less severe injuries that may not impact training and injuries requiring medical attention, which may be more severe. The injuries your child reports in the daily survey will not be shared with the athletic trainer.
Information for Coaches:
Your school and team’s participation in this study will have no impact on your team’s eligibility to participate in WIAA events.
Throughout the season, we will periodically ask for your training plans to help us verify the mileage and duration the runners report in their daily surveys. Providing your training plans is completely optional.