DON’T PHONE

A new study2 suggests that visual and auditory distractions can increase loading rate and ground reaction force in runners. Subjects ran on a treadmill and had to concentrate on a screen showing letters in different colours and note when a letter-colour combination appeared, or listen out for a word being spoken by a specific voice. In both cases, the focus needed proved to be an unwelcome distraction, eliciting a higher heart rate and breathing rate, and having a negative effect on landing forces.