How to Calculate Force on the Knee
Things You'll Need
- Bathroom scale
- Pedometer
- Scientific calculator
Instructions
-
-
1
Measure your body weight by standing on the bathroom scale.
-
2
Run 1 mile at regular training pace while wearing the pedometer to count the number of steps you take during that mile.
-
3
Multiply your body weight by 2 and also by 3. A runner's knees endure a force equal to two to three times the runner's body weight with each footstrike during a run. Your results should produce a range of weight the knees endure with each footstrike. For a 150-lb. runner, the range would be 300 to 450 lbs. of force per footstrike.
-
4
Multiply each end of the range calculated in Step 3 by the number of steps measured on the pedometer in Step 2. The result is how much force the knees endure during a typical mile run at training pace. The average runner takes 400 steps on each leg per mile, meaning each knee endures a force of about 12,000 to 18,000 lbs. over the course of a 1-mile run.
-
1