Oh, what a groundbreaking revelation: running on a treadmill might be a tad challenging for adults who’ve recently had their bells rung. The Buffalo Concussion Treadmill Test (BCTT), previously the darling of youth athlete concussion management, has been put through its paces with adults. Because, you know, why not see if what works for sprightly young athletes applies to the rest of us mere mortals?

In this thrilling episode of “Treadmills: The Unexpected Diagnostic Tool,” researchers corralled 37 adults who had the misfortune of experiencing a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and 24 lucky ducks who managed to avoid such excitement. Their mission? To hop on a treadmill at two different times post-injury and see how long they could last before waving the white flag.

And the results are in! If you’ve had a recent knock on the noggin, you’re more likely to throw in the towel earlier than your uninjured counterparts. Shocking, I know. At the one-week mark, a whopping 55.6% of the mTBI group showed signs of “maybe this isn’t such a great idea,” with symptoms flaring up or getting pooped out before hitting the magical 85% of their age-predicted max heart rate. Fast forward to one month later, and the dropout rate slightly improved to 48%. Meanwhile, 30% of the control group, presumably questioning their life choices, managed to complete the BCTT at both time points, despite various complaints ranging from “Ouch, my everything hurts” to “I’m just really, really tired.”

But wait, there’s more! It turns out that being taller, lighter, male, and symptom-free might just make you a treadmill superstar. Who would’ve thought that physical characteristics and the absence of concussion symptoms could possibly affect your ability to jog in place?

In conclusion, the BCTT might just be the next big thing in adult mTBI management, as long as we remember that non-athletes are, well, not athletes. And that running on a treadmill can indeed make you feel worse if you’ve recently had a concussion. Groundbreaking stuff, truly.