Automatic learning mechanisms for flexible human locomotion.

ABSTRACT: Movement flexibility and automaticity are necessary to successfully navigate different environments. When encountering difficult terrains such as a muddy trail, we can change how we step almost immediately so that we can continue walking. This flexibility comes at a cost since we initially must pay deliberate attention to how we are moving. Gradually, after a few minutes on the trail, stepping becomes automatic so that we do not need to think about our movements. Canonical theory indicates that different adaptive motor learning mechanisms confer these essential properties to movement: explicit control confers rapid flexibility, while forward model recalibration confers automaticity. Here we uncover a distinct mechanism of treadmill walking adaptation - an automatic stimulus-response mappin

SUBMITTER: Rossi C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10557598 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature