Human walking biomechanics on sand substrates of varying foot sinking depth.

ABSTRACT: Our current understanding of human gait is mostly based on studies using hard, level surfaces in a laboratory environment. However, humans navigate a wide range of different substrates every day, which incur varied demands on stability and efficiency. Several studies have shown that when walking on natural compliant substrates there is an increase in energy expenditure. However, these studies report variable changes to other aspects of gait such as muscle activity. Discrepancies between studies exist even within substrate types (e.g. sand), which suggests that relatively 'fine-scale' differences in substrate properties exert quantifiable influences on gait mechanics. In this study, we compared human walking mechanics on a range of sand substrates that vary in overall foot sinking depth. We

SUBMITTER: Grant BF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11574363 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature