biostudies-literatureUnknown242(12)Monaghan PGGait adaptability is crucial for meeting environmental demands, and impaired gait adaptation increases fall risk, particularly in older adults. While prior research exists on older adults' gait adaptation, particularly in perturbation studies, the specific contributions of temporal and spatial adaptation strategies to step length asymmetry (SLA) during split-belt treadmill walking require further examination. This study fills this gap by evaluating how distinct adaptation strategies contribute to SLA in healthy young and older adults. 19 healthy young adults (20.4 ± 1.1 years) and 19 healthy older adults (68.3 ± 8.1 years) walked on a split-belt treadmill requiring their non-dominant leg to move twice as fast as their dominant leg. Repeated measures ANOVA investigated (1) spatial and tempoExperimental brain research2815-2825https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC11568997biostudies-literatureExploring age-related differences in the relationship between spatial and temporal contributions to step length asymmetry during split-belt adaptation.PMC11568997Roper JAMurrah WMNeely KAMonaghan PGWalker HCfalseExploring age-related differences in the relationship between spatial and temporal contributions to step length asymmetry during split-belt adaptation.Gait adaptability is crucial for meeting environmental demands, and impaired gait adaptation increases fall risk, particularly in older adults. While prior research exists on older adults' gait adaptation, particularly in perturbation studies, the specific contributions of temporal and spatial adaptation strategies to step length asymmetry (SLA) during split-belt treadmill walking require further examination. This study fills this gap by evaluating how distinct adaptation strategies contribute to SLA in healthy young and older adults. 19 healthy young adults (20.4 ± 1.1 years) and 19 healthy older adults (68.3 ± 8.1 years) walked on a split-belt treadmill requiring their non-dominant leg to move twice as fast as their dominant leg. Repeated measures ANOVA investigated (1) spatial and tempo2024-01-01T00:00:00Z2024 Dec2025-04-04T00:47:42.306Z2025-04-04T00:47:42.306ZS-EPMC115689973944616310.1007/s00221-024-06929-1