Gait stability and adaptation in young adults with different BMI classifications

Our walking patterns must be adjusted continuously in everyday living, whether for maneuvering on slippery surfaces or stepping over cracks on the street. Walking becomes more challenging as it requires more energy to lift and accelerate the body due to additional loads on the body as we move through space. This dissertation investigates gait, stability, and adaptation in adults with range of adiposity. First, we studied how people with obesity adapt to spatial (obstacle crossing) and temporal (metronome walking) task constraints during walking over-ground. Results indicated that people prioritized a spatial over temporal constraint when attempting to meet both constraints at the same time. Second, we tested how massive weight loss affects gait and stability. We measured how bariatric surgery patients walked and crossed obstacles before and one year after surgery. Findings indicated that massive weight loss improved not only gait but also postural stability during gait. Third, we quantified whole-body rotational characteristics in adults with obesity through changes in angular momentum quantities during steady-state walking. I found that angular momentum (1) was greater in adults with higher BMI, (2) was highly regulated by foot placement, and (3) did not change with walking speed. Taken together these results suggest that gait and stability can be adapted. These findings may help to develop interventions to target specific walking deficits in patients with mobility limitations such as obesity

EFFECTS OF FOOT PLACEMENT ON RESULTANT JOINT MOMENTS OF LOWER EXTREMITY JOINTS DURING SQUAT

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of foot placement (stance width and foot angle) on normalized sagittal- and frontal-plane resultant joint moments (NRJM) of the lower extremity joints during the squat. Forty-two participants were recruited: male (n = 21) and female (n = 21). Three-dimensional motion analysis and inverse dynamics analysis were conducted. There was a significant interaction between the stance width and foot angle on the NRJM in the sagittal plane, whereas there were significant main effects of the stance width, foot angle, and gender on the NRJM in the frontal plane

EFFECTS OF MOVEMENT SONIFICATION AUDITORY FEEDBACK ON REPETITIONS AND BRAIN ACTIVITY DURING THE BENCH PRESS

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of movement sonification auditory feedback on repetitions and brain activity during bench press. Twenty participants performed bench press until failure in three different sound conditions: no-sound, self-selected music, and movement sonification. Repetition maximum was measured to assess bench press performance. Beta wave representing arousal level and frontal alpha asymmetry indicating motivation level and type were also measured. Results showed that frontal alpha asymmetry in movement sonification was significantly higher than that in music and no-sound, but no statistically significant differences were observed in repetition maximum and beta wave among the three conditions. In conclusion, this study concluded movement sonification auditory feedback can be used to motivate individuals rather than listening to music during bench press

Effects of Obesity on Adaptation Transfer from Treadmill to Over-Ground Walking

Discerning whether individuals with obesity transfer walking adaptation from treadmill to over-ground walking is critical to advancing our understanding of walking adaptation and its usefulness in rehabilitating obese populations. We examined whether the aftereffects following split-belt treadmill adaptation transferred to over-ground walking in adults with normal-weight body mass index (BMI) and obese BMI. Nineteen young adults with obesity and 19 age-matched adults with normal weight walked on flat ground at their preferred speed before and after walking on a treadmill with tied belts (preferred speed) and with the split-belt at their preferred speed and at a speed 50% slower than their preferred speed. The adaptation and aftereffects in step length and double-limb support time symmetry were calculated. We found that the amount of temporal adaptation was similar for adults with obesity and with normal weight (p > 0.05). However, adults with obesity showed greater asymmetry for double-limb support time following split-belt treadmill walking compared to adults with normal weight (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the transfer of asymmetry for double-limb support time from the treadmill to over-ground walking was less in adults with obesity than in adults with normal weight (p < 0.05). The transfer of adapted gait following split-belt treadmill walking provides insight into how atypical walking patterns in individuals with obesity could be remediated using long-term gait training

Effects of Obesity on Adaptation Transfer from Treadmill to Over-Ground Walking

Discerning whether individuals with obesity transfer walking adaptation from treadmill to over-ground walking is critical to advancing our understanding of walking adaptation and its usefulness in rehabilitating obese populations. We examined whether the aftereffects following split-belt treadmill adaptation transferred to over-ground walking in adults with normal-weight body mass index (BMI) and obese BMI. Nineteen young adults with obesity and 19 age-matched adults with normal weight walked on flat ground at their preferred speed before and after walking on a treadmill with tied belts (preferred speed) and with the split-belt at their preferred speed and at a speed 50% slower than their preferred speed. The adaptation and aftereffects in step length and double-limb support time symmetry were calculated. We found that the amount of temporal adaptation was similar for adults with obesity and with normal weight (p > 0.05). However, adults with obesity showed greater asymmetry for double-limb support time following split-belt treadmill walking compared to adults with normal weight (p p < 0.05). The transfer of adapted gait following split-belt treadmill walking provides insight into how atypical walking patterns in individuals with obesity could be remediated using long-term gait training