Excess Body Weight and Gait Influence Energy Cost of Walking in Older Adults.

• Autores: Dain P. Laroche, Mauro Gonçalves, Nise R. Marques, Heidi N. Shumila, Christopher R. Logan, Robyn St. Laurent
• Localización: Medicine & Science in Sports & exercise: Official Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine, ISSN 0195-9131, Vol. 47, Nº. 5, 2015, págs. 1017-1025
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • AB Purpose: The objective of this investigation is to study how excess body weight influences the energy cost of walking (Cw) and determine whether overweight and obese older adults self-select stride frequency to minimize Cw. Methods: Using body mass index (BMI), men and women between the ages of 65 and 80 yr were separated into normal weight (NW, BMI <=24.9 kg[middle dot]m-2, n = 13) and overweight-obese groups (OWOB, BMI >=25.0 kg[middle dot]m-2, n = 13). Subjects walked at 0.83 m[middle dot]s-1 on an instrumented treadmill that recorded gait parameters and completed three 6-min walking trials; at a preferred stride frequency (PSF), at +10% PSF, and at -10% PSF. Cw was determined by indirect calorimetry. Repeated-measures ANOVA was used to compare groups, and associations were tested with Pearson correlations, [alpha] = 0.05. Results: OWOB had 62% greater absolute Cw (301 +/- 108 vs 186 +/- 104 J[middle dot]m-1, P < 0.001) and 20% greater relative Cwkg (3.48 +/- 0.95 vs 2.91 +/- 0.94 J[middle dot]kg-1[middle dot]m-1, P = 0.046) than NW. Although PSF was not different between OWOB and NW (P = 0.626), Cw was 8% greater in OWOB at +10% PSF (P < 0.001). At PSF, OWOB spent less time in single-limb support (33.1% +/- 1.5% vs 34.9% +/- 1.6 % gait cycle, P = 0.021) and more time in double-limb support (17.5% +/- 1.6% vs 15.4% +/- 1.4% gait cycle, P = 0.026) than NW. In OWOB, at PSF, Cw was correlated to impulse (r = -0.57, P = 0.027) and stride frequency (r = 0.51, P = 0.046). Conclusions: Excess body weight is associated with greater Cw in older adults, possibly contributing to reduced mobility in overweight and obese older persons