Effect of joint flexibility on walking economy in middle‐aged and older people

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to clarify the effect of joint flexibility on walking economy.Methods: Forty‐one healthy people (20–79 years) were divided into old (n = 13, 67 ± 5 years), middle (n = 11, 54 ± 3 years) and young groups (n = 17, 23 ± 3 years). Each group was asked to measure maximal walking speed, flexibility (trunk, ankle and hip joint), oxygen uptake during treadmill walking (60, 80 and 100 m/min) with and without stretching.Results: All variables measured (except flexibility of ankle joint) in older groups (n = 24) were significantly lower than those in the young (P < 0.05–0.001). However, there was no difference in mean values between the two older groups. Although stretching improved flexibility in all groups (P < 0.01–0.001), oxygen uptake during walking decreased only in the older groups (P < 0.05–0.01). Maximal walking speed in the older groups positively correlated only with flexibility of hip joint (r = 0.52; P < 0.01) and negatively with oxygen uptake during walking (r = –0.37 to –0.41 (P < 0.05)). The only flexibility that showed significant correlations with oxygen uptake during walking was that of the hip joint in the older groups (older: r = –0.44 to –0.55; P < 0.05–0.01; young: r = –0.11 to 0.08).Conclusion: These data suggest that the increase of flexibility, especially flexibility of the hip joint, induces improvement of walking economy in older adults, but not in young adults, and that increasing the flexibility of the hip joint could contribute a beneficial effect to maintaining and improving walking ability in middle‐aged and older adults.